Many who decide to upgrade to 16" wheels go for 205 on 7" front and 225 on 8" rears. Lately I've been wondering why that is. These cars were designed for a square set up, either 175 or 195 x 14 on all four corners.
Doing a little research it seems there is little rationale for this concept for the e9. Staggered set ups were started when the engine power grew so much that the rear wheels would slip on acceleration. Although the Miura was the first production car to offer this from the factory, it was the Porsche Turbo, with significant power and a rear mounted engine, which became the poster child for this setup
So, unless you have a monster engine transplant in an E9, this really is not an issue for our cars. A staggered set up increases understeer, makes it impossible to rotate tires fore and aft and upsets the balanced look of the car.
Is there any actual data that shows real world advantage to staggered set ups on the e9? Most modern performance cars are designed from the start for larger rear wheels. But in those cases, the suspension is tuned specifically for that so it all works together. But the E9 was always designed for a square set up so, unless a suspension is modified accordingly, a staggered set up will upset the balanced handling of the car
I had been running 215 tires on all corners for several years and was happy with the car’s behavior. A few years ago, I decided to follow the recommendations I heard from several people to run the 205 front, 225 rear set up. I was immediately disappointed with the balance on the twisties. So about a year ago, I went back to a square set up. I'm now running the one piece style 5 16” wheels (8” wide) with 225/50 Michelin Pilot Sport All-Season 4 on all corners. Since then, I have done several rallies in the back roads of the wine country with a local enthusiasts group. This includes some highly spirited driving on the twisted roads in the local hills. I have to say the car now feels more balanced, more predictable and with sharper steering control than it ever has. The morning, quite by accident, I ended up leading the rally and was followed by several recent Porsche 911s ahead of the pack. It was time to show the young ones what this old Munich Master can do. Few speed limits were paid attention to. At the end, 3 out of the 4 Porsche drivers who were right behind me mentioned that their cars had started to loose traction in several fast turns trying to keep up. This 50 year old coupe never broke a sweat.
This is obviously not a scientific comparison. Many variables at play here. But at least, several important factors, such as route, road conditions, speed and time of day were common for all. The coupe’s handling is now beautifully neutral and sure footed.
This being said, I can certainly understand if someone simply likes the staggered look. Nothing wrong with that. And when it is used as a Grand Touring car this is simply not an issue. But I wanted to share my observations of going from staggered to square in terms of driving and handling in more intense conditions.
PS: In the front I have 5mm spacers and slightly longer wheel studs. The 8" wheel fits without issues.
Doing a little research it seems there is little rationale for this concept for the e9. Staggered set ups were started when the engine power grew so much that the rear wheels would slip on acceleration. Although the Miura was the first production car to offer this from the factory, it was the Porsche Turbo, with significant power and a rear mounted engine, which became the poster child for this setup
So, unless you have a monster engine transplant in an E9, this really is not an issue for our cars. A staggered set up increases understeer, makes it impossible to rotate tires fore and aft and upsets the balanced look of the car.
Is there any actual data that shows real world advantage to staggered set ups on the e9? Most modern performance cars are designed from the start for larger rear wheels. But in those cases, the suspension is tuned specifically for that so it all works together. But the E9 was always designed for a square set up so, unless a suspension is modified accordingly, a staggered set up will upset the balanced handling of the car
I had been running 215 tires on all corners for several years and was happy with the car’s behavior. A few years ago, I decided to follow the recommendations I heard from several people to run the 205 front, 225 rear set up. I was immediately disappointed with the balance on the twisties. So about a year ago, I went back to a square set up. I'm now running the one piece style 5 16” wheels (8” wide) with 225/50 Michelin Pilot Sport All-Season 4 on all corners. Since then, I have done several rallies in the back roads of the wine country with a local enthusiasts group. This includes some highly spirited driving on the twisted roads in the local hills. I have to say the car now feels more balanced, more predictable and with sharper steering control than it ever has. The morning, quite by accident, I ended up leading the rally and was followed by several recent Porsche 911s ahead of the pack. It was time to show the young ones what this old Munich Master can do. Few speed limits were paid attention to. At the end, 3 out of the 4 Porsche drivers who were right behind me mentioned that their cars had started to loose traction in several fast turns trying to keep up. This 50 year old coupe never broke a sweat.
This is obviously not a scientific comparison. Many variables at play here. But at least, several important factors, such as route, road conditions, speed and time of day were common for all. The coupe’s handling is now beautifully neutral and sure footed.
This being said, I can certainly understand if someone simply likes the staggered look. Nothing wrong with that. And when it is used as a Grand Touring car this is simply not an issue. But I wanted to share my observations of going from staggered to square in terms of driving and handling in more intense conditions.
PS: In the front I have 5mm spacers and slightly longer wheel studs. The 8" wheel fits without issues.
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