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OP
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One day (not anytime soon), I want to buy a set of wheels/tires just for auto-xing or auto-x type stuff. I was thinking 14"s or even 13"s with low profiles. If I went with 14"s and 225/45 that would lower my car nearly 2". That would be OK, right? Or would that mean I need an alignment (and alignment kit) everytime I want to run with low profile 14"s? I'm not worried about excessive tire wear, just stability of the car. So will the car stay stable like that,, or what? I just want to know what is the best thing I can do with wheels and tire size for acceleration and handling. Thanks.
98.5 SVT
91 Escort GT (almost sold)
96 ATX Zetec (i brake to watch you swerve)
FS: SVT rear sway bar
WTB: Very cheap beater
CEG Dragon Run - October 13-15
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I'd think you'd run into trouble with clearance on the brake rotor/calipers.. 
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Yeah, even though 14"s came stock on my car and the spare is 13". 
98.5 SVT
91 Escort GT (almost sold)
96 ATX Zetec (i brake to watch you swerve)
FS: SVT rear sway bar
WTB: Very cheap beater
CEG Dragon Run - October 13-15
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You've got a lot of weight sloshing around that the tires will have to hold on to; I wouldn't recommend anything smaller than 15x7s. 15x6s are fine for Miatas, but they weigh a lot less than our high cg high mass cars do. Keep that in mind!
Whirling dervish of FFOG.
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Originally posted by weargle:
You've got a lot of weight sloshing around that the tires will have to hold on to; I wouldn't recommend anything smaller than 15x7s. 15x6s are fine for Miatas, but they weigh a lot less than our high cg high mass cars do. Keep that in mind!
Why would wheel size matter? As long as he maintained adequate load bearing capacity?
Function before fashion.
'96 Contour SE
"Toss the Contour into a corner, and it's as easy to catch as a softball thrown by a preschooler." -Edmunds, 1998
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I have no life
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Originally posted by RogerB:
Originally posted by weargle:
You've got a lot of weight sloshing around that the tires will have to hold on to; I wouldn't recommend anything smaller than 15x7s. 15x6s are fine for Miatas, but they weigh a lot less than our high cg high mass cars do. Keep that in mind!
Why would wheel size matter? As long as he maintained adequate load bearing capacity?
Yeah,, so the only question I really need answered is:: Without changing alignment, can I run 14"s with low profile tires to achieve better handling and acceleration?
And by the way, my car's race weight is around 2700lbs.
98.5 SVT
91 Escort GT (almost sold)
96 ATX Zetec (i brake to watch you swerve)
FS: SVT rear sway bar
WTB: Very cheap beater
CEG Dragon Run - October 13-15
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Originally posted by Kremithefrog:
Yeah, even though 14"s came stock on my car and the spare is 13".
Prove it. The smallest rim that the front of an ATX Zetec can take is 14" because of the caliper/rotor. The rear has no problem because of the drums. So I doubt very much that you have a 13" spare. 
1996 MM
Zetec, ATX
192000 kms...not dead, but I'm not fixing it
White people love Wayne Brady because he makes Bryant Gumbel look like Malcolm X.
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Originally posted by RogerB:
Originally posted by weargle:
You've got a lot of weight sloshing around that the tires will have to hold on to; I wouldn't recommend anything smaller than 15x7s. 15x6s are fine for Miatas, but they weigh a lot less than our high cg high mass cars do. Keep that in mind!
Why would wheel size matter? As long as he maintained adequate load bearing capacity?
The width is what matters. It gives you the best contact patch with the road. Try to find me a 14x7 wheel in 4x108.
Whirling dervish of FFOG.
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Originally posted by Kremithefrog:
One day (not anytime soon), I want to buy a set of wheels/tires just for auto-xing or auto-x type stuff. I was thinking 14"s or even 13"s with low profiles. If I went with 14"s and 225/45 that would lower my car nearly 2". That would be OK, right?
