Grassroots wheels, FWD edition

So... i'm sure you're all getting sick of my n00bish questions about your opinions as of late.

Going from "are caliper spacers ok?" to "hai guise!! can i has a 302 in mah MGB??!"

But i have yet another one, then i think i'll be able to get out of your hair for awhile.

My current money pit (92 celica GT) is in need of new wheels/tires. The 7th gen Celica GTS wheels are going on the 91 vert, along with the Hankooks currently mounted on them.

I have two choices in terms of size at the moment. I'm pretty sure what you guys will choose at this point, but i would still like to see suggestions for both sizes.

I need either 16x7s in 5x100 lug pattern, or 17x8s (GASP!). I WOULD go with 16x8s, but trying to find a tire appropriate seems to be like trying to milk a rock.

The other factors: 1) If i go with a 16x7, i will be limited to a 225/45-16 or 215/45-16 tire, which isn't that hard to find, and i can continue to run my stock front fenders.

2) If i go with a 17x8, i can run a 245/40-17, and will have to get my GTS widebody front fenders painted.

My dilemma: I want as much tire as possible under this thing, as in the next few months, it'll be transformed into a low 2000s lb, 300+/300+ whp/wtq front driver. (stupid, i know, but that's another discussion.)

So.... i ask you guys for wheel suggestions (budget but not crappy) and what size you would go with, considering the traction this car may need. I will be running street tires on it for the time being.

In an ideal world, i would like to be able to purchase my wheels and tires for $1000 or less. But that probably won't happen.

Isn't 245/45/17 a much more common size? I'd go with the 16's personally. A 225-section tire is more than enough to handle a car that light.

P71 wrote: Isn't 245/45/17 a much more common size? I'd go with the 16's personally. A 225-section tire is more than enough to handle a car that light.

Stock size is 205/55-15... a 245/45-17 is way too tall.

Any particular 16s that you like that could be had for ~$500?

I like the idea of 16s better, definitely, but it's not too easy to find the tire i would ideally want. But if you guys all say that 225 width will be ok for the application, then i'll believe it.

93celicaGT2 wrote:

P71 wrote: Isn't 245/45/17 a much more common size? I'd go with the 16's personally. A 225-section tire is more than enough to handle a car that light.

Stock size is 205/55-15... a 245/45-17 is way too tall. Any particular 16s that you like that could be had for ~$500? I like the idea of 16s better, definitely, but it's not too easy to find the tire i would ideally want. But if you guys all say that 225 width will be ok for the application, then i'll believe it.

Subaru WRX stock wheels are 16x6.5. That'd probably fit ok with a 225, and they're a FWD friendly offset and cheap.

I liked the RS-2's I had on my 2880lb Elantra. 225/45-16 on a Konig 16x7 wheel worked well for a car that size/weight. Granted, I didn't have HALF the power you're talking about, but I was over the 3K lb mark with driver.

Osterizer wrote:

93celicaGT2 wrote:

P71 wrote: Isn't 245/45/17 a much more common size? I'd go with the 16's personally. A 225-section tire is more than enough to handle a car that light.

Stock size is 205/55-15... a 245/45-17 is way too tall. Any particular 16s that you like that could be had for ~$500? I like the idea of 16s better, definitely, but it's not too easy to find the tire i would ideally want. But if you guys all say that 225 width will be ok for the application, then i'll believe it.

Subaru WRX stock wheels are 16x6.5. That'd probably fit ok with a 225, and they're a FWD friendly offset and cheap.

Ah hah! That was the piece of info i was missing in my original post. I can get another set of 7th gen Celica GTS wheels which are 16x6.5 and fit fine.

I'd like to go with a 7" or wider so i don't have to go back and buy another set if/when i do decide to go with a wider tire.

I'm sorry... i knew i was forgetting something. I just hate to do the same upgrade twice. It's a disease.

Osterizer wrote: Subaru WRX stock wheels are 16x6.5. That'd probably fit ok with a 225, and they're a FWD friendly offset and cheap.

The Subaru 2.5RS had 16x7 wheels if you want that extra 1/2" width.

moxnix wrote:

Osterizer wrote: Subaru WRX stock wheels are 16x6.5. That'd probably fit ok with a 225, and they're a FWD friendly offset and cheap.

