Topic: 17" or 18" drag radials for drag racing

[Kelu]

I need some opinions, I'm trying to decide myself which path I should go for 2012 Romanian Drag Racing Championship.

Starting this year I'm allowed to use drag racing radials with DOT and keep my street group and definitively will help me to improve the times a lot.

My races are 150-350 miles away from home (I hope I will attend 3-4 races out of the 6), I can't carry 2 wheels in Kappa cause is no room and I tried to ask friends in the past to carry them to the strip but too much headache.

Option A -> 255-275 wide 18" drag radials
Pros:
- I can use daily without any headaches about replacing wheels/tires for each race because I do 4000-5000 miles/year
- no extra rims required

Cons:
- very expensive (300$/tire + 120$ shipping) - actually the tire itself is not expensive compare with Michelin PS2 but the shipping and custom buying them from US are going to raise the price 50% more from tire price (they are prohibited to be sold in Europe)
- small side wall which is not good for drag racing (car is lowered and I can't go with huge side wall)


Option B -> 255-275 wide 17" drag radials

Pros:
- Cheap (100$ less per tire) and very cheap if I'm going to buy a second set next year (about $200 savings/year compared with 18" ones)
- I can use higher sidewall than 18" which is good for launching

Cons:
- requires buying two 17" rims which might be very hard to find around here at least 8" wide - price $300-$500
- I need to deposit them and install them home and than drive on these up to the strip, the drive might be a nightmare with 17" rims in the back only

Any other pros/cons? Any other solutions? Your vote?

[miller11386]

Kelu,

I recently picked up a set of (4) 17" wheels for my slicks. I plan to run slicks in the back and normal cheap road tires on the front. As far as issues driving with 18" wheels up front and 17" wheels in the back, there should be no difference other than aesthetics. If you buy a tire up front that has the same rolling diameter as your drag radial, there will be no difference as far as TC and ABS are concerned.

What drag radials do you want to run? Maybe this calculator will help you match the correct tire up front with your drag radial

http://www.1010tires.com/tiresizecalculator.asp

[Kelu]

I'm not allowed to run slicks in my Street group.

Look here, of course the tires didn't match and it is a bad example but I had a very bad experience in this case:
Opel GT solo run

No sure yet which DR, I have these on my list:
1) Nitto 555R
2) Mickey Thompson - ET Street Radial II
3) Hoosier - D.O.T. DRAG RADIAL
4) Toyo TQ - they have only 305 for 18"

Do you know others?

[miller11386]

Kumho ecsta is another option. I have not heard of anyone running them though.:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Kumho&tireModel=Ecsta+V710&partnum=445WR7EV710&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes

M&H is also making a drag radial. It is brand new for this year in the 245 size, however it is getting decent reviews.
https://secure.buschurracing.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=1788&osCsid=50f6e1e06294a205c825d5dbcfce4858


As far as the 17 to 18" wheel difference, if both tires have a "45" sidewall, the difference in rolling diameter is .1 inch ... which is nothing. you should not notice any difference in driving the car. I dont really know how a missed shift has anything to do with the tires

The tires in the vid seem to have a shorter profile, but its really hard to tell when the car is so far away. Perhaps you should go to 17" wheels all the way around?

[Kelu]

Kumho is for track,  track tires are big no-no at the strip because of the reinforced side wall which decreases the advantage of soft compound on launching because of no flex and also they are transiting the launching shock to the axles, diff, tranny.
M&H looks nice, put them on my list.

Remember, if I will go with 17" they will be put on for the race weekend only, so I don't expect perfect handling, as far I can driver 500 miles in decent condition they will be ok, my problem will be to put them on/off (i don't have a garage nor a lift for my car) and deposit them (i live in a tiny apartment).

I don't blame the wheel for the missed shift, the issue was I was scraping even on medium braking because the car was so low on the rear.
No way 17" all corners, 17" with matched tires rear vs front will me sufficient imho.

[LatinVenom]

To bad you could not get a small little trailer to carry the 2 rear Drag radials, a jack and misc tools.

[miller11386]

Sounds like you need to adjust your coil overs to a higher ride height to accommodate for the different wheels/sidewalls.

As far as swapping the extra wheels, you just need a low profile jack and a lug wrench.... you can jack up the car anywhere and swap wheels for the track day.

As far as storage, you can keep them in your apartment and use them as coffee tables. That will save you money on furniture as well Tell your wife they are early marriage presents

[Kelu]

To bad you could not get a small little trailer to carry the 2 rear Drag radials, a jack and misc tools.

That's an idea but is a pain, we generally drive to strip in groups and most of my friends have 250-600hp and I could not keep up with them with a trailer. I don't need tools generally, all I use at strip is the air compressor from trunk and a laptop to log.
This first race had a mobile wheels shop at the strip which was great, would be nice to have them to all races.

