Wheels - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

eddie926 · 09-08-2007, 02:42 PM

Is there anywhere online where you can get information about the quality of various wheel brands besides just doing searches on the various forums? I've done various Google searches and don't come up with much.

There are only about a million wheel manufacturers and I've seen so many "opinions" on the various brands that my head is starting to hurt. And of course every retailer claims their rims are top quality only. Never mind that they're selling them for less than $100 a piece.

I need like the "Consumer Reports" of wheels or something.

It seems on here that most everyone agrees that BBS, Enkei, O.Z. are good quality, but I see very mixed reviews on so many of the others that are for sale on eBay or at the web outlets like edgeracing.com and tirerack.com like ASA, Drag, ADR, Motegi, etc. Some people really like them. Others say they're crap.

Obviously, you get what you pay for to a certain extent, but I'm trying to find a balance between spending a small fortune vs. getting junk.

I'm not trying to start yet another "what do you think of these wheels" thread. Just wondering if there are any resources out there for comparing quality vs price on the vast array of available wheels.

Or, maybe it's just a major crap shoot?

grandmaburner · 09-08-2007, 02:54 PM

I am under the impression that ther is no crap in rims??? I mean they arent jsut going to break all the sudden are they? The only thing i can see would be bad with a set of rims would be the fact that they may be heavier than there 1000 dollar older brother. Correct me if i am wrong, i would really like to know.

Venom_5 · 09-08-2007, 02:57 PM

you dont need one ... its common sense

if its < $100 per wheel, theyre crap ....

and even crappy wheels arent going to snap in half anyways

bigbird · 09-08-2007, 09:41 PM

the question is do u race. alot of the expense of wheels is the weight and construction. the more pieces the more expensive, the lighter the more expensive, the better the materials used the more expensive. i have cheap Drag wheels on my coupe and they work great, i dont race and maintaine them well enough to not have to worry about damage to the finish. but its piece of mine and wow factor for some modders to get expensive wheels.

***eyeball96*** · 09-08-2007, 09:55 PM

I have cheap ADR rims from Ebay..they do the job! I don't race, and they look decent, (opinions vary) and they're lite!....made in China..(probably has lead paint)

If I curb rash em, It isn't going to bother me as much as a $450 rim would! I'm good for the winter months too!

Venom_5 · 09-08-2007, 10:11 PM

actually bigbird, in some cases the wheels with LESS pieces are more expensive ...

but yeah, if you race then you might want "higher-end" wheels ... however honda boys race all day long with shitty wheels, so if they can do it so can you!

blackhawk · 09-08-2007, 10:21 PM

umm i was thinking the same and after reading i agree it depends on if you just wanna loog good or go fast or i my case both

bigbird · 09-08-2007, 10:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Venom_5

actually bigbird, in some cases the wheels with LESS pieces are more expensive:

yeah thats true, the wheels on my new cam are 2 piece but only like 150 a piece.

eddie926 · 09-09-2007, 08:12 AM

Thanks for the feedback guys. I appreciate it. I'm in the camp of don't race, and not worried about impressing anyone with how much I spent. I just want a wheel that I really like the looks of and don't want to spend a fortune. I also like Joe's comment about not feeling as bad if he should curb a cheaper wheel. Same reason I wear cheaper sunglasses. So, sounds like I can just look for a wheel that I like that fits well and not worry so much about "quality".

Venom_5 · 09-09-2007, 11:06 AM

well my sunglasses cost $150

but then again you see what wheels i have

eddie926 · 09-09-2007, 11:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Venom_5

well my sunglasses cost $150

but then again you see what wheels i have

I had a really nice pair of $150 Ray Bans. Lost.

Then a pair of $135 Maui Jim. Stolen.

My buddy lost a really expensive pair of shades over the side of his boat and was pissed for months.

I've gone back to Foster Grants. $20. Cause no matter how hard I try to take care of sunglasses, something IS going to happen to them.

Lost, stolen, sat on, broken, no tears, stop at Target and pick up another pair.

N35QU!K · 09-10-2007, 02:19 AM

One thing I always say:

If you're gonna pay $150 for a pair of sunglasses, they better fuckin last forever.

On another note,

My KMC Redline rims made my car look 10x more badass.

shingouki808 · 09-10-2007, 03:23 AM

It all depends on how much you take care of them. As long as you don't race, any wheels you like will be fine really. The reason the "Brand Name" rims cost so much more, is because they're specifically constructed to withstand constant speeds over 80mph, and are usually Forged/ light weight. Also, they cost more, cause the companies that make them have been around a lot longer then companies like ADR and Drag. I have Racing Hart C2's on my gen 3 and for being 4 sizes bigger, they're almost the same weight as steelies. I have seen cheap rims break in half before, under harder then normal driving conditions of course, but that's like I said, up to you to decide.

felonyr301 · 09-10-2007, 02:22 PM

Everybody has made a clear point for example and it's true motegi's wheels is a mixed company when it comes to quality- pretty much all of their wheels are not of great quality except for their trak-lite 1 and 2 wheels which is forged and light (go figure)... people assume a bunch is bad then the rest is bad too not the case so you got to see wheels within the company too...