Wheel and Tire Question For Auto-X'ing

[Kobayashi]

I'm looking for a good setup for auto-xing and possibly track days this season (first with the MSP), but have some concerns regarding clearance. Here's what I'm thinking...

Wheels: Kosei K1 TS 17x7 50mm offset (14.1 lbs)

Tires: Bridgestone Potenza S-03 225/45/17 (25 lbs vs 24 lbs for 215's vs 23 lbs stock)

Will this work or will they rub?

From the spec's on Bridgestone's website, the overall wheel/tire dimensions would be as follows:
.5 inches closer to the outter wheel well
.1 inch closer to the strut body
.2 inches higher on top
.2 inches more on bottom of wheel

The first question is: Will these rub?

The second question is: Does the 225 width give enough of a grip advantage over the 215's to make the possible rubbing and weight penalty (1 additional lb) worth while?

What do you guys think?

 

[DistantTea]

If you are running stock class you shouldn't worry about tires... you're going to get baisted and grilled by the kids running R compounds. That wheel is good but you need some 225/45/17 Kumho V700s to be competitive. If you aren't going to be competitive you might as well run the OEM tires since your new setup won't be much different.

But to answer your questions, no they shouldn't rub with those wheels and if those 4 total pounds of added weight make any difference whatsoever then you need to drive for Formula 1. But without r compounds you might as well head off to STX.

No rubbing, scouts honor, or I'll eat my hat. I was running 225/45/17 V700s on stock wheels.

 

[monkeymsp]

Autox'ing is all about driver skill. When I recently went to my first autox there was another guy there with MSP that let a seasoned driver take his car for a few laps. That guy ran through the cones as fast or faster than any stock 350Z/S2000/WRX STi/EVO VIII there. All on stock tires and they guy had never driven the MSP before. When I ran through I went like 6 seconds slower than that guy and still came is 8th out of 40 in my class (novice)... The MSP is a beast Autox'r in stock shoes.

My suggestion is to go to a few autox's and max out what the car can do in stock form and then upgrade it. If you do this you will have the skill to make the most of the upgrades. Plus you'll get the chance to kick butt in the D-Stock class and get some trophies first.

BTW my first time out I beat 2 RX-8s a C5 Corvette a G35 a WRX a 500+ HP Supra a MR2 a modified 240sx and a 350z just to name a few. But got beat by a C4 Corvette. Again its all about driver skill.

 

[t3ase]

Moved to Rim/Tire.

 

[Kobayashi]

Sorry guys, I guess I left out some important information.

I have been autocrossing for 3-4 years now, this is just my first year in the msp. Last year I was running Ecsta V700's on a 2001 Subaru Impreza 2.5RS.
There will be definite learning curve from all-wheel drive.

I am returning to street tire class this year since the msp is a two driver car for me and my wife. (race rubber wore out too fast with two drivers for two auto-x groups.)

The thought for light weight wheels and tires is that the reduced unsprung weight will help the performance of the car without worrying about the mazda warranty-nazis.

Thanks for the feedback...

 

[gar777]

if you're in STS anyway, why not try 205/50R15 azenis on 15x6 millenia wheels? the wheels are around 11 pounds each and can be found in many junkyards cheap (under $200/set). 15" tires are also much cheaper than 17s. this is my plan anyway, but I picked up some used victoracers so I guess I'm running DSP for awhile (non-turbo Protege).