Originally Posted by J Propane

Thanks minihune; I own it.

Originally Posted by minihune

What is your relationship with Team Octane?

That helps narrow it down and also raises the price.

8" is heavier than 7"

8" has less selection than 7"

8" cost more than 7"

For example:
Enkei RPF1 17x7 $216 each 14.6 lbs (17x8 doesn't fit, about $230, 15.6 lbs)
Enkei GTC01 17x7 $354 each 17.9 lbs (17x8 doesn't fit, about 20 lbs)
Konig Feather only comes as wide as 17x7 for the MINI

For Rota wheels http://18racing.com/wheels.html
Jessica(925.339.3828) or email sales@18racing.com
See Slipstreams for 17x7.5 (no 17x8 for the MINI) $625 a set if 4 shipped

For the track you do want a wider tire if it can fit.
So what tire are you putting on the wheel?
What is the widest it can fit on the MINI?
Then you know what width to buy.
For track you are trying to stay on budget and get as much performance out of the tires as you can by optimizing your suspension setup- shocks, springs, camber plates, lower control arms, front and rear swaybars (at least rear), alignment, brakes, wheels and tires.

To think that you can add wheels and tires alone to use on the track will not be getting the most out of your tires for the event.

So which tire did you think you would use? This is also part of the budget.

Street tires generally won't work well for track. R compound tires would be best and a hard rubber would last longer but give up some grip. Good example of a durable track tire would be Toyo R888 or Yokohama Advan A048.

Aggressive front negative camber is needed to make full use of the front tires which will wear quickly since they are doing most of the turning, braking, and accelerating all at once. Using stock suspension would not allow full use of the tread and wear the outer edges of the tire facing the outside of the turn. If the track is clockwise with many right hand turns then the driverside outer tread will be worn faster.

R888 (100 treadwear)
205/40-17 $222 each
215/45-17 $228 each
235/40-17 $230 each
245/40-17 $250 each

Advan A048 (treadwear 60)
215/45-17 $254 each fits rims 7-8" wide, tire diam. 24.6"
225/45-17 $275 each, fits rims 7-8.5" wide, tire diam. 24.8"
245/40-17 $269 each fits rims 8-9.5" wide, tire diam. 24.8"

If you prefer not having to change wheels at the track then at least use an Extreme Summer tire like:

Bridgestone Potenza RE-11 (180 treadwear)
205/45-17 $172 fits rims 6.5-7.5" perfect for 7", tire diam. 24.3", 23 lbs
215/45-17 $182 fits rims 7-8" perfect for 7", tire diam. 24.6", 25 lbs
235/40-17 $200 fits rims 8-9.5" perfect for 8.5", tire diam. 24.4", 25 lbs
245/40-17 $220 fits rims 8-9.5" perfect for 8.5", tire diam. 24.7", 26 lbs

Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 Star Spec (best value) (200 treadwear)
215/40-17 $136
215/45-17 $132
235/40-17 $150
245/40-17 $161

Yokohama AD08 (180 treadwear)
215/40-17 $155
215/45-17 $163
235/40-17 $181
245/40-17 $204

Notice treadwear numbers are very low for R compound (doesn't mean much- they wear fast), and low for Extreme summer tires (about 10K miles and usually less when used for track).

If you are just learning then use Extreme summer tires like the Direzza Star Spec which is priced well and comes in sizes that will work. 215/40 if you use 7" wide wheel and 235/40 if you use 8" wide.