Sounds like you need to adjust your coil overs to a higher ride height to accommodate for the different wheels/sidewalls.

The car is not so low anymore as you could see in the above movie, look at my facebook to see how it is now.

As far as swapping the extra wheels, you just need a low profile jack and a lug wrench.... you can jack up the car anywhere and swap wheels for the track day.

Another 100-200$ for the jack. I was thinking to buy an inflating jack.

[Arabas]

you can get a jack for much less. say 40-50 euros...
Alfa romeo 147 17'' wheels will fit on the GT. the only problem is how you will get them with you at the track...

i voted 17'' coz you will get a kind of higher diff ratio, so better acceleration imho

[Kelu]

Arabas: i know about that, also 5x112 from vag will fit BUT i can't find 17' with 8' wide at least with a decent price, that's the issue with 17' rims.

[miller11386]

I understand your car is riding low kelu. That is very apparent in your video.

Do you have coilovers? If so, this is an easy fix and will require you to adjust your ride height. If you just have lowering springs only, you need to either put the OEM springs back on, or get some coil overs that you can adjust. (or get taller tires.)

I got (4) 17" X 8"  5x110 bolt pattern wheels for $190 USD shipped to my door

As far as the cost of the jack, you have to pay to play. Any way you do it, you need a way to pick the car up and swap wheels.

Another idea is for all of your racing buddies to all go in and pay to bring a service vehicle to the track. I would imagine someone there has a truck or trailer they could pull with all of your racing wheels and tires in it along with the basic tools needed. I am sure someone already has these, you could just pay something similar to a rental fee to borrow the tools you need at the track. I don't know if that is possible there or not. I know racers in the US all are fairly willing to help one another out if its as something as simple as borrowing a jack to swap wheels out.

[Arabas]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/17-DEZENT-PANIK-ALLOY-WHEELS-OPEL-GT-06-/280642800608?pt=UK_CarParts_Acc_Wheels_tyres_Trims_Car_Rims_ET&hash=item41579d4be0

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/mad-on-motors247/_i.html?_nkw=17+opel+gt&submit=Search&_sid=139907658

i don't know for 17X8, but you will find some good affordable options

[elff]

To bad you could not get a small little trailer to carry the 2 rear Drag radials, a jack and misc tools.

This would be my recommendation

Kelu has KW Coilovers

[ophidia31]

These are still $50 from tirerack. Dont know if theyd ship them over to you though.

http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/WheelCloseUpServlet?target=runWheelSearch&winter=0&initialPartNumber=F107811055S&wheelMake=Sport+Edition&wheelModel=F10&wheelFinish=Silver+Painted&autoMake=Saturn&autoModel=Sky&autoYear=2008&autoModClar=&tire=35HR7LM60&qty_front=4

[Kelu]

i don't know for 17X8, but you will find some good affordable options

From your link, only one is 8" wide, that is the problem with 17" rims for 5x110. I think can find 2 rims around $200 each

I understand your car is riding low kelu. That is very apparent in your video.

That is a 2 years old video, my car is not so low anymore, how many time I have to tell you to understand this?

I have KW V3 but I won't touch the height anymore because I just set it up and did alignment.

elff: Whatta hell bro, you are showing me the most expensive option

ophidia31: I presume those are 5x110 because is not mentioned, awesome price but shipping would be a killer (something like over $100 each). Thanks for the link

[elff]

Yea, but it is the best option, and in the long run, if you are not running the drag tires on the street, that will save you money.
Do you still have your stock rear rims?
You could use those for the new tires

[Kelu]

Why should I use 18" rims as spares? If is going to be with 2 spare rims would be with 17" for reduced price of the tires.
I would rather use 18" drag radials daily, they should hold 4000-5000 miles how much I'm doing yearly.

[Sol Asylum]

Kelu you will have to tell Miller about 3 more times, he's just a little slow.   But you know what that's like right?  You've seen Arabas race haven't you?

[ihawk95]

Kelu you will have to tell Miller about 3 more times, he's just a little slow.   But you know what that's like right?  You've seen Arabas race haven't you?

Ok, that was freakin funny! I've seen the race video. Once Arabas got past the seat belt...

[ophidia31]

ophidia31: I presume those are 5x110 because is not mentioned, awesome price but shipping would be a killer (something like over $100 each). Thanks for the link

yep, theyre 5x110. i wish i lived over there. there are better wheel choices than we have over here. in the same boat as you since theyd be bucks to ship them here.

[Critterman]

Okay Kelu, here is my thoughts, if you knew anyone who was coming to Romania in the near future, maybe you could ask them if they could bring an item over with them.  The fee they would pay on the airline would probably a lot cheaper.

[Sol Asylum]

Do you think TSA would have a problem with someone's drag radial/18 inch wheel Carry on?

[Critterman]

not if you have it boxed properly

[ihawk95]

Check it at the gate.

[Gentleman Jack]

It will fit better in a box if the tire is square.