Space saver spares for drag race front runners?

You the man, Patrick. 

Probably oughtta make the engine fit first though....

Im looking forward to seeing you this weekend. 

Not quite as cheap as ebay, but some other sites have Nankang P135R15 tires for under $65

Keith Tanner said:

IIRC, the reason those are stamped "55 mph" is to make you change them sooner and because of what a single spare does to your car's handling. Car and Driver did some entertaining investigation on this years ago. They said (from memory) that the tires are based on aircraft tires so they don't really have a problem with speed.

 

A more recent test from them: https://blog.caranddriver.com/how-much-does-a-donut-spare-tire-limit-performance-we-find-out-using-a-ford-mustang/

Best comment: "this test should be done with a heavier, more powerful car". yeah, it only had 460 hp...

Gotta say, that space-saver spare that the Mustang has on it is probably still more tread than my Porsche 924 has on its regular tires, lol. The space-saver spare on my WRX looks more like a bicycle tire. I wonder how the Mustang would have performed with a more typical miini-spare.....

vs.

[img]http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wp8P6gAEu9w/TpiWztNCt2I/AAAAAAAAAVo/xsmhxWVew2M/s1600/SST-F10-04.jpg[/img]

the 2006 smart car came with 145/65 tires, that crazy kid Corbin put them on the rear of his diesel jetta with corvette spare wheels to get it to "rotate".

AngryCorvair said:

In reply to Dusterbd13 :

Motorcycle tire bead shape is different than car tire.  I've seen it done but there's some risk to it which I can't quantify.  Google probably can, though.

Main problem is a rounded cross section. Some even have stickier compound on the sides than in the center. The contact patch is optimized for something that needs the most grip when leaned over by 45 degrees or more. On the upside, they're typically pretty sticky compounds and designed for high speeds, if not for a lot of weight.

ALL OF YOU, Be Smart here, sure 200 dollar apiece front M&H Tires are a bit much but the 155x 15 Old school Volkswagon tire is cheap and Availible.  there are hundreds of restored VW's around here and used tires are Bountiful. I don't care if you total your car at the top end Because you blew out a Cheap ass tire (Space saver) I would care if GRM got a Bad rap because you did something Stupid. Tom Put your Foot down and Stop this so there are NO Questions about what is safe or legal.

Jet.com has 165/40-16 federal “performance” tires for $39.89 each with free shipping.  

In reply to GTXVette :

Also if the tires I run in auto cross Slow me down a tenth or Two, well,   that is what will be on it at any other event. It isn't a Drag race Car it's an Auto cross car.  

Tom It may be you need to make the set of tires in A/X the same in all events.

In reply to Patrick :

yep that could be put on a 5" rim with no problem.

GTXVette said:

 

ALL OF YOU, Be Smart here, sure 200 dollar apiece front M&H Tires are a bit much but the 155x 15 Old school Volkswagon tire is cheap and Availible.  there are hundreds of restored VW's around here and used tires are Bountiful. I don't care if you total your car at the top end Because you blew out a Cheap ass tire (Space saver) I would care if GRM got a Bad rap because you did something Stupid. Tom Put your Foot down and Stop this so there are NO Questions about what is safe or legal.

Read on page 1.  Tom implicitly and simply stated no compact spare tires.  Almost everyone is about safety which is why i’m throwing out speed rated tires in small sizes.  The 165’s i ordered are V rated.  I have new goodyear eagles that are for top fuel cars that go 300+ that i can run if i want.  

If 245 hoosier autocross tires are slowing me down on the strip, which they did this year, then i’m budgeting $ for skinnies if at all possible.  In my case the Datsun was a drag car that i made handle with some simple tweaks and sticky rubber, next year’s car is going to be opposite, a handler that i have to tweak to drag race.  The event is all about compromise to make an all around vehicle.  

Patrick said:

Jet.com has 165/40-16 federal “performance” tires for $39.89 each with free shipping.  

If the Q45 makes a comback next year I'm going to buy these for front runners. Q45 spares are 16" aluminum wheels. 

Just for clarity sake: I'm not going to run the factory space savers TIRES in light of this conversation.  I may still use the wheels, depending on the weight difference vs the normal steelies.

I refuse to be a safety issue with anything i build.

In reply to Patrick :

What inexpensive options have you found for 17 inch spaces aver wheels?

C4’s have steelies and gto’s could have aluminum ones. I’ve got gto ones, but will be shopping for c4 wheels for less budget hit, but i think i’m in the clear.  Zeroed donor and chassis and have $159 of recoup left.  Have around $1000 budget space left with all major purchases accounted for.