Affordable racing wheels?
08-20-2020, 06:57 PM
#1
Registered User
Thread Starter
Affordable racing wheels?
Hey guys,
I've been trying to do my research in searching for a set of racing wheels.
Using a tire size calculator, the stock tire sizes are 24.6" and 24.7" for the natural 215/45 & 245/40 sizes. The allowable size for Tuner/STR is 255 which most people use the 255/40/17 size.
If you need help with your wheel fitment I recommend you read @spa-zz 's Wheel Fitment Guide . It will answer your questions of "Will it fit?" do your own research.
17 vs 18" Wheels
17" wheels subjectively look better on the car. They look like they belong on the car, simply because they do.
They are cheaper to run than, typically, costing up to 20-30% LESS than a comparative 18" wheel. For a track junkie or road vehicle where value/dollar is the key component, 17in wheels make more sense because tires are consumable and will be replaced regularly.
17's are also lighter by approximately 10% and the tires themselves are lighter by about 4lbs ea tire. For an 18lbs rim, that's up to 6lbs per wheel at 24lbs of rotating mass.
18" wheels do have their share of benefits though.
Urge Designs claims 18in wheels have optimal side wall widths and the correct grip/stiffness ratio to create an optimal tire patch. Big Brake clearance and tolerance is much more generous due to the wheel profile shape. Urge also states the 18" wheels allows for 1/2 an inch of wheel width due to the additional backspacing. The 18" wheels are taller and thus avoids contact with the A-arm. This allows for more rubber. More rubber, more faster.
Comparable 18" diameter 255/35/18's and it will always be a heavier choice because the tires themselves weigh 4lbs more and the respective rims weigh 1-2lbs more than their 17" counterparts,
The number 1 in my amateur opinion, is tire choice. Tires are less available in 17" and the industry is moving to 18". Many manufacturers do not create certain tires in wide enough 17" widths. If you want to win any event, you run the tire everyone is winning on or you spend big bucks to experiment and find out which new tire is best tire. Companies like Michelin and Continental are offering less and less modern tires in non-economy 17" sizing. (usually 255+)
On a similar note, many manufacturers stopped creating the circular aluminum 17" circular blocks. Have you noticed that certain brands like BBS, CCW, SSR, GramLights, and Advan no longer carry 17" forged or monoblock options? I hate to break it to you, but even though you have an S2000 and need new rims, 17" wheels don't sell as often. It makes more financial sense to them to use their forge machine to create monoblock aluminum wheels for 18" wheels instead. Bigger companies will still produce 17" options, but you'll find them with cheaper creation methods such as casting and molds which don't require a big chunk of metal to be CNC'ed.
OEM Sizes
205 tire 16x6.5 +55 / 225 tire 16x7.5 +65 is the stock wheel size for an AP1. (1" Stagger)
215 tire 17x7.5 / 245 (255 CR) 17x8.5 is the stock wheel size for an AP2. (1.5" Stagger)
Stagger or Square
It's my opinion, and only my opinion. So if you're not happy with this, go find another thread.
Stagger or Square depends on how much work you're willing to do to make the car fit the wheels. Square set ups are cheaper because you can rotate your tires to get more life out of them.
Stagger makes sense if you're running safe OEMish tire sizes like 8" fronts and 9 or 9.5" rears.
Square makes sense if you want more track days. 9.0 or 9.5" or 10" with Fender Mods
Stagger makes sense if you need specific tire sizes and are willing to compromise to run them. ie. 265/295, 295/315, 305/335 tires
All my searching brings me back to the Enkei RPF1's in a 17" diameter. They're found readily and easily new and used. RPF1's make sense and there's a reason why they're so common at the track/AX events.
But perhaps you want an alternative lightweight / affordable wheel? I made a list of comparable wheels with their respective weights and some reference pricing.