The Subaru 2.5RS had 16x7 wheels if you want that extra 1/2" width.

Oooo... and you could get them in that lovely gold, too, couldn't you? I'll have to look into those.

Anyone have any aftermarket suggestions?

the Turbo II FC RX7s had a 16x8 mesh wheel with a 5X100 bolt pattern with a 40ish mm offset, IIRC. They look good in gunmetal too

+1 for 16s. I really don't think you can afford the loss in travel and I doubt the diameter increase will give you any other benefits. If you can get 16x8s, that's the best of both worlds.

thatsnowinnebago wrote: the Turbo II FC RX7s had a 16x8 mesh wheel with a 5X100 bolt pattern with a 40ish mm offset, IIRC. They look good in gunmetal too

They're actually 5x114.3 before anyone goes looking for a set. I believe 5x100 is the turbo Dodge pattern as well.

Check your offsets - as i recall, the big issue with getting wheels for a Subaru is that they have a rather high offset, so common Toyota/GM wheels don't work very well.

Before you start thinking about GM - I do not think GM ever made a wheel with the 5x100 pattern that was wider than 6".

moxnix wrote: The Subaru 2.5RS had 16x7 wheels if you want that extra 1/2" width.

I tried the 15" winter rims off my Mum's 2.5RS on my Celica when I still had it and the offset was way high. They wouldn't clear the front calipers at all. They fit on the rear but looked retarded (I had a GT-S widebody though.)

I don't think the 16x7s are any lower offset, they're just wider.

I think the Celica should have had about +15~20.

J

They're actually 5x114.3 before anyone goes looking for a set. I believe 5x100 is the turbo Dodge pattern as well.

Yep. I remember looking into whether the turbo Dodge bolt pattern would fit on my Dart before I swapped to the large bolt pattern. Unfortunately the stock Dodge Dart bolt pattern was 5 x 101.6 mm, and from others who had tried it, that 1.6 mm makes them impossible to center. I believe cloud cars also used the 5 x 100 mm pattern.

MadScientistMatt wrote: Yep. I remember looking into whether the turbo Dodge bolt pattern would fit on my Dart before I swapped to the large bolt pattern. Unfortunately the stock Dodge Dart bolt pattern was 5 x 101.6 mm, and from others who had tried it, that 1.6 mm makes them impossible to center. I believe cloud cars also used the 5 x 100 mm pattern.

AUGH!

Sorry, Metricizing a standard measurement is a serious peeve of mine. It's not 101.6mm, it's four inches! Or, in the parlance of the people concerned, it's a 5-on-4" bolt pattern.

I feel the same way towards "5x114.3". It's 5-on-4.5".

Don't get me started on brake piston sizing, either. I'll just say, that it's funny when the service manuals on certain Japanese cars will give the bore size to the ten-thousandths of a millimeter, when the size of the cylinder has "13/16" cast into it just like when the part was designed by the English 40-odd years ago.

noisycricket wrote: Before you start thinking about GM - I do not think GM ever made a wheel with the 5x100 pattern that was wider than 6".

Beretta GTZ's had 16" x 7" 5-spokes.

I think the 15" x 7" mesh-pattern we used on our ITS Olds came off a Beretta GT.

bamalama wrote:

thatsnowinnebago wrote: the Turbo II FC RX7s had a 16x8 mesh wheel with a 5X100 bolt pattern with a 40ish mm offset, IIRC. They look good in gunmetal too

They're actually 5x114.3 before anyone goes looking for a set. I believe 5x100 is the turbo Dodge pattern as well.

oops, thanks for the catch

Jay wrote:

moxnix wrote: The Subaru 2.5RS had 16x7 wheels if you want that extra 1/2" width.

I tried the 15" winter rims off my Mum's 2.5RS on my Celica when I still had it and the offset was way high. They wouldn't clear the front calipers at all. They fit on the rear but looked retarded (I had a GT-S widebody though.) I don't think the 16x7s are any lower offset, they're just wider. I think the Celica should have had about +15~20.

yeah I have Mazda's so when I hear FWD offset I think high. the 2.5RS rims are 53mm offset and I think it is only the 2.5RS before they brought out the WRX (98-01) that had the 16x7" rims.

