Wheels: 24lbs is that alot?

[14.5 drift]

I think i like these rims here. The 18x8's. What do you guys think?

 

[Lunch_Box]

That's pretty heavy for a 18" rim.

 

[14.5 drift]

How heavy is the stock rim?

 

[DOHCSIDE BOOST]

those look nice but my friend has those same chrome rims on his and they look tiny for some reason, i have 19's and i think mine r like 25 lbs, so those r pretty heavy for 18's, i dunno the weight of the stock wheels but im gona guess and say 16 lbs for stock wheels

 

[98TsiAWD]

That is abotu average weigth for an 18x8" rim. 18's are heavy, that why I sold mine.

 

[Laser-man]

i would have to say stock rims are more along the line of 25lbs, the stock 97-99 5 spoke rims weigh 19lbs and they are the lightest stock wheels dsm's have. i have a set of 17's that weigh 48lbs w/ tires thats heavy.

 

[mwagne16]

I had a set of Volks that were something like 11 pounds. I used to know the weight, but that was a long time ago. You could hold them at arms length with a tire mounted no problem. I know stock weigs a lot, but 18 just sounds like too much if you are int 1/4 mile. If not, just go for the looks, and don't worry about it. If you just want it to look cool, you're covered.

 

[dsmturboawd]

^^^ my rx7 rims with tires are the exact same way. you could hold them straight out and throw them around and stuff like that.

 

[PaulPDX]

I just don't see the draw of 18" rims. Try cutting down on your MTV or BET viewing time. They are great for show but in terms of real world handling and durability you best stick with 17".

My best friend has a 2G GST, when he first got wheels I told him not to get 18s. He wouldn't listen. Well, the 18s rode like ass. The unsprung weight was too much for the KYB AGXs he had (better on Konis now but still not great) .2 weeks after he got them he had already bent 2 despite being an extra careful driver. Because the rims were bent the tires wouldn't hold air. So, begrudgingly, he bought another set of wheels... this time 17s. He was rolling on them for months without any problems at all until he got tired of them and started itching for 18s again... I told him again and again that he'd just have the same problem again. Reluctantly he bought 2 17s to replace the two 18s that were bent. He put the 17s in the front and 18s in the back. Well, now the 18s in the back are bent too and one of them goes flat every 3 days and he doesn't have money anymore to fix it.

So... counting all the money he spent, he could've gotten himself a set of forged Volks with expensive tires. Unless your car is a trailer queen... don't be stupid. Get 17s. However, it's your car... so do whatever you want.

 

[9D9 MITSU RS]

If you like a wheel, get it. You can always add more power if the effects bother you THAT much.

 

[14.5 drift]

Originally posted by PaulPDX
I just don't see the draw of 18" rims. Try cutting down on your MTV or BET viewing time. They are great for show but in terms of real world handling and durability you best stick with 17".

My best friend has a 2G GST, when he first got wheels I told him not to get 18s. He wouldn't listen. Well, the 18s rode like ass. The unsprung weight was too much for the KYB AGXs he had (better on Konis now but still not great) .2 weeks after he got them he had already bent 2 despite being an extra careful driver. Because the rims were bent the tires wouldn't hold air. So, begrudgingly, he bought another set of wheels... this time 17s. He was rolling on them for months without any problems at all until he got tired of them and started itching for 18s again... I told him again and again that he'd just have the same problem again. Reluctantly he bought 2 17s to replace the two 18s that were bent. He put the 17s in the front and 18s in the back. Well, now the 18s in the back are bent too and one of them goes flat every 3 days and he doesn't have money anymore to fix it.

So... counting all the money he spent, he could've gotten himself a set of forged Volks with expensive tires. Unless your car is a trailer queen... don't be stupid. Get 17s. However, it's your car... so do whatever you want.

I feel like getting 18's now in spite of this post . I do like the looks of them. How small of tires did this guy run? Were they the absolute biggest set uf rubber that would fit? Why dont I hear more about this? For me if I can get a pair of 18's and atleast 4 inches of rubber between me and the ground then I think every thing will be fine. If I cant then I will go with 17's. BTW if any body wanted to know I have changed my mind about the rim, and the entire look of the car for that matter. I am now looking for a 5-8 spoke graphite or black set of rims. Can any one give some suggestions?

 

[9D9 MITSU RS]

Just try to get forged wheels. You can bend 17s too. I'm sure it happens all the time. I am actually thinking that my car will end up on 19s. Atleast in the rear. Most of the wheels on the market aren't built for anything besides looks anyway or they would all be forged. Most companies are trying to sell style more-so than performance when it comes to wheels. The companies that don't are gonna cost u. Just look at all the DSMs on 18s+ tho. It doesn't make a big difference. There is really not logical reason why 17s would be any better. In fact, I used to have 17s. They were 17x7.5. My new wheels are 18x8 and THEY ARE LIGHTER. They are forged, but still. 18" and wider and lighter than my old narrow 17s. I really doubt anything under 30lbs is gonna kill your car's performance.

