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16x8 wheels - need help w/tire size

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Palm City
#1
My Rota Slipstreams in 16x8 +38mm should be here at the end of the month and I'm looking for a fairly sticky set of tires. The car does not get driven much so I'm not too concerned about treadwear, but wet performance is important due to the amount of rain we get down here in FL.

I originally was set on 225/45/16 ZII Star Specs. The car is lowered on ST XTA coilovers, but I'm only running around -1.3 degrees camber up front. I don't mind rolling my fenders, but I DO NOT want to deal with rubbing over bumps. I can't stand that sort of thing.

That being said, straight line performance and of course handling are also important. I would like to try to crack 12s in the 1/4 this winter. My overall options w/specs are as follows:

205/45/16 RE71R - 7.1" tread width / 8.1" section with / 23.2" diameter / 19lbs / 8/32" tread depth

215/45/16 Rival S - 7.3" tread width / 8.4" section width / 23.6" diameter / 20lbs / 7.2/32" tread depth

225/45/16 ZII - 8.5" tread width / 8.9" section width / 23.9" diameter / 23lbs / 9/32" tread depth


If the 225s will fit, they'd be my first choice...but I hear mixed reports of them rubbing vs not. Maybe someone can provide further input and help guide me in the right direction.
 


TempeST

Active member
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Honolulu
#2
i would say just stick with the 205's you will not have any rubbing issues, 8" on 205's are perfect for best handling performance(road course). The Rival S's are pretty sweet though. I would not go with 225 on 8" and especially since you are lowered.

Just my .02 and I know a few people who would agree with me. But I know there are many who will not, and believe that wider is better which is not always true.
 


RAAMaudio

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#3
I am a huge proponent of having just a little stretch to maximize the overall grip/feedback/ride/and often weight difference equation, I run my ten 225 wide tires on my ten 9" wide wheels for that reason and run my 205's on 8" wide wheels.

Very good to see you list the real tires specs, far to often overlooked and what prompted me to run the wheel and tire combos I use.

I would not use the ZII in that size, gearing, possibly weight gain, less feedback, etc....for autocrossing it sometimes is best to run the widest tire you can fit per the rules on less than perfect wheel widths but then they are not as good at anything else.

The RE71 in the listed size is just 19lbs which is very low and a good thing but tread width is a bit narrow though not a deal breaker, likely ride a bit stiffer and make more noise than the Rival S but a bit faster in most situations.

The Rival S is very sticky, rides well, not very noisy but heat up fairly quick on a road race course or even likely on an extended if working them hard back road run though are great for autocross. I like that they are always ready to go once the weather is warm, not much warmup needed and huge grip, with the EFR turbo making 320 WHP on 91 and out of fuel so stopped tuning it, LSD, etc I had barely any wheel spin in second gear and barely chirp them in third but am not a drag racer and do not do hard launches but from a roll when the boost kicked in suddenly they lite right up, somebody that practices launches, uses nannies to help, etc could likely get off the line very quickly with these tires.








My car is 2575 lbs and with the 225 wide Rival S tires on I was in a deluge of rain, car was fine except a bit twitchy over standing water but nothing terrible though I grew up driving in rain, snow, gravel, etc....
 


Siestarider

Senior Member
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Stuart
#4
I have 215/45/16 Rival S on 16x7 OZ Ultras, on street they are not very good in rain, BFG SC in 205/45/16 are noticeably better. Rival better in dry on street. Comfort similar, cannot speak to noise, my exhaust is too loud.

On track Rivals came into their own after one heat cycling trackday. They are slightly vague on 7" wheels but should be better on 8's. Despite lack of turn in and weight transfer sensitivity, they are couple seconds quicker at both Sebring and PBIR than 205/45/16 BFG SC's when those about half worn and at their best. They wear about twice as fast as SC's on track.
 


Waterfan

Active member
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SoCal
#5
If you feel the RE71s are too narrow, have you ruled out 205/45-16 BFG SC2?

On my 16x7s they have just the slightest amount of bulge and therefore may have the perfect amount of stretch on 16x8.

Section: 8.1
Tread: 8
Diameter: 23.2 (radar signs around here match my speedo perfectly, to the nearest whole number only of course)
Weight: 21 (a bit heavy, but great value at ~$90 per)
 


RAAMaudio

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#6
The BFG SC2 is a great tire but a step down in all out performance than the tires the OP listed though it should wear longer if taken care of and the tire used on the OC cars which I drove and liked the tires.
 


Waterfan

Active member
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#7
The BFG SC2 is a great tire but a step down in all out performance than the tires the OP listed though it should wear longer if taken care of and the tire used on the OC cars which I drove and liked the tires.
True that, they are UTC 340 AA (only "fairly sticky, not "super sticky"). Decent in the rain, but that may not be a major concern.

the 21 lbs weight makes them rather unattractive as well.
 


Messages
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Location
Fort Myers
#8
Did the wheels show up yet MS67? I like the look, weight savings and the price point on the slipstreams. Very curious to see what direction you went with your tire choice.
 


OP
M
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Palm City
Thread Starter #9
Did the wheels show up yet MS67? I like the look, weight savings and the price point on the slipstreams. Very curious to see what direction you went with your tire choice.
Since the general consensus was I wouldn't be able to run 225s, I decided it's not a worthwhile upgrade and cancelled my order. I'm going to wait until more people figure out how to fit 225s without too much hassle before I look into it once more. Otherwise, there's really no point in upgrading from the stock wheels if I'm only saving 4lbs per corner and not gaining traction. Just my opinion of course.
 


Messages
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Location
olathe
#10
Since the general consensus was I wouldn't be able to run 225s, I decided it's not a worthwhile upgrade and cancelled my order. I'm going to wait until more people figure out how to fit 225s without too much hassle before I look into it once more. Otherwise, there's really no point in upgrading from the stock wheels if I'm only saving 4lbs per corner and not gaining traction. Just my opinion of course.
I run 16x8 +38 with 225 ZII's on BC coilovers with -2 camber for well over a year, it doesn't rub if you keep it at proper height. Didn't pull any fenders but I did trim the bumper tab up in the wheel well back some.
 


RAAMaudio

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#12
I have said this dozens of times but no worries as I want to help others that might not know you have to go by real specs like section width and tread width, not the sidewall size rating as it is seldom even close to accurate. Also look at tire diameter and weight as they can vary quite a bit. The only constant in picking tires is the wheel diameter.

Some 205s are wider than 225's, some 195's work great on an 8" wide wheel as more like a 215 or wider, Hoosier 225/45/15 are so wide I could not fit them under the rear of the car on the 9" wheels with rolled and pulled fenders and -1.9 camber I spent a great deal of time on.

I run my 225/45/15 RAI track tires and Rival S summer tires on 9" wheels and 205/50/15 NeoGen AS tires(really three season) on 15x8 which are amazing AS tires and a perfect fit on 8" wide wheels though some even put them on 9's and not to bad a stretch.
 




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