To fit a 17x8 i need a +35 offset.

Couple questions:

+1 for 16s. I really don't think you can afford the loss in travel and I doubt the diameter increase will give you any other benefits. If you can get 16x8s, that's the best of both worlds.

Gameboy, what do you mean loss in travel? The only way 17x8 will give me a benefit is that it's far easier for me to find a tire in that size.

And guys..... i should specifiy again, i did mention this earlier: I'm looking for new rims. Now that we've decided that the nifty gold 2.5RS wheels won't fit, the only other factory wheel i would consider is the 7th gen GTS wheel.

But i don't really want to go with those again. I want new, light-ish, and the size and offset that i need, for ~$500-$600.

So i need companies, and designs that they make that would be attainable within or near my price range.

Just in case you guys weren't sick of me....

I decided i want a 16x8 5x100, around a +35 offset wheel.

Any suggestions for NEW aftermarket wheels that would fit the bill, and not cost more than the car is worth?

I found out i CAN get tires in 245/45-16 and that it's pretty close to stock height. And not that expensive, either.

I'm sold.

Hit me with suggestions!

racinginc215 wrote: Have you tried tirerack.com seems there be 14 pages of wheels that fit the bill.

If i could figure out how to view their wheels that "DON'T" fit my car.... :(

What i'm trying to do doesn't qualify as normally fitting. I'll do some more digging though.

There's some Enkei RP01s on Ebay that would definitely fit the bill. I'm waiting to hear back from the seller.

moxnix wrote:

Jay wrote:

moxnix wrote: The Subaru 2.5RS had 16x7 wheels if you want that extra 1/2" width.

I tried the 15" winter rims off my Mum's 2.5RS on my Celica when I still had it and the offset was way high. They wouldn't clear the front calipers at all. They fit on the rear but looked retarded (I had a GT-S widebody though.) I don't think the 16x7s are any lower offset, they're just wider. I think the Celica should have had about +15~20.

yeah I have Mazda's so when I hear FWD offset I think high. the 2.5RS rims are 53mm offset and I think it is only the 2.5RS before they brought out the WRX (98-01) that had the 16x7" rims.

Speaking of RS wheels...

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1686961

If you change your mind from 16x8

noisycricket wrote: AUGH! Sorry, Metricizing a standard measurement is a serious peeve of mine. It's not 101.6mm, it's four inches! Or, in the parlance of the people concerned, it's a 5-on-4" bolt pattern. I feel the same way towards "5x114.3". It's 5-on-4.5".

It was something of a joke. Giving the bolt pattern on the Dart - a car that had no metric dimensions on its original drawings - in metric units was just to show how it's almost the same size as a real metric bolt pattern, in fact close enough that you can put metric wheels over the studs, but far enough off to be serious trouble if you attempt to drive it with these wheels. While Mopar A-body wheels aren't too common, they are something a junkyard wheel shopper looking for wheels for a 5 x 100 mm pattern may need to look out for.

Osterizer wrote:

moxnix wrote:

Jay wrote:

moxnix wrote: The Subaru 2.5RS had 16x7 wheels if you want that extra 1/2" width.

I tried the 15" winter rims off my Mum's 2.5RS on my Celica when I still had it and the offset was way high. They wouldn't clear the front calipers at all. They fit on the rear but looked retarded (I had a GT-S widebody though.) I don't think the 16x7s are any lower offset, they're just wider. I think the Celica should have had about +15~20.

yeah I have Mazda's so when I hear FWD offset I think high. the 2.5RS rims are 53mm offset and I think it is only the 2.5RS before they brought out the WRX (98-01) that had the 16x7" rims.

Speaking of RS wheels... http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1686961 If you change your mind from 16x8

Thanks for the link! There's a gold set on fleabay right now, too.

I've got Gus at TireRack researching for me, since you can't search by wheel size/bolt pattern on that site.

I may honestly just end up grabbing some Sportmax 002s in a custom offset, or a big spacer.

My GTS fenders just got here.... so i'd really like to fill them up.