I have a tendency of getting bored with wheels/tires setup that I swap them out even before I wear out the tread on the first set of tires so .... I went and got some Enkei RPF1's and pushed the limits of front wheel fitment. I have done tons of reseach and on paper it looked promising so I had to prove it myself.

Enkei RPF1 in SBC
18x10.5 +15 ALL AROUND
Falken RT615 265/35/18 ALL AROUND

In comparison from before (245/35/19 F and 275/35/19 R Toyo T1R) I expected to have a bunch of more front grip and a a bit less in the rear. So I get them mounted and balance and installed. To my surprise, at the SAME ride height/camber settings the wheels clear and do NOT stick out like all of the fanboys argued. I drive around a bit and take my daily 'fun' drive home. On brand new tires, I turn VDC off and expect to have to deal with a bunch of oversteer and am amazed at my findings:

Despite the steering wheel being a bit more heavy, The front end feels incredibly light. Every little input of steering, the car GOES!
n the T1R, I would test the limits of the tires on a decreasing radius turn by a double apex where I could let off throttle a bit to induce oversteer to rotate around the 2nd apex. With the RT615, I tried the same approach and found myself giving it more and more throttle with no oversteer at all so I turn in harder to push the car around the 2nd apex and the car had no complaints!! This is now a 80mph exit from the turn as it straightens out! I will try tomorrow to max our 3rd gear! On the 2nd series of turns I was more confident and entered the turn at the same speed as before but got back on the throttle much earlier to push the car through and OMG - I AM SO MUCH FASTER!!!

I keep getting closer and closer to the most amazing street setup!!

I head home and my camera sucks at night and caught 1 good photo. I see that I need to lower the front a bit and I may add in a bit of camber. As the car stands, I so not feel ANY rubbing on the STOCK front fenders. I hope to check the alignment settings this weekend. All I can remember is my rear sway bar is set to full max!

I know I have typos sometimes - forgive me.

 

you really need more pictures, I love those rims.

 

here are a couple more - but a bit blurry

 

You're a wheel *****

I love the SBC look on a black car. It's the best for black IMO.

 

Nice..

 

Why such a small tire for that size wheel? If that's the widest tire you want to run, why not run a rim width that optomizes the handling on that size tire?

 

looks hot...just need a bbk to complete the look.

 

Wheels look good, but IMO its retarded to run such a wide wheel and a narrow tire, while it may "fit" and feel good to you, your not optimizing the width. No way a proper 285-295 would fit that front or maybe rear without fender rolling/cutting and stupid camber. You didnt prove anything by running those wheels/offsets with that particular tire size.

 

The idea stemmed from looking at a bunch of the Time Attack guys and the Super Taikyu guys running stock fender Z33's. I may be way off, but their reasoning must be similar to mine:

-Wider track up front to increase turn in response.
-Even though the tires aren't as stretched as I expected, a stiffer sidewall will allow for a better feel for the road and faster turn in response. When talking with some of the motor sports engineers at Kumho, they were on the same way of thinking and actually gave me percentages that I had forgotten exactly, but they compared a 265 and a 275 contact patch increase versus the decrease in sidewall stiffness and actually recommended the 265.
-Also the stretched sidewall allows for a better taper to clear the inner fender well for less of a chance of rubbing.

Other examples that I have found in the 2 racing series are:
NISMO R1 with 10.5 rear and 265/35/18.
Autech Tsukada with 9.5 +15 and 9.5 +15 with 225/40/17.
Power House Amuser with 10.5 +22 and +18 with 265/35/18
Yashio Factory with 10 +15 all around with 265/35/18
Sunline racing with x10.5 +16 all around with 265/35/18

There are many more and these teams are posting very fast times.

 

I agree with Alberto.

Although you can rotate tires now.

 

I like it. Fits nice and probably feels great. I run CR Kai 18x9.5 +12 front and rear with a 245/40 Falken RT615 and the car rotates much smoother and is much more responsive.

 

drumma has got it right. he's got a good setup without cutting or rolling the fenders. if its for circuit purposes its great, but for drag, i'd just stick a 315 in the rear.

 

Thanks for sharing your real-world results with the forums. It takes a bit of courage to deviate from what's considered "the norm"...appreciate the time to write that up!

 

Not for me but I like it.

 

Dig the wheels. Great racing wheels. How light are they? I wonder if the SMC weighs more than the conventional colors.

 

great setup!! I'm glad to hear you are happy with it.

Amazing that you don't need 245/285 to have a good performing car. lol

 

what about reducing sidewall height and going with a wider tire? wouldn't that keep stifness and keep your clearance?

and wtf alberto, arrogance much?

 

I was too excited to put these things on that I forgot to weight them. I have a pair of 9.5 + 15 here that weigh 18lbs 2oz each and they don't feel too much lighter than the 10.5.

 

nice ray! lovin the fitment though we need some better pics soon... are you still on the stance coilovers?

 

I'm actually lowered all the way in the rear on KW Varient 3 coilovers now. The front has some threads to lower a bit more if I need.