 

[PaulPDX]

Yes, you can bend 17s as well... but not likely on a DSM. Size wall size has a alot more to do with with it. For some cars 17 is the +2 size, which usually means they have to run 40 series tires. Not the case for DSM's. We can run 45 series tires. A little more rubber around the rim, a little more protection. Rim strength has a lot to do with it as well, inexpensive brand rims are generally pretty soft. For example, TSW was infamous for being soft a few years ago... things may have changed now. Anyway, the more rubber you have around the rim your chances of bending them are much deminished.

From experience any thing taller than a 40 series will give you pretty good protection. But... it's your car. Do what you want.

 

[14.5 drift]

unclear on your last post, will 40 series fit with 18's?

 

[PaulPDX]

Accroding to machV these are the tires you can run on your 2g based on size (from stock and up)

225/50R16

225/45R17 or 235/45R17

225/40R18 or 235/40R18


When I said "40 series" earlier that was just a general statement. As you may already know, sidewall height is a percentage of the width (i.e. 40% of width). So given two tires both 40 series, one narrow and one wide, the wider one is going to have a taller sidewall. But, obviously you can only go so wide. I am more performance oriented so I personally would go with the 235/45/17. A good compromise between sidewall and width. Besides, you have AWD so you don't have to go wide to get good traction.

If you absolutely have to have 18s... just make sure you get good strong wheels (which are more than likely quite expensive) and have the right suspension set up to handle the added unsprung weight. Remember, it's rotational mass, so to the suspension the load will increase exponentially in relation to speed. If you don't have the damping to handle the added weight, the car will ride like a pogo stick. If you have AGXs... forget about it. On stock suspension? even worse. You will be happy at first because of the looks but soon you will desire for something better. Just like HP mods... gotta do the support mods too.

 

[14.5 drift]

The car will see some koni adjustibles (reds I think) And kyb pro kit. Also getting upper lower front sway bars and upper/lower rear sway bars. I think it should be a capable road car after that.

i am gonna try and get 18x8 so what series that would be I dont know. As long as there is a decent amount of rubber I will put them on. My moms is running 50 series on her S2K and they do pretty good.

The actual distance was as the tire suggested at 50 milimeters of sidewall. That should be my target. Has any one else squeezed this much wheel/tire in there before?

 

[TalonRacer18]

OMFG thats crazy!! i have never seen a 1g convertible, and now i know why they didnt make them j/m thats sweet dude.

 

[PaulPDX]

14.5,

You want the yellows... not red. I'd stay away from the KYB AGXs. Damping is too weak to handle most aftermarket springs (bouncey ride). As for springs, I like H&R. Every H&R product I have used in the the past 6 years have been great. Have read mixed reviews of Eibach... reports of sagging etc.

Best way to pick tire size is by the overall diameter. Rule of thumb is that you want to try to keep the overall diameter the same or as close as you can to stock. Changing this factor has the effect of changing your gear ratio. Smaller, you're basically making your gears shorter. Larger, you're basically making them longer.

 

[14.5 drift]

How much longer could 2 inches extend my gears? Say if first gear goes to forty how much further would it go in first after wheels?

 

[PaulPDX]

I can't remember the exact formula... but think of it this way:

Say stock overall diameter is 24" and you're going with 26". That's an 8.3% increase, which is pretty significant and you'll feel it in the acceleration. Some people say just increase HP to compensate... true, but that just means you'll be putting more stress on the drivetrain. To me the added rotational weight of heavier rims and tires are just adding unnecessary strain. Given the same HP, the car with 17s will be quicker, and handle better if the car is set up as a road car. For drag, 16s are best. So, it all depends on whether you want to go for looks or performance. I guess it's kind of like the "which turbo question". The answer depends on application.

 

[14.5 drift]

are you tryen to say that my car will look good with 17's, cause if you are telling me that then I think you might be on to some thing here. Being that it is a gsx dont wanna loose any more power to the wheels, but also that it has an auto maybe the longer gears would be helpful. Do they make 17's at 8 inches wide?

 

[PaulPDX]

Errr... well, it's your call on what you think will look better. It's your car.

What I'm saying is 17s are more practical, tires cost less than 18s, more choices in size. Since you have an auto... I don't think longer gears will help it. The auto tranny already robs power, last thing you want is to make the car more sluggish. 17s can still look good especially with lowered suspension.

Yes, they do make 17x8. SSR Comp 17x8 38 offset. Black Racing Pro N-1 17x8 38 offset. A-tech Finalspeed 17x8 43 offset, 5Zigen FN01RC 17x8 42 offset etc.

Heck... with AWD, it really isn't neccessary to go 8 wide since you've got traction at all 4. 17x7.5 would work nicely with 35 offset.

I'm assuming the 2Gs have similar offset requirments as the 1Gs. I may be wrong.

 

[Slappster]

My 19s are 24 lbs and are still lighter that stock 17" gsx rims at 25lbs. I'm eventually gonna get a set of light 16s as well for the track.

 

[PaulPDX]

Originally posted by Slappster
My 19s are 24 lbs and are still lighter that stock 17" gsx rims at 25lbs. I'm eventually gonna get a set of light 16s as well for the track.

And your 19" tires weigh nothing? Even if you fill it up with helium it's still going to have a mass. Gotta look at the total weight... not just the wheels.

 

[14.5 drift]

Helium? Does that help?