Using Bridgestone Potenzas as a base, with a Wheel Diameter of 25"
Bridgestone Potenza 255/40/17 21.90lbs
Bridgestone Potenza 255/35/18 25.90lbs
Manufacturer / Model / Size / Weight / Price Per Wheel / Price Per Set
949 Racing 6UL 17x9+55 17.4lbs ($189/756)
949 Racing 6UL 17x10+52
TSW Interlagos 17x9+63 ($284/$1136) discontinued
TSW Nurburgring 17x9+63 ($311/1244)
Enkei RPF1 17x9+45 15.65lbs ($250-290)
Enkei RPF1 18x9+35 17.10lbs
Enkei PF01 17x9+60 ($329/$1314)
Enkei NT03 17x9.0+63 ($502/$2009)
Enkei NT03 17x9.5+38
Wedsport SA-72R 17x9.0+42 ($315/$1260)
Wedsport TC-105N 17x9+49 15.75lbs ($445/$1780)
Wedsport TC-105N 18x9+50 16.95lbs
Titan7 TS5 17x9.5+51 16.5lbs ($495/$1980)
Titan7 R10 17x9.5+51 16.8lbs ($495/$1980)
Advan RZII 17x9+45 ($2132)
Advan RGIII 17x9.5+45 ($2090)
Advan RSii 17x9+63 16.3lbs ($538) discontinued
Advan RSii 18x9+52 18.1lbs discontinued
Advan GT 18x9.5 18.4 - 18.7lbs
Volk CE28N 17x9.5+63 15.15lbs ($680)
Volk CE28N 18x9+40 16.53lbs
Volk TE37 Saga 17x9+61 16.6lbs ($743/$2971)
Volk TE37 Saga 18x9.5 +22* 18.8lbs
Volk ZE40 17x9.0 +61 $2959
Volk RE30 discontinued
Kosei 5R 17x9.0+62 discontinued
Kosei K8R 17x9.0+62 discontinued
I've been trying to do my research in searching for a set of racing wheels.
Using a tire size calculator, the stock tire sizes are 24.6" and 24.7" for the natural 215/45 & 245/40 sizes. The allowable size for Tuner/STR is 255 which most people use the 255/40/17 size.
If you need help with your wheel fitment I recommend you read @spa-zz 's Wheel Fitment Guide . It will answer your questions of "Will it fit?" do your own research.
17 vs 18" Wheels
17" wheels subjectively look better on the car. They look like they belong on the car, simply because they do.
They are cheaper to run than, typically, costing up to 20-30% LESS than a comparative 18" wheel. For a track junkie or road vehicle where value/dollar is the key component, 17in wheels make more sense because tires are consumable and will be replaced regularly.
17's are also lighter by approximately 10% and the tires themselves are lighter by about 4lbs ea tire. For an 18lbs rim, that's up to 6lbs per wheel at 24lbs of rotating mass.
18" wheels do have their share of benefits though.
Urge Designs claims 18in wheels have optimal side wall widths and the correct grip/stiffness ratio to create an optimal tire patch. Big Brake clearance and tolerance is much more generous due to the wheel profile shape. Urge also states the 18" wheels allows for 1/2 an inch of wheel width due to the additional backspacing. The 18" wheels are taller and thus avoids contact with the A-arm. This allows for more rubber. More rubber, more faster.
Comparable 18" diameter 255/35/18's and it will always be a heavier choice because the tires themselves weigh 4lbs more and the respective rims weigh 1-2lbs more than their 17" counterparts,
The number 1 in my amateur opinion, is tire choice. Tires are less available in 17" and the industry is moving to 18". Many manufacturers do not create certain tires in wide enough 17" widths. If you want to win any event, you run the tire everyone is winning on or you spend big bucks to experiment and find out which new tire is best tire. Companies like Michelin and Continental are offering less and less modern tires in non-economy 17" sizing. (usually 255+)
On a similar note, many manufacturers stopped creating the circular aluminum 17" circular blocks. Have you noticed that certain brands like BBS, CCW, SSR, GramLights, and Advan no longer carry 17" forged or monoblock options? I hate to break it to you, but even though you have an S2000 and need new rims, 17" wheels don't sell as often. It makes more financial sense to them to use their forge machine to create monoblock aluminum wheels for 18" wheels instead. Bigger companies will still produce 17" options, but you'll find them with cheaper creation methods such as casting and molds which don't require a big chunk of metal to be CNC'ed.
