Ok..recently bought an '02 AP1....absolutely love
the car and the look...especially the 18" Axis black
wheels against the NFR paint which still looks wet
even though it's an '02(I just clayed it..like results
but what a pia!)

Now then..while I love the look of my 18inchers...I feel
handling is nowhere near how my OEM '06 handled.
Slow corners the car is fine...but faster corners from 25 and
up the car just gets unsettled on turn in..and feels at times
like the car is on stilts! ugh!

But..one good thing has been I was worried 'bout driving an S without
VSA like my '06 had...and i have to say even in the rain this car has GRIP.
I cant get the tail to kick out!
Yes..the rubber is good..
so I'm torn..give up good looks and great grip for possibly AP1 wheels
which to me look good but wont have the grip..or opt for 17inchers like V1's
which might have good grip but not the best in looks.
Commonsense tells me to go for the AP1 wheels 'cause that's what engineers
initially fit on this car..
but with the advent of the AP2 they of course went for the 17inchers.
thanks for any feedback

 

I'm confused you're talking about getting stock wheels? You might as well get aftermarket ones while you're at it.


In regards to performance your best bet would be a light wheel. Now what is your price range because I can tell you wheels that will be $1000 for a set or $5000 for a set and in between.

Tires are what you're looking for in other words. The rubber on the boot is the most important thing you can have for handling. RS3's, Pilot Super Sports, or NT01s. I recommend either of those.

 

IMO 18's look way too big for our cars, not to mention 9 times out of 10 they perform worse, tires cost much more also. 17's are the way to go, I'd even take 16's over 18's but that's me

 

Yes I'm considering oem wheels as the car came with 18" Axis wheels
when I bought it.
I respect and understand the time and engineering that Honda put into
choosing the 16inchers that went onto AP1's..but also when the AP2 came
along they then went with 17inchers..I'm guessing for a larger tire
patch for grip.

The Axis wheels look trick no doubt..and they have great grip
even when wet but the handling?..just something isn't right.

I'll either just learn to live with compromised handling
for the good looks..or get 17inchers for imprved handling.

 

The contact patches are nearly identical for the OEM tires for AP1 and AP2. The change to 17" for AP2 gave them a chance to address the wet performance problem of the S02 tires, which were biased towards maximum dry grip and notoriously bad in the rain.

You have more choices for tires if you go 17". And a high quality 17" aftermarket wheel will be lighter than the OEM wheels.

 

Unless you are going forged and proper offset quality wheels, stay OEM.

 

What are your alignment specs?

 

I have absolutely no idea!
I do know the car does pull severly to
the right when motoring down the road..
I did stop by a tire shop to ask pricing for
alighnment/balance and I think they mentioned
they would just pull Honda specs for an '02 S2000.

 

I'm not familiar with those 18" wheels, but unless they weigh 30lb+ they aren't going to be the contributor of the handling corks you are, or think you are experiencing. I would look to the type of tires and air pressure your running as well as alignment first and foremost, then start looking at the suspension condition. Typically 18"s are going to offer you the most responsive and direct handling attributes due to the shorter sidewall, limiting deflection. This also makes for a harsher ride and to the novice driver looking for more predictable traction breakaway, not the best most forgiving choice.

Going back to the ap1 16"s would be a poor performance choice considering the other options of today, and that's just it, the thoughts 13 years ago regarding the philosophy and choice of those size wheels are outdated. Overall 17's are your best performing option for the S. In some cases 18" are the best compromise due to the larger tire widths available. Factory 16's offer no benefits over either options ( you can pick up a 17" wheel like the RPF1 that weighs less) so I'm not sure why they would even be considered today. 18" actually do have a place, just not in typical 8-9" widths people seem to more commonly run on this car.

 

what is this "stilt" feeling everybody keeps talking about? i want to make sure I avoid it when upgrading my rims/tires.