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S550 front wheel fitment questions.

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531
364
sfo
Here are some pro cons:

Apex ec7 wheel is used for true square swap wheel/tire to any corner. This really helps for track guys. You need spacers 25mm front. Apex is hub centric huge plus.

Forgestar makes specific offsets so no spacer needed but you can only rotate left to right. Forgestar also not hub centric. We raced vettes in scca banging curbs with no issues.

Spacers. Don't use unless you have to. They are ok. We race on them no problem.
Use only hubcentric spacers either slip on with long arp studs or type 2 spacer bolted to hub then wheel bolts to spacer with stock length studs.

I check wheel torque after every on track session. Wheels are often loose torque. That's why we retorque them. You cannot check type 2 spacer torque without removig wheel. That's a big hassle. But amazingly, I find the type 2 spacer not loosing torque but the wheel to spacer can loose torque. What is the physics of this I do not know. Maybe it has to do with direct wheel flex. I'm paranoid running type 2 spacers on track.

Slipon spacers you can check wheel spacer torque but you need long studs. The longer the stud the weaker. But you can check them. Makes me feel better on a track car.

Weight about equal because long stud about same as 2 short but there are extra bolts. So my guess slipon is less mass.

I would go slipon for track car.

Type 2 for occasional track duty mostly on streets where you want car looking good.
 

Apex Wheels

Race Proven, Street Approved
Supporting Vendor
670
1,061
Exp. Type
Time Attack
Exp. Level
5-10 Years
Bay Area, CA
Cory,

When is the apex group buy and how do we get on it?
We will be launching the EC-7 Group Buy next week. To join, you gotta know a guy who knows a guy...kidding :) We will be making multiple posts about it, along with having links to it in our signature and on the main website. Should be easy to find!
 

Apex Wheels

Race Proven, Street Approved
Supporting Vendor
670
1,061
Exp. Type
Time Attack
Exp. Level
5-10 Years
Bay Area, CA
Here are some pro cons:

Apex ec7 wheel is used for true square swap wheel/tire to any corner. This really helps for track guys. You need spacers 25mm front. Apex is hub centric huge plus.

Forgestar makes specific offsets so no spacer needed but you can only rotate left to right. Forgestar also not hub centric. We raced vettes in scca banging curbs with no issues.

Spacers. Don't use unless you have to. They are ok. We race on them no problem.
Use only hubcentric spacers either slip on with long arp studs or type 2 spacer bolted to hub then wheel bolts to spacer with stock length studs.

I check wheel torque after every on track session. Wheels are often loose torque. That's why we retorque them. You cannot check type 2 spacer torque without removig wheel. That's a big hassle. But amazingly, I find the type 2 spacer not loosing torque but the wheel to spacer can loose torque. What is the physics of this I do not know. Maybe it has to do with direct wheel flex. I'm paranoid running type 2 spacers on track.

Slipon spacers you can check wheel spacer torque but you need long studs. The longer the stud the weaker. But you can check them. Makes me feel better on a track car.

Weight about equal because long stud about same as 2 short but there are extra bolts. So my guess slipon is less mass.

I would go slipon for track car.

Type 2 for occasional track duty mostly on streets where you want car looking good.
Good info here, it's nice to have people reporting with first-hand knowledge on spacers instead of "I heard from my buddy's cousin who had a friend that doesn't like spacers". We encourage people to use slip on spacers whenever possible, but if for some wild reason you need a spacer thicker than 30-32mm, I would recommend a QUALITY bolt-on spacer at that point from someone like Motorsport Tech in Reno, NV.
 
Will be on the lookout for the group buy! I was dying to get some of these wheels in Jan 2017, but they weren't as readily available then. I went with a different 18" x 10" wheel then, but now thinking about 18" x 11". @APEXRaceParts I see this from your fitment guide:

Front & Rear: 18x11” ET52 with 305/35-18 tires
  • Popular fitment.
  • Recommend at least -3 degrees of front camber to prevent poke.
  • Approximately 25mm front spacers required with most suspensions.
My only question is the -3 deg camber requirement. I have Steeda struts & dual-rate (3/4" lower) springs, and Camber plates. I haven't cut the sheet metal around the top of the strut, so I have like -2.7 deg camber on each side. Enough, or absolutely must be -3 deg?
 

