Yeah, I've contacted GRP a few weeks ago. As soon as they tell me that the wheels fit, I'm buying a set from them. I also suspect it might be possible to reconfigure the rear parking brake gearbox and turn the motor inwards, towards the center of the wheel. If I can find some time, I'll see if I can make a prototype that clears an 18" wheel. There's no reason for that thing to stick out so much.
I've done several hundred track days on my Elise, I lost count of how many a good decade ago, and early on, I realized that a dedicated track wheel set is a must.
First, until you sort out the car as you like it, you will be experimenting with tires, pads, all kinds of stuff. Some pads (like sintered metal ones) are hell on wheels, and I don't want to mess uo my pretty Emira wheels, since I'm going to keep this car pretty.
Second. Track focused tires can handle heat better. The Goodyear F1 SuperSports on my Emira were good for the first 10-12 minutes of a session, and then they started to get greasy. I had the same problems on the Elise as well. Once you get into the barely streetable tires, like Bridgestone RE71RS or Toyo R888R as examples, you will have higher performance for more of your session. I used to run the Yokohama A005 soft slicks on my Elise, and they got me 3-4 seconds a lap at Laguna Seca, that's huge! I use track wheels with dedicated tires because I want the extra performance, life be damned. Where I live it's generally warm, but we have a few weeks of the year where temperatures are below 40F, and the tires I mentioned aren't supposed to be driven at those temperatures.
Third. Your streetable, all-temperature wheels become your rain tires. Why miss a track day when it's raining?
Four. It's nice to drop wheels off at a tire shop and not have to worry about them dropping a Lotus off a lift.
