Different wheel offset front to rear vs spacers

[repoman89]

I'm starting to look into some TE37s for my next track wheel and wanted to gather opinions. My last set were Bimmerworld TA16s in 18x9.5 ET35 square and I never really liked running a spacer in the rear. No issues ever but it made me paranoid anyway which made the hobby less enjoyable. This time around I'm thinking about running different offsets front to rear instead, while still keeping diameter the same front to rear because I really liked the handling neutrality. I've also since gone back to OEM bolts from studs, which makes spacers a little more annoying although honestly nothing worth worrying about.

Ideally I'd run 18x9.5 ET22 in the rear and something closer to a 9.5 ET38 or even 45 if it would clear the strut in the front, all of which Volk offers. For those with more track experience than me, how valuable do you find the ability to rotate tires to be? Does it get you an extra day or more out of tires that would otherwise be trash if you didn't rotate them? Can you ever replace just two at once if one axle wears faster, or will that result in uneven levels of traction between the old and new? Just trying to understand better the tradeoffs here and how much money (if any?) spacer paranoia will cause me in extra tire costs.

[fourmula1]

I would not worry about using spacers at all as long as you check that they lay flat against the wheel and rotor when you get them. Almost everyone is racing with some sort of spacer. So if that is the only issue then I would say don’t go staggered.

If you frequent lime rock, rotating tires is pretty critical for me.

Its also a matter of how important tire life is to you. If you absolutely want to max out life then of course being able to rotate all four is nice. If you run hoosiers they can be rotated and also flipped on the wheel to extend some life.

I would not pair a new set of fronts with used rears or vice versa.

[bigjae46]

I'm starting to look into some TE37s for my next track wheel and wanted to gather opinions. My last set were Bimmerworld TA16s in 18x9.5 ET35 square and I never really liked running a spacer in the rear. No issues ever but it made me paranoid anyway which made the hobby less enjoyable. This time around I'm thinking about running different offsets front to rear instead, while still keeping diameter the same front to rear because I really liked the handling neutrality. I've also since gone back to OEM bolts from studs, which makes spacers a little more annoying although honestly nothing worth worrying about.

Ideally I'd run 18x9.5 ET22 in the rear and something closer to a 9.5 ET38 or even 45 if it would clear the strut in the front, all of which Volk offers. For those with more track experience than me, how valuable do you find the ability to rotate tires to be? Does it get you an extra day or more out of tires that would otherwise be trash if you didn't rotate them? Can you ever replace just two at once if one axle wears faster, or will that result in uneven levels of traction between the old and new? Just trying to understand better the tradeoffs here and how much money (if any?) spacer paranoia will cause me in extra tire costs.

I run square tires and wheels for cost savings. Tires are, by far, the largest expense for the track so I'm all for anything I can do to reduce tires costs even at the expense of some performance.

When you can replace just pairs depends on the tire. If you have heat cycled worn out tires on the front with new rears then you'll likely be in understeer hell. Not the case if you run an NT01 or an RR, they stay somewhat consistent. Other tires will fall off quite a bit.

[repoman89]

Thanks gents. Sounds like the typical 9.5 ET38 is the way to go with spacers in the rear. I can learn to not worry about the spacers if it means maximizing tire life -- the cheap bastard in me will always win out in the end.