OEM Sizes
205 tire 16x6.5 +55 / 225 tire 16x7.5 +65 is the stock wheel size for an AP1. (1" Stagger)
215 tire 17x7.5 / 245 (255 CR) 17x8.5 is the stock wheel size for an AP2. (1.5" Stagger)
Stagger or Square
It's my opinion, and only my opinion. So if you're not happy with this, go find another thread.
Stagger or Square depends on how much work you're willing to do to make the car fit the wheels. Square set ups are cheaper because you can rotate your tires to get more life out of them.
Stagger makes sense if you're running safe OEMish tire sizes like 8" fronts and 9 or 9.5" rears.
Square makes sense if you want more track days. 9.0 or 9.5" or 10" with Fender Mods
Stagger makes sense if you need specific tire sizes and are willing to compromise to run them. ie. 265/295, 295/315, 305/335 tires
All my searching brings me back to the Enkei RPF1's in a 17" diameter. They're found readily and easily new and used. RPF1's make sense and there's a reason why they're so common at the track/AX events.
But perhaps you want an alternative lightweight / affordable wheel? I made a list of comparable wheels with their respective weights and some reference pricing.
Using Bridgestone Potenzas as a base, with a Wheel Diameter of 25"
Bridgestone Potenza 255/40/17 21.90lbs
Bridgestone Potenza 255/35/18 25.90lbs
Manufacturer / Model / Size / Weight / Price Per Wheel / Price Per Set
949 Racing 6UL 17x9+55 17.4lbs ($189/756)
949 Racing 6UL 17x10+52
TSW Interlagos 17x9+63 ($284/$1136) discontinued
TSW Nurburgring 17x9+63 ($311/1244)
Enkei RPF1 17x9+45 15.65lbs ($250-290)
Enkei RPF1 18x9+35 17.10lbs
Enkei PF01 17x9+60 ($329/$1314)
Enkei NT03 17x9.0+63 ($502/$2009)
Enkei NT03 17x9.5+38
Wedsport SA-72R 17x9.0+42 ($315/$1260)
Wedsport TC-105N 17x9+49 15.75lbs ($445/$1780)
Wedsport TC-105N 18x9+50 16.95lbs
Titan7 TS5 17x9.5+51 16.5lbs ($495/$1980)
Titan7 R10 17x9.5+51 16.8lbs ($495/$1980)
Advan RZII 17x9+45 ($2132)
Advan RGIII 17x9.5+45 ($2090)
Advan RSii 17x9+63 16.3lbs ($538) discontinued
Advan RSii 18x9+52 18.1lbs discontinued
Advan GT 18x9.5 18.4 - 18.7lbs
Volk CE28N 17x9.5+63 15.15lbs ($680)
Volk CE28N 18x9+40 16.53lbs
Volk TE37 Saga 17x9+61 16.6lbs ($743/$2971)
Volk TE37 Saga 18x9.5 +22* 18.8lbs
Volk ZE40 17x9.0 +61 $2959
Volk RE30 discontinued
Kosei 5R 17x9.0+62 discontinued
Kosei K8R 17x9.0+62 discontinued
Last edited by rush2redline; 05-17-2022 at 09:20 AM.
08-20-2020, 07:30 PM
#3
Registered User
Thread Starter
The stock '04 wheels weigh 17.6lbs and 20.5lbs front and rear and at 8.5" width it would cause me to run 245's with the 24.7" diameter. It's a really good idea though. Mine probably weigh more because they're powder coated black lol...
Last edited by rush2redline; 08-20-2020 at 07:32 PM.
08-20-2020, 10:01 PM
#4
Site Moderator
The 949 racing wheels fit the bill. They offer a 17x9 and a 17x10. Not quite as light as the rpf1’s but cost less. I think they have better brake clearance as well since the 17x9 +45 rpf1’s have very poor brake clearance.
17x9 6UL
I think oz racing makes some options as well.
17x9 6UL
I think oz racing makes some options as well.
