Have a set of 18 x 7.5 23 lb wheels on my wagon. Really like how they fill up the wheel well and the country road driving response is excellent.

Need to lighten the load though and HAVE to run a 7 1/2" wide rim because of my coilovers, no room for 8"'s.

Cannot find lightweight (or, under 20 lb) rims in 7 1/2" for the 18's.

Has anybody gone from 18 back to 17"? I can find lots of 14 lb 17's, but do not know if going from a 18" 40 to a 17" 45 series will dissapoint in handling.

I think their are a few 18's that are light but they are urber expensive. Some volks/BBS/SSRs would fill your bill. Tire rack has a few on their site. Hmm if you dont mind a tad loss of style for function look at ENKEI line. I love the RPF1 and they are fairly strong for the design. They are also a tad cheaper than the the first three stated.

BlitZ

These are the lightest 18 x 7.5" Tire Rack has and They are close to the Fox2's. Kazera KZ-T's. I am only saving about 3 lbs per corner.


KZ-T's here I think (http://www.tirerack.com/servlet/CallJsp?target=wheelSearchCloseUp&wheelIndex=7&sizeIndex=0&showRear=no&setIndex=0&filterSize=18&filterFinish=Painted&filterSpecial=Pricing)

What is the opinion of these 18"s to going to a 14.5 lb 17" in handling say canyon style driving?

Hmm i doubt you still have them or if they will even fit, ie brake upgrade?, but put your stock tires/rims back on. You will notice a difference in both power and feel of the car. not to mention the drop of almost 28lbs of rotational mass on your car.


Weight loss on any part of your car that deals with suspension is a good thing and is worth the loss.

BlitZ

With the proper tire and alignment, a lightweight 17" combo will handle better than a heavy 18" combo.

Just focus on stiff sidewall tires, and add more camber up front to keep the taller sidewalls from rolling over.

Hmm i doubt you still have them or if they will even fit, ie brake upgrade?, but put your stock tires/rims back on. You will notice a difference in both power and feel of the car. not to mention the drop of almost 28lbs of rotational mass on your car.

Weight loss on any part of your car that deals with suspension is a good thing and is worth the loss.
BlitZ

;) I would put the 16" on but wagon is waiting on the R A gearset, dead and stink'n right now.

I guess what I want to know is if I can get a set of 16 - 17 lb 18" wheels and 40 series tires. Will a similar, slightly lighter 17' 45 series handle better, a lot better, about the same, worse? I thought a 40 series would be more responsive.

how about 18" Rota subzeros? wait.. do they make them in 18's? i dunno...

how about 18" Racing Hart CP wheels, they're fairly light at about 15-16? lbs...

you don't really have any options for light 18" wheels besides teh uber expensive Racing Harts, Rays, WedSport forged, HRE... which all cost around 450~650/wheel

a good wheel that's not too heavy is the Enkei RPF1's which come in close to 17?lbs for 18" and are relatively cheap at ~300/wheel

as for handling differrences, I'd go with lightweight 17's and a good tire w/ a stiff sidewall for better handling. I think the slight increase in sidewall flex is worth the 40lbs differrence in unsprung weight. (my wheels weigh in at 13lbs even for 17x7.5")

Oh .. Went to the Enkei site RPF-1.

Here18 x 7.5 and 17 lbs (http://www.enkei.com/HPSpecPAGES/rpf1Specs.html)

Your wheels 13 lbs?

Still trying to decide. Like the looks of the RP03 also.

my wheels are 17x7.5 Racing Hart CP-035's and weight an even 13lbs each

my wheels are 17x7.5 Racing Hart CP-035's and weight an even 13lbs each

Tires?

Grant at Tire Rack said that the tires for a 17" wheel weigh less than for a 18" wheel. You'ld think less sidewall = less weight. But ??

Dave.....are you STILL at it....:rolleyes: :lol:

Quit laughing Scotty. Decided I'm getting light wheels for sure. CAN put the gd3's on a 7" rim so 18” is a fairly lightweight option.. Not 14.6 lbs. for a 17’ but around 17 lbs. Want to Know from someone knowledgeable what the difference between 18’ 225/40 and 17” 225/45 would be in handling? Don’t care about any particular wheel or tire brand. Just the cornering and response between the two. Given the 18's will be a little heavier but same style as I'm used to now.

Here..Madmanx (http://www.clubwrx.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=577702#post577702)

I'll admit I like the looks of the 18" wheel.

There I said it.http://img78.photobucket.com/albums/v241/BriarRabbit/18inchfront.jpg

But not at the expense of more than just a little performance.

You have the Guru knowledge. Cough it up. ;)

I'd rather have a 17x8 with a 245/40 Kumho MX on it than ANY 18 for performance....

.......18" SSR's....well....ok.....;)

I'd rather have a 17x8 with a 245/40 Kumho MX on it than ANY 18 for performance....

.......18" SSR's....well....ok.....;)

Decided the money for light weight 18" would be well spent. SSR's are 8" wide and I cannot even get a finger between the Tein coilovers and 7 1/2" rims I've got. May bite the rice bullet and get 17". Plus Tire Rack says 17/45 is lighter than the 18/49. Plus RA gearset has got a higher first gear than stock..

http://img78.photobucket.com/albums/v241/BriarRabbit/Gears3.jpg

Whats with the Kumho's? I was thinking Mich. PS2's for 17" as the have a fairly stiff sidewall? And Goodyear gs-d3's on a 18" wheel.

Will need light weight for the RA gears.

The MX's are light(~22 pounds/per for 225/45-17's, IIRC) and I really liked them and I'm fairly critical of tires. Grippy as hell, dry.....not quite as good wet....wore well...fairly quiet. Gotta keep 'em pumped pretty hard for best performance...I ran 40-1F-37-8R...I find them MUCH better than the Azenis...no doubt.

Get the stock 5th gear for your RA swap....keep the highway cruise MPG ;)

0 to 60' will be the slow b*tch with the 3.08 first in the the R A gears.

Nah....not so bad...

U worry too much....;) Take a pill and relax....:lol:

;) No pills.



Have to wait until sun pass’s big tree in back for beer time. They are talking about 15”???? wheels in the Proven power thread..