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Posted by: brokenmoped Jul 5 2006, 07:32 PM

I was thinking of going a little wider than my current 2 liter fuchs (say...6.5, maybe 7") and was wondering what are some good alternative lightweight wheels. I want to keep the car 4-lug and narrow-boddied, so I was thinking maybe Panasports or Minilites. Any other good wheels out there?

-C.

Posted by: Rotten Robby Jul 6 2006, 10:09 AM

Revolutions if you can find them...


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Posted by: grantsfo Jul 6 2006, 12:13 PM

Arent revolutions like boat anchors?

Posted by: jhadler Jul 6 2006, 02:48 PM

Revolutions ain't light. They look great, and are really hard to destroy, but are not considered -light-. Heck, you can probably get custom steel wheels lighter than revolutions. Minilites are average weight, not super heavy, but not light either. Nice looking to be sure.

If you're looking for light weight competition wheels, there are a host of race wheel builders.

http://www.spinwerkes.com/ makes a good custom alloy wheel for a reasonable price.

http://www.keizerwheels.com/ would probably be the next step up. A little lighter than spin werkes but costs more too.

http://www.realwheel.net/ racing wheels is another in this same category of wheel.

And then you have http://www.kodiakmotorsports.com/ wheels which are super great. Not super cheap though.

These are what I would consider "basic" race wheels". They make 'em light, and they make 'em in 15" wheel sizes (if that matters to you). And I do know that they can all build wheels with 4x130 bolt patterns. They don't make 'em really fancy or pretty though. Unless of course, you like the look of 'em to begin with...

For the spiffy, and larger wheels, you can look at companies like http://www.kinesismotorsport.com/about.htm, http://www.fikse.com/, and http://www.ccwheel.com/files/home.php. But be prepared to pay big for these wheels...

-Josh2

Posted by: brokenmoped Jul 6 2006, 03:40 PM

Those Kodiaks are uber expensive!! $350 per wheel?! I should clarify that these wheels need to double as street wheels also.

Posted by: jhadler Jul 6 2006, 03:48 PM

That's important!! Race wheels are NOT street wheels. Not unless you have REALLY deep pockets. Light wheels will cost money, but they are not beaters for abuse. They won't take potholes too well. You need to decide what your priority is. Light weight? Or daily driver? The two generally are not mutual. Lighter wheels tend to be more fragile. The Revolutions are great street wheels though. Revolution makes rally wheels, so you know that their wheels are TOUGH. But they're not light. Minilites are a middle ground. Not super light, but they can take a little bump here and there without folding up like so much tin foil....

-Josh2

Posted by: brokenmoped Jul 6 2006, 03:56 PM

Sorry about that, should've clarified that in the first post. I'm looking for an alternative wheel that is lighter (and wider) than 2.0 fuchs and is tough enough for daily use. Also, cheapness is a plus.

Posted by: jhadler Jul 6 2006, 04:03 PM

You're probably not going to find much that's better than the Fuchs. They're pretty darn light for a street wheel. Forged aluminum, and they're pretty tough compared to a spun or cast wheel.

And if you're looking for a wider wheel, don't expect it to be lighter than the Fuchs unless it's a race wheel.

Fuchs are pretty darn good wheels, just a shame they're only 5.5" wide...

-Josh2

Posted by: brokenmoped Jul 6 2006, 04:05 PM

What about Minilites or Panasports? Are they even worth considering?

Posted by: jhadler Jul 6 2006, 04:14 PM

Certainly they're worth considering, they're excellent wheels. But don't expect them to be lighter than the Fuchs you have now...

The Minilites are Panasports are popular with road racers for two reasons. Vintage look, and durrability. They're pretty strong wheels. Not quite as indestructable as the Revolutions, but stout nonetheless. But they're not super light wheels.

There are three characteristics of a race wheel. Strong, Cheap, and Light. You can usually have any _two_ without too much difficulty, but all three won't happen. You want both strong and light, you're gonna pay big money for 'em. And you thought the Kodiaks were expensive??? Heh...

-Josh2

Posted by: lapuwali Jul 6 2006, 04:22 PM

The 2.0 Fuchs are one of the lighter wheels for the size available from anyone. The fact that they're strong and available for about $100 a wheel is a huge plus.

I'd run the Fuchs on the street, and keep the wider/lighter wheels only for AX/track use. Most lighter race wheels sacrifice some strength for the lower weight, but track wheels don't generally have to be as strong as street wheels.

Posted by: john rogers Jul 6 2006, 05:00 PM

I think my solid center Centerlines are about as light as you can go but they are not really for the street as they say "bias ply tires only" "not for street use".

Posted by: Rotten Robby Jul 6 2006, 06:57 PM

Perhaps the new ones are "like boat anchors" but the ones on Jim Chamber's / my car as of tomorrow weigh 14# according to Jim. That is virtually the same as the 15X5.5 2.0 liter Fuch. My boat anchor is a river anchor and is even lighter than that!