Lauren

I'm not sure Bob is talking about Stan's car though. Stan blew his engine and had it rebuilt towards the end of the last season then put it up for sale. It's road legal but is a stripped out sprint car. I'm guessing it's eligible for the TSS and not much else. It would be pretty hardcore as a road car for sure with no interior and full cage etc. He did keep the AC though. I would say Bob is talking about some other car, but not sure which one.

Welcome aboard. Look out in the social meets for local meet ups. Any plans for the car?

Hi James, 1) I think you'll be fine, though it is worth noting that even if you didn't have a remap it is recommended to run on 98 RON fuel, so super unleaded and the best fuel is Shell V-Power Nitro. 2) You can get the maps removed and simply go back to a stock tune. Obviously this will cost you. It will run okay on regular unleaded (I admit, I've never tried it myself), but obviously with a slight loss in performance. 3) It's not crystal clear, but if you had a problem with the engine it could void the warranty but wouldn't affect anything else. I guess you could remove the Ecutek software and keep your warranty that way. It is unlikely that they would be able to tell.

Yep, good meet, shame the weather was horrible, seagulls too, just to add to it. Was great catching up with everyone and meeting some new people too. A big thanks for Mike for slaving away at the BBQ all day and providing what is becoming a regular event.

It's 7J for a stock wheel. But for you new wheels, 35-38mm offset is what you want, so spacers will sort that I guess.

Yes, I could do that. Would you mind starting a thread via the calendar though and select 'social meets' as I'm worried it will get lost in this thread.

Pics please as per the rules.

No, they are not. Somem models may be. I was merely mentioning them as a mid-range wheel that are not replica wheels, i.e., their own original design. That is why Rays and Advans are the price they are. A proper forged wheel is lighter (less material) and stronger in comparison to a cast wheel or somewhere inbetween. I think once you put a set of nice aftermarket wheels on you will no longer think the stock wheels look good. Also getting the offset right makes a big difference. The OEM wheels have too much offset, but that's what happens when they have to accommodate snow chains as is the case in some markets.

OEM wheels are 9.2kg so heavy and obviously cast. OEM wheels are heavy but strong. I think it's a personal choice, in terms of weight JR and Rotas will probably be lighter than OEM wheels, though that isn't hard to achieve. By comparison my forged Rays wheels are 7.2kg though mine are 7.4kg with the powder coat. Obviously expensive wheels means the highest quality, but as I said before I have very rarely seen problems with others using replica wheels.

There is a huge choice in regard to wheels out there. Ironically most seem to fit replica wheels like Rota and Japan Racing wheels. This is really due to the real item being hideously expensive. In all honesty whilst replica wheels are not my thing, they tend to work well enough and I very rarely hear of people having problems. I have the odd friend with a cracked Rota wheel, but it has to be said it's a rarity. Replica wheels are cheaper cast copies of forged wheels. The real thing is stronger and lighter but it depends how much you worry about such things. Mid range wheels like OZ are fine too and at least they are not copies of other wheels. I guess it comes down to how much you want to spend really. For example a set of Rotas or JR racing can be had for around £600 or less in some instances. A set of OZ's £800-£1000. A set of Enkei or Works wheels around £1200, then you have the upper sector with Rays and Advan costing you north of £2K. The other option of course is to buy second hand for a set of a decent make of wheels. There is nothing wrong with this, but check the wheels carefully of course. So all of this is subject to how much you just want it for looks, whether performance is important and also how authentic or not you want to be with what you put on your car. Of course the bottom line is how much you spend.

Thanks for that Jeff. I think if they don't do much, I'll give it a miss as no point spending money for the sake of it.

These: http://www.whiteline.com.au/product_detail4.php?part_number=KDT922&sq=29598 Given they're only £50, I doubt there'd be any discount. I don't know of any one that has tried these. I guess if they help with eliminating axle tramp that would be great as my car suffers badly with that.

I've managed to split the thread. Got most of it out. Sorry your project thread became full of a debate about something else, Tay. For those that want to discuss it's moved here:

I would say most will be there till 3pm or so.

Cool glad you got the wheel nuts sorted. It cost me about the same around £90 by the time they arrived. What I will say though is that despite being subject to airguns for the last three years, my wheel nuts are unmarked so they last well. Plus it will complement your wheels perfectly. I've used the supplied socket for the last three years, no problem at all. The wheel nuts do not seem to get scratched at all. I've never used tape or anything, they'll take it fine, don't worry.

Get Rays ones, but get the steel ones, there is an option on a variety of colours. I've got black ones on my car, they have Rays on the nuts. Just checked on the price £45 from Nengun, plus all the shipping and import duty of course. These look like the ones I have. https://www.rallysportdirect.com/part/lug-nuts/vol-w1712125b-volk-racing-rays-17-hex-12x1-25-lug-nuts-black As for the AD08R's. Well you can use them on the road. They may be a bit noisy which is the main annoyance. If it was me I'd change them for something more road orientated, but plenty of people run them as a road tyre. You could put the stock Primacy tyre on it if you wanted. Good news on the CE28N's then!

Just bear in mind that bigger sidewalls mean less precise handling and feel. The effect on the overall gearing would be small if you ran say a 225/45/18. It will make your speedo over read a bit more than it already does. Do you really find the gearing too short? It's always struck me as a good balance for acceleration and cruising at speed.

Yep, just standard arse covering. The stock wheel nuts will probably be fine, but just check the angle of the pitch as they mate to the new wheels. Otherwise just get some nice steel nuts. Decent aftermarket wheel nuts will cost you £50+ the crappy aluminium ones that you can buy are not worth it really.

No worries, studs are far, far more preferable than bolts. But yes just studs and nuts.

I would say get wheel nuts for the new wheels. Even better if you can get OZ ones, I got some Rays ones for my wheels. The stock ones look terrible , especially so with aftermarket wheels. Also check the angle on them as they may not be ideal for aftermarket wheels. But make sure you buy steel not aluminium ones.

That's what I did, but why do they bloody list them in pounds? America is not the world etc.

I think they're good. To compare with a Contisport Contact 5 which I've tried, they are not as good off the line, but are better under lateral g-force i.e., in the corners where the Contis seem to let go sooner. I've used them for the last 70K miles, I really like them.

Those wheel weights are fairly approximate, so give a rough guide. I'm not sure if something is lost as they seem to be listed in pounds. For example my 17x8 TE37 are said to weigh 7.57kg. But Rays list them at 7.2kg. Mine when powdercoated came in at 7.4kg which would seem about right with the addition of the powder coat. Not a huge difference, but I admit I can't work in antiquated bloody pounds and ounces!

Welcome aboard, do you have plans for the car? Look out for social meets both north and south for you by the looks of it!

Whilst the Primacy tyre is good fun, it's not the most progressive tyre, so changing to a tyre that has more grip (but not too much) doesn't dull the fun and a more progressive tyre when you are over the limit of grip is more fun to play with and you can balance the car better. I really like the Yoko Advan V105 (extra load) and there's a good deal on them from RRG Macc too, which helps.