Do the right thing or Save Money?

I want to do more track events this year, not to take home any trophies, I enjoy TNiA and hanging out with fast cars. The Elantra N comes with a 19 x 8 wheel with a 55mm offset. I want to go to an 18 x 9.5 to provide more sidewall support for better turn-in and to run wider tires. The IDEAL wheel would be an 18 x 9.5 with a 45mm offset, but I found a set of wheels locally for a great price, but they are 38mm offset. 

My plan is to mount a pair of  265 series V730 and see what's what. I think that with camber bolts, the fronts will fit. The backs are the concern. If they rub, I have a few options: 

• Send it, rubbin' is racin' son. They will only be used for the track, no street miles. 
• Stagger the offset, run a 245 out back. Randy's article makes me think this won't be the worst thing in the world. 
• Pony up for a set of 18 x 9.5 with the ideal +45 offset. This is the most expensive option of course. 
• Add adjustable arms in the rear for more camber, but this moves me into the mod class. 
• Get frustrated, do nothing, abandon racing cars and live under a rock.

WWYD? 

One more option to consider: Run a 245 tire on 9.5 wheels. It will have better sidewall support than the 265 would, as the 265's want a wider rim yet. It may or may not alleviate the rubbing concern with the +38 offset rims too, if you still want to go that route. Either way, 245 is the more 'ideal' performance tire width on a 9.5 rim.

I'd buy the wheels that I wanted. 

I've done the make-it-fit before and invariably it ends up costing as much or more than just doing it the way I wanted to start with. 

i wouldn't run a staggered tire... I'm guessing that the strut suspension design of the Elantra is going to limit camber meaning that you'll end up tearing up front tires faster than rears and staggered means you can't rotate...  TNiA events are all about fun so absolute speed isn't the goal.  

spending more money just to save money is not the right move either...  Adding adjustable arms to use incorrect wheels is throwing good money at bad money...  

if you really want to run 265s, I would run the correct wheels, the extra offset will look better and increase track width, you will have the correct wheels at the beginning and will preserve the ability to rotate tires...  

racing isn't cheap... buy once cry once, etc...

Either do what works regardless of price or leave it alone.

How much will the wheels improve the turn in?

If it's not going to be a big diffrence leave it alone and save the money for something else.

What about going to an 18x9 and a 245 or 255 tire if that setup would be easier to fit? 

You mention "the mod class".  Are you competing in the car, or just doing untimed track days?  Or is it a dual-purpose track day/autocross car?

If competing then I would get the widest wheels and widest tires that are allowed by the rules and will fit under the car.  IMHO the right way to fix rubbing is fender flares rather than compromising alignment.

If it's non-competitive then I would go with the widest stuff that fits without having to change anything else.  For TNIA/etc the gains are small and are unlikely to make any noticeable difference in the amount of fun you have.   I definitely would not go staggered for non-competitive events, you lose a lot of flexibility by not being able to move tires between the two ends of the car.
 

pinchvalve (Forum Supporter) said:

not to take home any trophies

.......

but this moves me into the mod class.

Which is it? Not caring about trophies means not caring about classing. Make the car how you want it.

That's only a 7 mm difference. We're talking negative offset right? Do you know anyone with a fender roller? Maybe find a used one and resell it. They tend to float around like that a lot. 

For fun, I'd pick up another set of stockers online for cheap. Then run the cheapest narrowest 200tw tires for that wheel size and burn them up. Stock wheels are generally tough as nails and always available 2nd hand.

For competition I'm getting the lightest widest wheel for my intended class and focusing on A052/RE71/P1 depending on what I'm doing and where.

For some background, I have a set of 18" x 8" wheels with 245 tires that I run 200TW tires on. These are my autocross tires, and they are fine for the track and yes, I could just use them. But the 9.5 x 38mm were a screaming deal and will allow me to have a dedicated set of track wheels/tires to get through a few TNiAs and SCCA Time Trial events while still running autocross events. 

I don't mind mounting a set of 265s, I am 99% sure they will work up front. But if they don't fit out back and I need a 245, I see no reason to eat the cost of the 265s. I will just run a smaller tire out back. 

While I say I don't care about trophies, I don't want to eliminate the possibility either. :)  No point in moving from Sport class to Tuner class just for a trailing arm and a wider rear tire. 

pinchvalve (Forum Supporter) said:

While I say I don't care about trophies, I don't want to eliminate the possibility either. :)  No point in moving from Sport class to Tuner class just for a trailing arm and a wider rear tire. 

I'm in Unlimited 2 with my 80whp Datsun 1200. Why? Because Hoosiers.

I'm a mere 17-20 seconds off the winning car..............there's a lot of freedom in knowing you don't have a prayer. I have a blast and don't end up obsessed with carving the last hundredth (well at least not more than I already do).

With that said I wouldn't recommend this route to any sane person.