That won't create a problem. But as already mentioned front brake clearance may be a problem with 13's. They're 22" overall diameter vs 23.2" for a 195.60/14 stocker, so you've got 1.2" less diameter = 0.6" lower. Where you'll run into problems is sourcing performance tires and rims to fit. You may find you've got to go to 15" to get any reasonable choice and doing so would allow you to upgrade to SVT rotors (not all 15" rims will clear) if you wanted to latter.
Originally posted by Kremithefrog:
Or would that mean I need an alignment (and alignment kit) everytime I want to run with low profile 14"s? I'm not worried about excessive tire wear, just stability of the car. So will the car stay stable like that,, or what?
The alignment shouldn't change noticably, you may get a little more negative camber which will improve handling but it should be marginal and there is the posibility of a change in toe-in. You'll likely want to do an alignment around that time anyway, if you're looking at doing Auto-X'ing so I'd suggest that you make a deal with the shop that you buy your tires/rims from. Get the best price you can for them plus an alignment before committing to the deal, and then ask them if they'll also take an alignment reading (giving you a print-out) on your existing setup just before you put on the auto-x tires/rims for the full reading + alignment. This way you'll know if there are actually any changes and can make informed decisions from there. If there are differences then you can try to reach a compromise in your settings to minimize them.
Originally posted by Kremithefrog:
I just want to know what is the best thing I can do with wheels and tire size for acceleration and handling. Thanks.
What you're looking for is a compromise. You want the lightest package possible with the best grip available. Lighter weight will improve handling, acceleration and braking, but getting more traction means going to greater section width which typically means more weight, friction, and aerodynamic drag. You can also over-tire a car, putting too much tread on the ground to have it stick like glue but actually go a bit slower. 
I run 215/45/17's on the street and 225/50/15's on the track. A 45 or 50 series would be nice but aren't available in the tires I want to run (Toyo RA-1) which are an excellent DOT legal race tire.
If you decide to go 15", one rim to consider is the 15x7 ASA LW5. It's $89 and one of the lighter rims available, at 14.4 pounds, without spending $200+ per rim.
The TireRack now posts wheel weights for many of their rims when you view them on your vehicle. The weight is listed about halfway down the left column right below the price.
http://www.tirerack.com/upgrade_garage/WheelSearch.jsp?changeColor=Toreador+Red&filterSize=15&filterFinish=&filterSpecial=Pricing&autoMake=Ford&autoModel=Contour&autoModClar=&autoYear=1998
Regards, Alan
03 Volvo S60 2.5T AWD
98 Mystique 2.5 MTX
99 SVT - Inheriting Lil Monster's parts
98 SVT - Lil Monster (RIP) 183.7 whp
Quaife/Fidanza/UR UD Clutch
AFE/MSDS/SHO-Y/Bassani/MagnaCore
GC/Koni/22mmR/EndLinks/ES/
KVR Slotted/1144's/SS Lines/MASItaly
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Originally posted by Alan Coles:
If you decide to go 15", one rim to consider is the 15x7 ASA LW5. It's $89 and one of the lighter rims available, at 14.4 pounds, without spending $200+ per rim.
The TireRack now posts wheel weights for many of their rims when you view them on your vehicle. The weight is listed about halfway down the left column right below the price.
http://www.tirerack.com/upgrade_garage/WheelSearch.jsp?changeColor=Toreador+Red&filterSize=15&filterFinish=&filterSpecial=Pricing&autoMake=Ford&autoModel=Contour&autoModClar=&autoYear=1998
Regards, Alan
Yep..that's what I got! Can you say Khumo MX in 205/50/15's!!
T-red E0 SVT
ATS 17x7.5 Comp Lites, 215/45/17 Falken 512s, Ausi Bar, Boxed subframe, Poli all around, Warmonger's Opt Y, Opt TB, AFE, DMD, NGK's, Bendix Ti, Alpine, Polk, Mobil-1 0W-40, Redline MTL.
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