What size wheels?

[Alan]

Eventually I'm going to get a set of designated auto-xing wheels and tires. Currently I have my stock 15x6 Focus wheels sitting in storage...but right now I am running on 16x6.5 Cougar wheels. Would there be any advantage/disadvantage to running on the 15's? My tire choice would most likely be the Victo Racers in 205/50-15 sizing. Are these going to be too wide for my wheels?

[Iroc Joe]

I would think you would be better advantaged in running the larger wheel. Perhaps one of the more knowledgeable people can answer you. What's the dilly-o on these Victo racers?/ Why not jump on the Azenis wagon??? I'm considering the Bridgestone S03 Pole Positions. My dad put them on my mom's new buick and OMG the difference is amazing.

[0HP930]

The lower the tire profile the better.

One of the biggest enemies of proper handling is tire sidewall flex when under lateral loading.

The wider and taller the tire the better, but keep the profile low.

Concidering that there is only a 0.5 inch difference in width between the two sets of rims, my suggestion is to go with the widest low profile tire you can put on the 16s.

[Alan]

Joe, VictoRacers are an R-compound tire unlike the Azenis. MaD grIpZ yO! ;)

[Iroc Joe]

WERD son!! How much are those shits gonna set you back, g? And thanks Anthony, that was my reasoning for telling him to go with the bigger wheel.

[Alan]

I am on a budget though. I have the 15's sitting with no tires on them. If I wanted to go with 16's I would have to buy another set because there is no way in hell I would drive around on r-compounds.

$115 per tire for the VictoRacers in 205/50-15. Maybe I can find them for a better price locally though.


Shit. Realized that I won't be able to make it to the next FSF event due to prior plans made about 2-3 months ago. So maybe I will have time to save for a spare set of 16's. :(

[Iroc Joe]

I'm thinking of doing that to my Focus, whenever the hell they find one w/ my options :) The problem is I'm having seperation anxiety problems with the Camaro. I really don;t want to get rid of it...it has soo much to give in the Auto-X. Imagine what I could do with a balanced car, and some sticky tires! eeek!!!!! I'm trying to convince the parents to allow me to keep the Camaro when I get the Focus.

[Alan]

Originally posted by "87IROC"

I'm thinking of doing that to my Focus, whenever the hell they find one w/ my options :) The problem is I'm having seperation anxiety problems with the Camaro. I really don;t want to get rid of it...it has soo much to give in the Auto-X. Imagine what I could do with a balanced car, and some sticky tires! eeek!!!!! I'm trying to convince the parents to allow me to keep the Camaro when I get the Focus.

Depending on the class you want to run in, they may not allow R-compound tires. I'm running SM eventually, so it won't be a problem. :D

[Iroc Joe]

I was thinking of some certain modifications and was planning on SM too :)

[0HP930]

I kind of know how you feel. I bought a set of high mileage Toyos several months ago when my old rubber was shot and I didn't think I would be auto-xing again for a while.

Now that I'm getting back into auto-xing I'm stuck with a full set of hard compound street tires with thousands of miles left on them. I would really like to get a set of Kumhos but another set of rims would set me back over $1,200.

With the mods I have planned money will be tight for a while so I may have to run a couple more autocrosses on the toyos before I make the switch to some more competitive rubber.

[BIG_Truck_Driver]

Alan, How long before you bump yourself into SM?
If it's gonna be awhile but tires on the 15's since the other wheels will bump you out of stock class.

[leadfootedfool]

Just a little bit of info, it really depends on hp of the car as to be beneficial on larger wheels. Grassroots Motorsports did an in depth article on this, using a neon i believe, to test the performance difference in the bigger wheels. They tried 14's up to 17's and although the 17's did handle better the autox times were slower overall. Keep in mind they were using extremely light 17's. If i can find the article here some where I'll try and post it.

[Leonard]

Joe: I have VictoRacers... :) (and still push like a bag lady behind a shopping cart)

As far as wheel sizes go and tires go, 15's or 16's will be fine for you. I'd recommend not going > 16's. Although technically 17's (and larger) have more potential, they become less forgiving and thus harder to drive. Mainly because of things like moment's of inertia and wheel shock. If I could run 16's I would (for ease of driving as well as cost of replacement tires), but alas... 16's won't fit over my nice smurfy 13" Brembo Rotors with twin POT PBR Calipers up front.... <sigh>

As far as profiles go... You don't want to go two low. I'd recommend staying around the 45-50 range. A little bit of controlled sidewall flex is not a bad thing. Additionally a little bit of compliance in the sidewall helps things out too. Your tires will roll some regardless of how much pressure you run and it's good to have the some sidewall to give rather than risk rolling the bead right off the tire. (Plus, WHEN you have offroading excursions, you've got more protection for your wheels. I've seen some amazing pictures of low profile tires rolling heavily and the rim nearly touching the ground under heavy cornering... I'll try to find some later tonight..

[Alan]

Originally posted by "speed_daemon1"

Alan, How long before you bump yourself into SM?
If it's gonna be awhile but tires on the 15's since the other wheels will bump you out of stock class.

I'm already there with my lack of a rear seat.

[Leonard]

Originally posted by "400HP930"

Now that I'm getting back into auto-xing I'm stuck with a full set of hard compound street tires with thousands of miles left on them. I would really like to get a set of Kumhos but another set of rims would set me back over $1,200.


