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      08-15-2016, 04:00 PM   #2
The HACK
Midlife Crises Racing Silent but Deadly Class
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Drives: 2006 MZ4C, 2021 Tesla Model 3
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Only laptime could tell. But I wouldn't be surprised if the 255 width 17" tires is faster than all the options available, especially if you're running stiffer springs/dampers.

The wider tires don't really give you more grip, it gives you more surface area to keep the tires cool. If you're not overwhelming your tires, running wider don't give you significant amount of grip advantage, ad as you've found, is detrimental in weight penalty. Especially for lighter cars.

The company that corner balanced my MZ4 Coupe, Tri-Point Engineering, was heavily into racing Miatas. They've found that in the 15" tire range, by going from a 225 to 245 width tire of the same compound, they actually LOST time.

Of course, a 2,200 lbs, 130hp on a good day car vs 3,1xx and 330hp...Different story. But I'm inclined to say that, if you've got the budget, test out all the different options available to you.

This also is dependent on your particular driving style too, and on which side of the grip you live on. If you tend to live on the right side of the grip curve, then wider tires will definitely help.
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