This has been on my mind for a bit now and after doing a brief search in this section (my time is limited though) I still haven't found any solid info, even after doing some research.

First off, my S2k is a 2002 AP1 and is lowered on Eibach springs alone with an aproximate drop of 1" at all corners. (and naturally the suspension has settled a bit more over the years)The fenders have not been rolled whatsoever.

I am concerned about getting rid of unsprung weight, mostly at the front wheels of the car.

So in my search, I'm interested in acquiring a pair of 16"x 7.0" wheels for the front

and

a pair of 17"x 8.0 wheels for the rear.

My choice of wheels, and they have been a big desire, are the Volk CE28N 10 spokes in either bronze or the Time Attack Championship White w/red lip. I know these wheels are forged and quite light.

The tires I have decided on are 215/45-16 front
and
245/40-17 Bridgestone Potenza RE11's.

I'd like to keep the rear offset at a fairly lower number (say around +45) but the fronts can stay around +48 to +52 offset.

So my question is did I do my homework right or is there anything I might need to rethink.

And please be polite about it, as most folks here are. I've been with S2ki for a long time now.

Thank you,
-Jeremy

 

As a big fan of smaller-diameter wheels, I still hafta say you're probably barking up the wrong tree. 16s just aren't that much lighter-weight than 17s.

You're choices for front tires would be realistically limited to 205/55-16 or 225/50-16, *very* few 215/45-16s out there. RE-11s do not come in that size.

If you go 16 fronts with 17 rears with appropriate (i.e., similar) tire diameters, the front tires will have 1/2" taller sidewalls and will be visibly beefier-looking as a result.

I've considered running AP1 rears up front with 225/50-16 street tires (245/45-16 track tires), and AP2 rears in back with 265/40-17 streets (275/40-17 track) for maximum grip at minimum cost, so I can definitely see where you're coming from...

 

wouldn't the white honda time attack editions be a little hard to find since they were discontinued, especially in a 16/17" setup

 

all things being equal just going from a 17" wheel to a 16" wheel won't save a huge amount of weight. in most cases(especially with lighter weight wheels) the tire weighs more than the wheel. if you want the car to stay level front to back you will need a taller sidewall up front and any weight savings will be negligible. otherwise if you go with a similar sized sidewall both front and rear then obviously your car will be higher in the back. the car won't be perfectly balanced any more but probably fine if you don't mind the look. personally, i'd go with a full set of lightweight 17" and the smallest tires you feel comfortable with. 215/45 front and 235/40 rear for example will have matching sidewalls.

 

One of my sets of wheels has 17" front and 18" rears, and I did both because I didn't like the look of the 18" wheels on the front and to save some unsprung weight.

 

Ran different diameters on a Camaro years ago. I wanted a rake w/o jacking up the rear. Went with the same width and profile tires all around, just 1" shorter wheels in front.

 

Alright, sounds like some good, solid info then.

So in a nutshell, I should just stick with 17's all around (obviously because of a better tire selection) but just pick a wheel thats close to the weight of the Mugen MF10's, say for that matter. Soooooo the CE28N's would be a great example.

225 in front and 245 in rear will still give me an even look.

And also, I should stay with a +45 offset rear wheel or larger (in number) to avoid rubbing issues and not have to roll the fenders? I do have a slight amount of negative camber on the rears also.

I believe that Project Mu makes a mini-4 piston aluminum brake caliper kit for the front brakes that could help my unsprung weight dilemna too. And I am using the Buddy Club lightweight lug nuts to boot.

If there's any more info on this please fill me in but otherwise thanks for the great responses. Unfortunately I will have to part with the Mugens before I go ahead and purchase a new set of wheels. Those white time attacks are probably discontinued like mentioned previously but they still show they are for sale according to inlinefour.com.

Thanks fellas.

 

run either 215/245 combo or 225/255. 225 front and 245 rear will have a thicker tire up front

 

225/45 up front and 245/40 in the rear would be a fine match. only about a 3mm difference in sidewall height.

and just guessing that with a 245 on an 8" wheel with no roll and a drop you'll have to go higher than +45 to avoid any chance of rubbing...

 

Good advice guys, thanks for the info.