Benifits for road racing?
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Dooky Booty
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Benifits for road racing?
I was thinking about new wheels for road races out on tracks. i heard that the smaller the wheel size the more torqe u get. so will 16" wheels on my 8 give me more performance gain or loss? i was thinking about getting 16" wheels 8 inches wide on some 40 profiles. some people say the the handling of the car will go down if i go with smaller rims, are there any truth to this? would appreciate some suggustions from the pros out there. oh yeah, mazda took first place in P2 class of american le manz this pass sunday, congrats to them. renisis engine starting out pretty good so far.
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Well, depending on what brakes you got with your RX 16" wheels might not clear the calipers. Most people seem to run 17" wheels for the track. I believe the MT has larger rotors which will obviously make a difference.
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Originally Posted by ZoomZoomH
you need at least 17's to clear the big brakes on the 6 speed cars.
cool, thanks, but what will happen performance wise? will i get some more torqe? will i lose anything in my handling? thanks again :D
#6
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the main reason people get smaller wheels for track is to reduce unsprung weight. Basically, the lighter the wheel/tires are, more power can be put down to the ground instead of wasted trying to turn the heavy-*** stock wheels the 8 has :D
LIGHTWEIGHT is the key, not actual rim size.
LIGHTWEIGHT is the key, not actual rim size.
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Originally Posted by ZoomZoomH
the main reason people get smaller wheels for track is to reduce unsprung weight. Basically, the lighter the wheel/tires are, more power can be put down to the ground instead of wasted trying to turn the heavy-*** stock wheels the 8 has :D
LIGHTWEIGHT is the key, not actual rim size.
LIGHTWEIGHT is the key, not actual rim size.
I see, very helpful. but i also wanted to go down on the size cause of the prices of tires on 18's, ouch. :p
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You won't get more torque. There's no way a smaller tire will increase the torque output of an engine.
What it WILL do is help the car be at a higher RPM at a lower speed where HP/TQ can be accessed and put to the wheels more efficiently/quicker, by keeping the RPMs up.
I ran tires that were 1.5" shorter than stock on my old WRX which allowed the boost to come on about 300-500 prm sooner which meant torque was put to the ground about 500 rpm sooner.
But as others have said, without that much of a change in tire diameter or weight, you won't notice it that much. Here's a good calculator to show the average difference in diameter:
http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html
--kC
What it WILL do is help the car be at a higher RPM at a lower speed where HP/TQ can be accessed and put to the wheels more efficiently/quicker, by keeping the RPMs up.
I ran tires that were 1.5" shorter than stock on my old WRX which allowed the boost to come on about 300-500 prm sooner which meant torque was put to the ground about 500 rpm sooner.
But as others have said, without that much of a change in tire diameter or weight, you won't notice it that much. Here's a good calculator to show the average difference in diameter:
http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html
--kC
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Originally Posted by Razz1
It will be fine. Unless your a pro, you won't notice the difference betwen 45 and 40
Besides you haven't even been on the track yet.
Besides you haven't even been on the track yet.
#11
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Originally Posted by mike0615
I see, very helpful. but i also wanted to go down on the size cause of the prices of tires on 18's, ouch. :p
Last edited by ULLLOSE; 05-29-2005 at 07:57 AM.
#12
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Originally Posted by ZoomZoomH
you need at least 17's to clear the big brakes on the 6 speed cars.
#14
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ultimately a smaller diameter wheel/tire package can be lighter, but it may take a racing 3-pc wheel to get there. They aren't low cost and can be bent easily; a 16" x 8" wheel should be able to get down to the 12 - 13 lb range. You'd be more likely to get 3-pc 16" racing wheel to clear the brakes if that's an issue.
anyone ever try to fit the factory 16" x 8" FD wheels? They were in the 15 - 16# range as I recall. The pattern and offset should work, not sure if it will clear the calipers though.
anyone ever try to fit the factory 16" x 8" FD wheels? They were in the 15 - 16# range as I recall. The pattern and offset should work, not sure if it will clear the calipers though.
#15
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I run Kosei K1 TS 8x17 with 255/40 Kumho MXs. Saves me 7.6 pounds per corner and the tires are cheaper. And the MXs are .8" smaller in diameter then the OEM tires.
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