Chromed OEM S-Lites: Let's guess the weight
 

I ran across these R85 S-spokes:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/4-NEW...#ht_6363wt_950

I know what some MINI enthusiasts think of the R85s, but I love the look. Love the look, but fear the rotating mass penalty :-).

So, when I ran across those chromed R85s my first question was: if the OEM S-spoke weighs 25lbs, how much does a chromed example weigh?

What say you? 26lbs? 28lbs? How much?

To chrome, the oem finish (if any) is removed, and the base metal is sanded and polished before chroming, which addes very thin layers of plating.They will probably weigh the same as un-chromed, painted, wheels.

Thanks, ran-o-matic! Knowing that, I don't know if i can resist!

I wouldn't just take my word for it - ask the vendor for a weight and then we will know.

Not a bad idea. Thanks!

(I think my tongue and cheek tone didn't come through very well in my original post.)

Ouch! $1200 for wheels that ALMOST every enthusiast removed from their MINI. I have a set i removed from my car but I wouldn't think of having them chromed.

Yeah, but those comments always seemed to come from MINI enthusiasts..I had a ton of compliments of my old S-lites from NON MINI owners....strange but true. I think those chromes ones look hot ! Paint your calipers first though. The reflection of caliper color in the chrome will look awesome!

Uhhh, those are just OEM wheels (yes MINI makes them in chrome version):

http://www.minimotoringgear.com/#/pr...CenterId=30253

@Coopersguy,

I'm with you. Seriously: if you asked me at some random moment what I thought of a set of chrome wheels, I'd say "No bloody way!".

But there's something insanely classic about a MINI dressed in a set of R85s, and with a set of chrome mirror caps these things might be great once in a while.

@gRay rAvEn,

Right?! What's that about? Sure, they're heavy, but just swap them out on track days.

:-)

I think it's time to start a S-lite fan club :grin: ; I agree those chromed R85s rock. I would guess they weigh within ounces of the painted wheels. Please post the weight if you find out.

I agree that the weight would pretty much be a wash - the chromed wheels might even be lighter. A "thick" coat of chrome might be .001" thick (1 mil), while paint can easily be 4-7 mils, especially if there's a primer coat, a base color coat and a clear top coat.

So, you're basically swapping a thick coat of low-density paint for a thin coat of higher-density metals.

And you're not talking about much chrome anyway. If you think of the barrel of the wheel as a 17" X 7" "hoop" and the face of the wheel as a solid 17" disc, the total volume of metal needed to plate all exposed surfaces to a thickness of .001" is only a little over one cubic inch. And that's estimating on the high side, since the face of the R85 wheels isn't a solid disc.

No offense to anyone here, but I think this may have a bit to do with age,
some of us older, (40+) remember the cars from the 60s and 70s that had alot of Chrome, the younger ones dont seem to enjoy it as much, and like the blacked out look. Personally I like the Chrome, but my car is pretty much blacked out now as my son has told me to get with the plan.

I think a lot of it depends on the particular car. I've seen a Pepper White MINI with chrome wire wheels and a contrasting paint color on the sides, and it looked very classic, kind of like an old Austin-Healey:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi..._MKII_1962.jpg

I think Chrome also looks good on a green MINI (although I think it would look even better if MINI would finally come out with a non-metallic British Racing Green.)

The last 1967 Austin-Healey 3000 I had made me swear off British built cars and look at me now < hypocrite :lol:

Man, those are expensive, but I don't think that is what is being sold. The vendor is LA Wheel and Tire. They say they start with OEM wheels and chrome them.

Like was said, probably very close, though with S"lites" weight shouldnt be much a concern as they're already rediculously heavy... whats another few as the performance barrier has already been blown.

True, but there are "British cars" and then there are "British cars". I had an MGB before I had my convertible MINI, and here's a partial list of things I don't miss:

Routinely adding dashpot oil to the carburetors

Routinely adding hydraulic oil to the lever shocks

Having to use a glass-topped spark plug to view the combustion flame color in order to tune the carburetors

Synchronizing dual carbs

Having to worry about getting the "crack of doom" in my passenger-side door skin if a passenger pulled the door closed using the triangular vent window (arrrgh).

Having to spray a mixture of Waxoyl and fresh motor oil in all the hidden nooks and crannies of the unibody to keep it from rusting out from underneath me.

A folding top that required taking up origami as a hobby in order to fold it correctly and not crease/scratch the plastic windows.

An alternator that would stop charging the battery if the charging indicator lamp in the dash burned out.

Lucas electrics in general, although I found out early on that going through the entire car once and cleaning/greasing all of the electrical connections prevented a lot of future problems.

I know what you mean. MINI used titanium bolts (14 per wheel) in my Web-Spokes, which seems like a total waste of very expensive bolts on a wheel that weighs over 22 pounds anyway.

didnt know they were titanium... interesting

maybe the fact theyre sort of small, they need that strength to be production car safe

But that's the funny thing - the identical bolts in stainless steel would actually be stronger than the titanium bolts.

If you have three identical-sized bolts in aluminum, titanium and steel, the aluminum will actually be the lightest, but it's weak, so it's usually used on non-critical applications like attaching fairings on motorcycles. Steel is the strongest, but it's also the heaviest. The titanium bolt would be stronger than the aluminum bolt but weaker than the steel bolt. The only application where titanium really makes sense is where you need more strength than aluminum but not as much as steel and the weight savings compared to steel justify the much higher cost.

ohhh. that is funny lol. was unaware of those fun facts

I would expect that chromed S-lites will be about 1-2 lbs heavier each wheel.

If you do get them then weigh them and let us know.

Also chrome requires cleaning and upkeep or they may corrode on the surface as brake dust can be very harsh to the finish if not removed/cleaned off regularly.