Mish

Hi All,

I have the option of some 17" rims for my AP1,

Size would be...

Front 7.0 x 17 (highest offset I can get is et45)
Rear 8.0 x 17 (highest offset I can get is et53)

I know this is 0.5" all round wider than the standard 16" rims... but its also 0.5" narrower on the back than the 17" OE 17" rims but the same width on the front as the 17"

Just wondering if anyone had any thoughts as to if they would look ok on the car or whether they would look too narrow on the back? I cant get an 8.5 on the back unfortunately in this rim.

I could get a 7.5 on the front with offset up to et53 and on the rear a 9.0 but only up to an offset of et45, so perhaps this would leave things a bit tight for rubbing?

Anyone running a 7 x 17 front and 8 x 17 rear or alternatively a 7.5 front and 9.0 rear and have the same offsets as above? Be interested to see some images of how they 'sit' on the car and also if theres been any issues with them?

Thanks

s2000Junky

The first 7 +45 - 8 +53 Option will be slightly more aggressive looking then stock ap2 at 10mm further out up front and 6mm more aggressive in the rear. The ap2 is roughly 12mm more aggressive then the ap1, so do the math on how much more agressive the wheels will look compared to your stock 16. Still no fender mods would be needed if that’s important to you.

A lot of people run 9 +45 in the rear, but this is where you start getting into rolling fender territory if you run too large a tire or don’t dial in enough camber. 245 tire and good -2/-2.5 camber in rear is usually fine, but depends on your ride height, id say no more then -1 drop and your good. The front 7.5 + 53 will clear fine without fender mods, its outer fitment will be almost identical to the 7 +45, so that would be a better option no matter what you put on the rear, to actually be able to run wider then a 215 if you want and not have it be overly pinched/detrimental to handling.

Mish

hey thanks for the reply S2000Junky...

Curiosity question... why do you think the 7.5" will be better option no matter what we go for on the rear? Is 0.5" stagger enough front to back? (i.e. 7.5 front and 8 rear)?

Or is it better to have the same stagger as on the AP1 of 1"... i.e. front 6.5 rear 7.5?

I want to try and keep the rolling radius of the tyre the same as stock... so on the front I could run the stock size tyre of 215/45R17 if using the 7"?

Appreciate the thoughts. thank you.

Chuck S

Stock OEM AP2 wheels slip right into the wheel well of an AP1. With OEM size tires the speedo reads spot on.

-- Chuck

1nate7

That will be fine as long as you stick with 215 front, 245 rear tires. You won't have the wheel width to support wider tires or any extra fender clearance. I think it will look fine, certainly more aggressive than stock.

The 7.5"/9" wheel would allow 225 front, 255 rear tires but you will have a high chance of rubbing depending on ride height and alignment settings.

s2000Junky

Because wider is better simply put, since you wont be compromising fitment. A 215/45 will perform better on a 7.5" vs a 7". 245/40 will work on a 8" for the rear. But id go for the 9 +45 option instead if it were me. You just have a higher level of performance option there, even if down the road you have to roll fenders to maximize it. You can be more flexible with a 7.5/9" set up. sticking to 215/245 or doing a 215/255 or 225/255 and roll fenders. You really don’t want a 255 on a 8" narrow wheel if you have better alternatives. 10" is actually where a 255 is maximized to get the most out of that tire, to put things in better perspective.

Mish

thanks for that S2000junky... and Nate... much appreciated.

Decisions decisions haha.

Mish

thanks chuck... looking to keep the after market wheels the same as OE rolling radius so I dont run into any issues down the line.