Best track wheels / tires for RS America?
 

I'm looking for a set of wheels / tires for the track and have seen both 17" and 18" set ups. A very respected friend (Geoff) suggests 18s, and I can understand that. So I went to Tire Rack's site to see what they kick out and found a couple of BBS options: LM at 8x18 and 9.5x18 with 50mm and 55mm offsets. RS-GT at 8x18 and 9.5x18 with 50mm and 48mm offets. I wonder if the 48mm offset is going to need a spacer... For tires, I figured PSCups in 235 and 265.

Of course, I'd rather find a set of gently used wheels with or without tires. Can anyone suggest wheels / tires that might be a good match (not necessarily for sale now, but types of wheels)? For example, should I be on the look out for more common 993 or 996 oriented wheels in 8x18 and 10x18 that may just require a spacer? Should I focus just on wheels with the correct offsets and avoid spacers? I've even seen people using oem 997 wheels in 8x18 and 10x18 (but too modern a look and I want forged light wheels, not heavy cast ones).

Thanks in advance!

On the 9" rears I used to run with 255 MPSCs I needed a spacer to keep the tires from rubbing the control arms and the cat heat shields. I ended up wtih a 6mm spacer to take the offset from 55 to 49 and this worked well. All the 993/996 wheels will require spacers.
There are plenty of choices out there; BBS, Fikse, CCW, Forgeline, Kinesis, etc. Check out RL members Ritter and kgorman who both have nice 18s on their 964s, one with CCW, the other with BBS.

Even though I offered you my 17" wheels, I would not go with LMs for the track. They are essentially a street wheel and very hard to get parts for them. I would go with BBS RE or Volk TE37, CCW, etc.

As for offset, you need to be around 45 to 46 for the back and 52 for the fronts. Those were my numbers and I was running 235 and 275. No rub at all.

On my next set, I'll be going with 8s and 10s with no spacers.

Thanks for your kind offer Carl - but 18s are my goal. Appreciate the heads-up on the LMs - there are some slightly used sets out there for reasonable dollars. Keep in mind, I'm not on the track that often, nor will I be racing. Just 5-6 DE events a year...

Ron,

If you can find a set of BBS motorsports wheels used, those are probably some of the best, a purpose built race wheel but $$$ new. The 18 " wheels give you more flexibility with tire choices. I run 8 & 9.5 Cup 1 wheels (heavy) w/ 235 & 275 Hoosiers for playing around and Dunlop slicks for racing. I know quite a few folks that run the RS-GT wheels and are quite happy with them.

Phil

Chris, Was that with stock or upgraded suspension? Standard alignment specs? Reason I ask is that I did not have that issue with the 255 MPSC's but always used 1.5 - 2.0 degrees of neg camber with stiffer springs and 22mm rear sway bar.

Ron, The "best" options are custom-made, forged aftermarket wheels. Chris listed a number of sources and you might want to add Kodiak to the list. Those run somewhere in the neighborhood of $3K new and, unfortunately, a gently used set of 18's don't come up for sale that often. CCW's are similarly priced. New Fikse's are closer to $4K but with the recent slide in aluminum prices (decline in new auto sales), you may see things change.

If I'm not mistaken, all the Factory options for our cars are cast wheels, so that would appear to limit your options to the aftermarket. Besides, very few Factory wheels weigh <20 lbs each which is what you should get with a forged option. As for offsets, yes, you want to find ones which are approximately 52mm and 47mm front and rear for optimal clearance.

If you need spacers, you should probably install longer studs to ensure a safe amount of thread engagement with your lug nuts. The guideline for Club Racing is that the amount of engagement needs to be equal to or greater than the stud diameter. We use open nuts which allow for easy inspection.

Here are some links which might help:
Kodiak
CCW
Fikse

Ritter's new CCW C14's (nice, huh?)
https://rennlist.com/forums/attachme...1&d=1200083516

Ron, I know a guy locally that is selling a set of Fikse FM10 18's that were his track wheels. I think he wanted $2500. I'll dig up the info and pm it to you. I wanted to buy them myself because I love the look of the fikses but I can't afford them right now after my engine rebuild. Besides, I already have a set of 18" track wheels.

Obviously I dig the CCWs. All things cosidered (strength, weight, finish, looks, cost etc.) they are what I narrowed the choice down to. Now I want a second set of rims (18s) for rains but may have to get something a little less costly as right now I don't want to tie too much money up in something I expect not to use too often. And the money is headed elsewhere(!)

Thanks for the great info guys. I'm a big fan of Fikse - I have a set of 18" Profil 13s Matt built for my 997S. Fantastic wheels. I was hoping to find something "gently used" and am not married to just Fikse. I'd rather not the CCW just because I like that "deep dish" appearance of the other wheels out there. I'm also seeking something that looks somewhat 'classic' in design to go with the older body style.

For appearances, I like the BBS LMs, motorsports (of course), RS-GT in silver (starting to look a bit modern), Fikse's FM10s, Speedlines, etc.

So, if I have a set built, of course Fikse is going to get the offsets perfect. If I go with BBS from a place like Tire Rack, I have to go with their offsets. Their suggested options are:

RS-GT (prefer silver), 18x8 50mm front and 18x9.5 48mm rear. Sounds like correct offsets and I've seen a couple 964s / RSAs with these as direct bolt on.

LM, 18x8 50mm front and 18x9.5 55mm rear. Sounds like that rear offset is a bit much, eh?

What is your favorite optimal configuration - for example:

Fikse 18x8 52mm front and 18x9.5 46mm rear with PSCup in 235 / 265?

Everything was completley stock however I never had a rubbing issue while on track with street Pirelli Assimetricos. Strange, as I would think the MPSC would have stiffer sidewalls. Then again, it's possible the increased grip of the MPSCs caused flex in the control arm bushings.
Sorry for the hijack Ron.

No, you're not imagining things, Chris. Along with the additional lateral force, those 255 MPSC's are huge compared to a street tire. Their sectional widths are nearly the same as those of a 275 Hoosier. The Hoosier's treads, however, are a bit wider and more blocked at the shoulders.

Yeah, ditto, Ron. ;)

I use stock 18" 996 5 spoke "light weight" wheels made by bbs18x8 and 18x10. The rears require a spacer (I think I used a factor spacer from a 944). The wheels are not forged but are pretty light, I thik they are 20lbs and 23lbs. They are several pounds lighter than cup1 8 and 9. I got my set for around $800.00. Just a thought.

john

BBS RS Gt wheels on a RSA
 

This is a photo of the BBS RSGT wheels on the one of the Fly Yellow RS Americas.

If I were to do it all over again, I still would get the BBS RE's, with Fikse in close 2nd, and CCW 3rd.

I got mine used for ~2k from wheel enhancement. Another option is to get those 5 spoke 996 C2 take offs like Marc is running.