Jwodon

Jake
30
10
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
3-5 Years
Collegeville, PA
All,

First post so forgive me if I simply just didnt do enough digging to find my answer to this. I am currently running 19x10's in the front and 19x11 in the rear with 275 and 305s respectively. I'm getting new wheels (18's) and new rubber and wanted to try a 305 all around square set up. I've heard different theories on how this can be done, some cheap, some pricey, some hard on tires, etc. I wanted to ask to anyone who runs this set up what they did to accomodate the 305's up front. So far I've seen a 25mm wheel spacer and ARP studs is a popular move. I wanted to know if anyone has had issues on the track when going that route. Having the wheel further away from center naturally makes me nervous just because of the added physical stress on the hub. Also, can a larger wheel offset counteract the need for the 25mm spacer?

I appreciate any help.

Murray

OP - Welcome to TMO. This forum is filled with knowledge and experience.

For what its worth - I have been running 18"x11" Apex EC-7s with +52 offset square paired with 305/680R18 tires. I have nothing but good things to say about Apex. Customer service is some of the best in the biz. Their wheels are phenomenal, plus you can run 18" wheels that will fit around the factory 6 pot Brembos. I plan on buying another set soon. Things you'll need to ensure fitment are:
  • ARP extended studs
  • 25MM or 1" spacer
  • Run at least -2.5 degrees in camber up front
I am also sitting on Steeda Sport Linear springs which lower the car .75" and have not had any rubbing issues thus far.
 

Apex Wheels

Race Proven, Street Approved
Supporting Vendor
670
1,061
Exp. Type
Time Attack
Exp. Level
5-10 Years
Bay Area, CA
Will be on the lookout for the group buy! I was dying to get some of these wheels in Jan 2017, but they weren't as readily available then. I went with a different 18" x 10" wheel then, but now thinking about 18" x 11". @APEXRaceParts I see this from your fitment guide:

Front & Rear: 18x11” ET52 with 305/35-18 tires
  • Popular fitment.
  • Recommend at least -3 degrees of front camber to prevent poke.
  • Approximately 25mm front spacers required with most suspensions.
My only question is the -3 deg camber requirement. I have Steeda struts & dual-rate (3/4" lower) springs, and Camber plates. I haven't cut the sheet metal around the top of the strut, so I have like -2.7 deg camber on each side. Enough, or absolutely must be -3 deg?

The current camber you have will work. Of course, more is ideal but -2.7* can get it done. @TennTex Group Buy can be found here btw: https://www.gangup.com/apex/apex-18-19-ec7-mustang-q1-2020.html
 
+1
+52mm 18 or 19x11 for me. 305 squared(maybe 315mm soon)
25mm spacer
1inc lomger studs
Open nuts
All 3 from Opmustang

Then vorshlag camber plates.
Was my first mod.
Our cars love camber (-3..min..) And big tires.

View attachment 12882

dothey not make spacers for the shelbys?
 
For the last 20 years I've worked at Summit Racing in sales and customer service departments. It doesn't happen often but every year I do hear from a customer or two that was running spacers and had their studs shear off. I kinda put it in the same camp as guys that have a car catch fire from an amp gauge, it's really rare, but it does happen and when it does, it usually causes a serious loss. I became gun-shy to recommend them because of those experiences and more of an advocate for proper wheel offsets.

I've seen race teams that have run spacers as well as read enough threads on here to see that most people have success using them that I think you've changed my opinion.
 
531
364
sfo
Just to add to the database I just raced on front 1" spacers and apex ec7 18x11s on hoosier 295 x 18 DOT-r race tires perfectly with no rub. No spacers on rear. There is only maybe 5mm space to the strut but no rub witness marks.
 

Apex Wheels

Race Proven, Street Approved
Supporting Vendor
670
1,061
Exp. Type
Time Attack
Exp. Level
5-10 Years
Bay Area, CA
For the last 20 years I've worked at Summit Racing in sales and customer service departments. It doesn't happen often but every year I do hear from a customer or two that was running spacers and had their studs shear off. I kinda put it in the same camp as guys that have a car catch fire from an amp gauge, it's really rare, but it does happen and when it does, it usually causes a serious loss. I became gun-shy to recommend them because of those experiences and more of an advocate for proper wheel offsets.

I've seen race teams that have run spacers as well as read enough threads on here to see that most people have success using them that I think you've changed my opinion.

Out of curiosity, were these failures from people running bolt-on spacers (extra set of studs in the spacer), or from slip-on/pass through with longer ARP studs?
 

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