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rush2redline (08-21-2020)
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Chibo (08-21-2020)
08-21-2020, 05:08 AM
#6
Registered User
Thread Starter
The 949 racing wheels fit the bill. They offer a 17x9 and a 17x10. Not quite as light as the rpf1’s but cost less. I think they have better brake clearance as well since the 17x9 +45 rpf1’s have very poor brake clearance.
I think oz racing makes some options as well.
I think oz racing makes some options as well.
6UL 17x9 comes in at 16.9 lbs and $190/wheel which is crazy affordable and an alternative I'll be recommending to others now who aren't interested in RPF1's.
I did check out OZ wheels (OZ Allegrita) and TireRack no longer carries them and additionally they did not come in a 17x9 sizing.
It seems like brake clearance is becoming the big factor here though...
I hadn't realized that the 17x9's wouldn't clear BBK's... Do you know what wheel size I would need to run BBK's on the S2K?
I planned on using ideally, the Full Size Wilwood BBK , or the Narrow Wilwood BBK if spacing becomes a greater concern. A friend of
Last edited by rush2redline; 08-21-2020 at 05:12 AM.
08-21-2020, 05:28 AM
#7
You may want it for other reasons, but a BBK is 100% waste for autox. Even for most HPDE unless on a larger track. Most serious autocrossers want SMALLER brakes for weight savings. Seriously, a set of good pads and stock brakes is already more than you need for autocross. So unless you like the looks of a BBK that much do not shop thinking it will help you on the autocross course. I run stock brakes with Hawk pads at track night events even (smaller track, shorter straights) and they do perfectly fine and I have never overheated them. For most people that have them on this car, besides folks running on bigger tracks at much higher speeds, a BBK is a looks thing only. Not bashing that, just dont spend the money thinking it will help you on the autocross course. I wouldn't do it until I was starting to overwork (aka having heat issues) the stock brakes with good pads personally. And if you are overworking the brakes on an autox course you are simply using the brakes way too much 
RPF1's simply are a very poor fit for a 255 sqaure setup. Offsets are too low. With my setup, and rolled front fenders, I went off once and hit a big enough bump to really compress the front suspension with the wheels turned and managed to barely contact the fender with the tire. Made a small ding in it. That is with +63mm offsets and you have seen my setup that I shared, so I do have a decent amount of camber. You cannot pull the fenders (only roll) for STR so you cant get extra clearance there. No way would I sacrifice to running a 245 just because I wanted those wheels. I know some run them with a square setup (and a bit higher ride height I assume), but +55mm or more is going to give you better clearance and less worry in that area. The PF01 I think comes in a higher offset and will give you more clearance. Also to note, the Yoko A052's run wider than RE-71Rs too in the same sizes and have more squared shoulders, making clearance more important. And right now those are the tire to have, so if you plan on running them keep that in mind too.
RPF1's simply are a very poor fit for a 255 sqaure setup. Offsets are too low. With my setup, and rolled front fenders, I went off once and hit a big enough bump to really compress the front suspension with the wheels turned and managed to barely contact the fender with the tire. Made a small ding in it. That is with +63mm offsets and you have seen my setup that I shared, so I do have a decent amount of camber. You cannot pull the fenders (only roll) for STR so you cant get extra clearance there. No way would I sacrifice to running a 245 just because I wanted those wheels. I know some run them with a square setup (and a bit higher ride height I assume), but +55mm or more is going to give you better clearance and less worry in that area. The PF01 I think comes in a higher offset and will give you more clearance. Also to note, the Yoko A052's run wider than RE-71Rs too in the same sizes and have more squared shoulders, making clearance more important. And right now those are the tire to have, so if you plan on running them keep that in mind too.
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1nate7 (08-21-2020)
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08-21-2020, 05:38 AM
#8
17" wheels would be highly preferred for STR and the max width allowed is 9" with 255 tire. There are 17 x 9 wheels that can clear big brakes, just depends on offset and wheel design. Another rule of STR is the body fender can be rolled on the inside but not flared at all. IMO that will eliminate anything +50 and lower or you will likely have issues in front. Ideally, I'd want to be in the +55 to +63 range. TSW Nurburgring is an affordable wheel in 9" +63 than can clear most big brakes.