I can see new wheels running that. Why don't you consider picking up something used that will fit your car? That's what I did for my race wheels. They came off a 96 Cobra. $400.00. Eventually, I want to move to 17x9's (up from 17x8's) so I can run a little more tire 275/40 vs 245/45, but that will come in time.

[0HP930]

I had concidered that, but unlike the wheels that fit your car a rim with the right offsets for my car fit almost nothing but the porsche.

You can imagine what that does to the cost. :o

I do have an eye out for a good used set of rims, but a pair of 17 X 8 and 17 X 9.5 size rims with the correct offset aint gonna be cheap.

The most likely scenario is once I recover from paying Dave White I will just take off the Toyos, stack them in the corner of the garage and put on the Kumhos. It will certainly allow me to turn a little faster on the commute to and from work and I will just try to cut down on my cross state commuting.

Its only about 8 miles between the house and work so they should not wear out too quickly.

[138MustangGT]

Leonard is right about the sidewall flex and a good old heavy car. Your car is much lighter so you can definitely get away with less sidewall that he can. A 40 series would probably be recommendable, but a 35 would be too much IMO.

With more traction comes more stresses and the compliance of an actual sidewall will REALLY help you feel traction slip away in a linear sense. The less sidewall you have the more abrupt the loss of traction will be. The compound of the tire also plays a very significant part, but within brands (compounds) of tires, it will be more linear.

On a different note, 15" wheels will be cheaper.
--15" tires will be cheaper
--you will numerically increase your gearing (which makes acceleration FASTER, thus better)
--you lower your car, even though the smaller tires will look runky in a big fenderwell, you are going for function... not form. Unless you're a ricer?

that's my opinion.


And for you 400HP930, has anyone tried ghetto fitting a set of odd rims on your car? You'd be suprised at which rims don't have the EXACT offset but do fit well nonetheless. I've seen the sacrilege of a Supra running knock-off Cobra rims... (cheap ripoffs none the less!!!)


And Leonard... 275s will fit on 17x8's
I have seen it done. It was done at the last State Championship in Gainesville last year. The guy who came in last in FS (he was on HARD COMPOUND STREET TIRES) had 275/40ZR17's in the rear and 245/45/17's up front.

-S to the H to the AWN

[Leonard]

400HP930 -- Yeah, the real reason I got the wheels cheap was because so many people buy Mustangs and go immediately to get aftermarket wheels. Thus, there is a reasonable used supply of wheels available.

Shawn -- 275's will fit, but I imagine it would feel all sorts of out of whack with that much angle to the sidewall. Heck, they'd prolly be curved all around like Hoosiers....

[Alan]

Speaking of ghetto rims. I just found out that Fox-body Mustangs share the same odd bolt pattern as the Focus. The only problem is the offset is waaaaaay off. There is a guy on Focaljet who purchased a set of the oldschool turbine GT wheels. He has to shave a few mm off the inside of the rim so it will clear the calipers, but supposedly they work. I'm kind of skeptical about the wacky offset, but you can get those wheels for like $10 a piece...or sometimes free. :)

[Leonard]

Get yourself a set of 10 holes!!!!!

[Alan]

Originally posted by "MinGreyCobra"

Get yourself a set of 10 holes!!!!!

Are they wider than 6inches? Do you know off hand how much they weight?

[Alan]

OH SHIT! Just found a good deal on some 15x7 inch wheels. $109 per wheel. TW "Thrust" wheel...charcoal center w/polished lip. I don't have a weight yet, but they are supposed to be light. 225/50-15 VictoRacers should fit nicely on that. :D

[Alan]

Those wheels I described above weigh in at around 19lbs. :o Offset is 34-35...stock offset on a Focus should be between 40-49. Guy says it should widen my track up a bit, but I am wondering if I will have tire rubbing issues. Any comments?

[Zate]

in all honesty Alan.. why not try a set of Rotas ?.. i am sure they come in your offset and bolt pattern.. for 17s they will be cheap.. probably about $100 a wheel..

if i had the focus i'd be going for 15s ..hell when i get a second set of wheels for the WRx they will be 16s ..hehe.. cheaper wheels and tires :)

[Alan]

Originally posted by "WRX"

in all honesty Alan.. why not try a set of Rotas ?.. i am sure they come in your offset and bolt pattern.. for 17s they will be cheap.. probably about $100 a wheel..

if i had the focus i'd be going for 15s ..hell when i get a second set of wheels for the WRx they will be 16s ..hehe.. cheaper wheels and tires :)

I'm thinking I may go with either the 15 or 16inch Rotas when the time comes. Depending on whether or not I can sell my stock 15's, I may just stick with those. The widest I can get is a 205 on those rims, but that would probably be sufficient for the time being.

[Leonard]

Originally posted by "phatstang1"

Get yourself a set of 10 holes!!!!!

Are they wider than 6inches? Do you know off hand how much they weight?

They were 15x7. I don't know how much they weigh off hand though. You should be able to find a set of em for cheap cheap cheap.. Ford used that style from 85(or 87)-93... Call greenleaf and see if they got em and how much...

[Leonard]

Check out Steeda... they've got used takeoff parts.

Stock Focus wheels/tires for $100.00 a corner... you're not gonna beat that.

http://www.steeda.com/store/SPECIAL/wheels.htm

it's at the bottom of the page!

[Alan]

Thanks for the info Leonard. A place called FocusCentral is actually selling a set of the stock 16inch Focus wheels with tires for only $400 (only 50miles on the tires). If only I could find that sort of deal on another set of 16inch Cougar rims/tires like I already have.