New Member! Hi !

[Dean Goodall]

Hi all, 

New member from today.

I attended Stoneleigh this year and thoroughly enjoyed seeing all the Westy's lined up at the club.  Visited Westfield Sports Cars in the hall Sunday, paid a deposit for a Classic Monday! 10% discount show offer could not be ignored!

Now reviewing all the options and wondered if I could ask for some expert advice regarding the tyre choices.

Is there a substantial benefit in upgrading to 205 width tyres over the standard 195's? Worth the extra £95?

Am I correct in assuming that the 8" rear wheel upgrade would fill the rear arches nicely? look better? 

Would  8" rear wheels then benefit from having 205 tyres?

Would 205 tyres be too close a fit for the front cycle wings?

Just want to make sure I get the best wheel/tyre combination for its intended use/cost/handling etc, oh, and would wide track wishbones influences things?

The car would not be used on a track, purely public road use.

Thanks

 

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman]

Welcome!

195’s would be fine all round, you’d need to stick with 7” wheels front and back, but don’t worry about filling the rear arches; that’s taken care of by something called wheel-offset, in other words, how far out from the hub it bolts to, that the outside edge of the wheeel sticks!

However, some do go for the 8” Team Dynamics on the rear and 7” on the front, purely for aesthetics, as the 8” have an ever so slightly more dished look to the spokes, compared to the 7”s, echoing the more traditional wheel look of the past, on a rear wheel drive car.

In which case, people do tend to go for 205’s all round.

aso for road use, it’s really just what you like the look of!

[Gary Taylor]

Hi and welcome from sunny Scotland and good luck on your journey 

 

[Thrustyjust]

Wide track is good , especially for 3 point turns without loosing rear tyres from donuts.................

Oh and welcome. At least with the classic it comes with a manual BUT DO NOT RELY ON THE MANUAL. Please ask here first in a build thread before drilling or cutting anything that cant easily be reversed !

Oh and welcome 

[BugMan]

First welcome to the club, best move I ever made and I wish you the very best of luck .

I'd highly recommend getting along to your local group meetings, one of the very best moves I made as you will find everybody is very helpful and friendly.  Whereabouts are you in the country?

2nd if going for a build then start a build thread in the build section and have a read through some of the builds there, some very important lessons can be learned before touching a wrench or a drill.  We LOVE pictures as well, and they have saved me from schoolboy mistakes on many occasions.  Have gained lots of inspiration for builds like Dave's and AdgeC, many of the principles are the same across the range.

3rd bits you have on the car seem to be somewhat dependant on what you are planning to use the car for - for example I don't see myself doing very many track days so did not bother with ARB's but I have the ability to fit them if up-gradeitys should strike.

On the tyres I have 205's on my 250 build, but that's probably more related to the engine, and decided not to take tyres from the factory as I was not particularly happy with the options available at the time, and besides they would be sitting in the garage for a long time so decided to get mine independently. Again I would suggest tyre choice is related to what you intend to use the car for, but as was pointed out to me in the very beginning don't take a brand/model of tire from WF thinking your going to change them at a later date, they will last a long time.

Outside of tyres, have you taken any options with the kit, as this was a big thing for me to make sure I didn't have regrets at a later date? 

I detailed my choice on the forum very early in the process and had some great feedback have a look here (wow it was a long time ago it seems)

I took my kit in 2 stages as didn't see the point of having to store bodywork as even in a double garage space is an issue, but that might just be me.

And lastly as the caffeine is slowly wearing off, don't be afraid to ask questions, we all stat at different levels and this is the best source of info on WF cars, and a great bunch of people

 

And of course colour, cos Red is the fastest of course

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman]

I can only second the advice about getting along to local meets etc, you’ll find them just as friendly as Stoneleigh. With plenty of opportunity for tyre kicking and comparing mods, getting advice for the build etc. plus you will generally find helpful souls to give a hand for some of those jobs it’s difficult to do single handedly, or the times when an engine hoist is vital, etc.

By the way, I noticed you’ve not got you profile filled in with contact details, address etc. (Don’t worry, these things are only visible to the admisntrators, and we go to great lengths to keep all member info confidential). But it does mean you won’t get your Club Magazine, and may miss out on other Club organized activities and so on.

[SootySport]

If R1R tyres are still available from the factory go with them, T1R are too hard for a light car.    If no R1R's these days then choose something else that has a softer compound such asAD08. 

If you go with 205 size the front arches need to be changed as well,  factory do them as well.

Wide track is also high in the list for an uprgrade.  

How much more money do you want us to spend for you?

and   Of course

[CosKev]

Welcome

Personally I would get yourself a cheap set of build wheels to use,if you get along to a local meet you might find someone has a set they can lend you

Then buy your nice wheels and tyres when the car is almost complete, saves the risk of damaging the wheels whilst in storage or being fitted when building,and also your rubber will then be brand new!

[Dean Goodall]

Wow! what a response thanks everybody!

Gadgetman: thanks, now I know the visual difference of 8" to 7" wheels, been looking at lots of images and gonna go for it, 8" rear, 205's all round, they look good so F* it! Profile updated

Thrustyjust: Wide track was my next question so thanks coz I was wondering what the advantages were.

Bugman: cheers, build advice is awesome, deffo will start build log on WSCC. Current options, Navy Blue, Silver wheels, Wide track wishbones, 205's, 8" rears, Lockable boot, chrome pack, turbo seats, harnesses, contoured dash. For the Mrs, heater, hood and side screens. 

Sooty: didn't realise I could opt for R1R's, will call tommoz. I asked Simon@Westfield if 205's are tight on the front arches he said they would be fine, guess they will supply the arches to suit tyre choice. 

CosKev: ta, will consider build Wheelz!

Right, you lot have cost me more money, thanks and Goodnight!

 

 

 

 

[BugMan]

Toyo R1R's IMHO seem to be the best balance, but WF can't guarantee supply when I ordered my kit, was T1R's or R888's.  You could just get the kit without rubber at order and then obtain what you want when you actually need them, which is what I did.  i think is was about 6 to 8 months into my build when i started looking for my 205's all round, so in my book I save 6 months of shelf life, and the space to store them.  Once I had mine through eBay, I just went to a local tyre fitted who put them on, balanced and filled with Nitrogen for a £10 a corner.

Have you considered upgrades to brakes and poss Limited Slip Differential (LSD) option as again IMHO if I wanted them, I wanted them from the start?  Again very much comes back to what you are going to use the car for.  I'd also consider 4 point harness.

As I suspect your other 1/2 might be like mine I also went for the full canopy, so we don't get tooooo cold, however on reflection I would if I had the choice again, just go for the WF side doors and then look at soft-bits for there canopy or some other,

 We are very good at spending, or upgraditus in various forms, and I love my tools - don't forget you will need some things you might not already have.  Get to your local group you may well be able to borrow things like pipe benders etc.

;-)

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman]

7 minutes ago, BugMan said:

on reflection I would if I had the choice again, just go for the WF side doors and then look at soft-bits for there canopy or some other,

Indeed, Soft Bits for Sevens also offer a greater range of figment options for different roll bar combinations than Westfield with the half hood.

[BugMan]

Ohoo, yes roll-bar option at the back, standard hoop, or something a bit better.......yet another choice

[Ali and Gail]

Hello and welcome 

[Geoffrey Carter (Buttercup)]

 from Scarborough.

[CosKev]

http://forum.wscc.co.uk/forum/topic/129381-build-wheels-and-shocks/