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rush2redline (08-21-2020)
08-21-2020, 05:41 AM
#9
17" wheels would be highly preferred for STR and the max width allowed is 9" with 255 tire. There are 17 x 9 wheels that can clear big brakes, just depends on offset and wheel design. Another rule of STR is the body fender can be rolled on the inside but not flared at all. IMO that will eliminate anything +50 and lower or you will likely have issues in front. Ideally, I'd want to be in the +55 to +63 range. TSW Nurburgring is an affordable wheel in 9" +63 than can clear most big brakes.
If you are going to run on big tracks and using the kerbing a lot, then I think you may want to double check on the 949 wheels for that use. Not sure how well they hold up to that vs street, light HPDE and autox. I believe they were mainly targeted at autocross drivers. Besides the set I have for my S2k we run them on the ND that I codrive and we like them. The dual valve stems are a lot handier than I expected. But, 949 Racing built the car my codriver now owns, so no surprise on the wheel choice!
08-21-2020, 06:27 AM
#10
Registered User
Thread Starter
You may want it for other reasons, but a BBK is 100% waste for autox. Even for most HPDE unless on a larger track. Most serious autocrossers want SMALLER brakes for weight savings. Seriously, a set of good pads and stock brakes is already more than you need for autocross. So unless you like the looks of a BBK that much do not shop thinking it will help you on the autocross course. I run stock brakes with Hawk pads at track night events even (smaller track, shorter straights) and they do perfectly fine and I have never overheated them. For most people that have them on this car, besides folks running on bigger tracks at much higher speeds, a BBK is a looks thing only. Not bashing that, just dont spend the money thinking it will help you on the autocross course. I wouldn't do it until I was starting to overwork (aka having heat issues) the stock brakes with good pads personally. And if you are overworking the brakes on an autox course you are simply using the brakes way too much
RPF1's simply are a very poor fit for a 255 sqaure setup. Offsets are too low. With my setup, and rolled front fenders, I went off once and hit a big enough bump to really compress the front suspension with the wheels turned and managed to barely contact the fender with the tire. Made a small ding in it. That is with +63mm offsets and you have seen my setup that I shared, so I do have a decent amount of camber. You cannot pull the fenders (only roll) for STR so you cant get extra clearance there. No way would I sacrifice to running a 245 just because I wanted those wheels. I know some run them with a square setup (and a bit higher ride height I assume), but +55mm or more is going to give you better clearance and less worry in that area. The PF01 I think comes in a higher offset and will give you more clearance. Also to note, the Yoko A052's run wider than RE-71Rs too in the same sizes and have more squared shoulders, making clearance more important. And right now those are the tire to have, so if you plan on running them keep that in mind too.
RPF1's simply are a very poor fit for a 255 sqaure setup. Offsets are too low. With my setup, and rolled front fenders, I went off once and hit a big enough bump to really compress the front suspension with the wheels turned and managed to barely contact the fender with the tire. Made a small ding in it. That is with +63mm offsets and you have seen my setup that I shared, so I do have a decent amount of camber. You cannot pull the fenders (only roll) for STR so you cant get extra clearance there. No way would I sacrifice to running a 245 just because I wanted those wheels. I know some run them with a square setup (and a bit higher ride height I assume), but +55mm or more is going to give you better clearance and less worry in that area. The PF01 I think comes in a higher offset and will give you more clearance. Also to note, the Yoko A052's run wider than RE-71Rs too in the same sizes and have more squared shoulders, making clearance more important. And right now those are the tire to have, so if you plan on running them keep that in mind too.
I live within an hour of 3 tracks;Palmer Motorsports 2.3 miles & elevation 509ft
Loudon New Hampshire Motor Speedway 1.6mi elevation ~200ft
Thompson Speedway 1.7mi elevation 469ft
I do plan on running the Yoko's in the future. I heard they're so soft they don't last nearly as long as other tires.
I don't want to turn it into a brake thread, but for heavy track use (more then AX), what brakes do you recommend?