Someone told me that I can email the official Watanabe in Japan with English and they will respond to questions, so I may do that.
I'm really happy with my RB's, but if the F8's are now available at a similar price to what is quoted above then I'd be game and especially interested in getting the actual magnesium version.
:
Meanwhile,
somehow got bounced back into Ti-world this morning and came across the Raceseng options...
I like me some blue MINI's, but I think the wheels need to be an accessory/contrasting color. Body color wheels have never done it for me. Nor have the body color skirts/arches. Still - a very nice gen1 car!
How much do you think the full mag Watanabes run both weightwise and pricewise?
I agree wholeheartedly on both points about wheels/arches,
having some contrast helps the aesthetic in my opinion.
RE:
the wheels:
Well,
a 16x7 would likely be custom order because it isn't listed as off-the-shelf available in magnesium, would love to go with 15" but really iffy about fitment,
so here are some numbers for the 17x8:
Right now is a good time to buy because the USD is so strong against everybody else,
but I probably won't pursue those wheels, just a fickle fancy really.
Damn. That is not a bad price for true mag wheels. I would prefer 16's in that wheel in magnesium to get close to 10lbs per corner.
Still - less than 13lbs per corner in a 17" wheel... tempting. Things making me less tempted... 240 day lead time. Two standard colors... black and brownish. I think brownish is some sort of translation from Japanese for bronze? Of the colors they have, I think silver would be my choice. I might paint them a gunmental or charcoal color before mounting though. Hmmm.....
Damn - I just ran my spreadsheet - with the 17" wheels and lighter tires, I could save 49 lbs off my current r112 and Kumho setup. That's HUGE. If they did a 16" and the weight was around 11lbs, I could shave nearly 60lbs off of my weight.
They will likely make anything you want, custom spec.
That price at NenGun is actually quite good --- dunno about freight costs tho,
or reputation/reliability of the company,
would have to do more research.
The 'brownish' is probably a bronze-like color, but some pics do show something that looks brownish indeed:
hmmm...
maybe more a burnt bronze?
I'm not really well-versed or familiar with Watanabe,
just learning as I go along really...
I like seeing them!
in
any
size!
Have noticed tho,
the magnesium examples sometime have a rough casting look...
I would almost expect the rough casting look - magnesium is a weird metal and sure it probably casts strangely.
I will definitely try contacting them. A set of bespoke Mg wheels around 11lbs - holy crap! That will totally accelerate my MINI diet and the look will be total MINI retro too. WIll contact them tomorrow and let everyone know what they say on the Mg 16" wheels. Thanks for the info OBS - you rock!
I would almost expect the rough casting look - magnesium is a weird metal and sure it probably casts strangely.
I will definitely try contacting them. A set of bespoke Mg wheels around 11lbs - holy crap! That will totally accelerate my MINI diet and the look will be total MINI retro too. WIll contact them tomorrow and let everyone know what they say on the Mg 16" wheels. Thanks for the info OBS - you rock!
Totally awesome.
Glad you're taking the initiative man, and eager to hear their what they say.
Those VTO wheels look great, but are heavy - the 15" wheels are over 15lbs - they don't list the weights of the 16" ones. Still, nice looking. And made in the US it seems.
Those VTO wheels look great, but are heavy - the 15" wheels are over 15lbs - they don't list the weights of the 16" ones. Still, nice looking. And made in the US it seems.
Weight is around 12.5lbs, but it's not listed in 4x100 and offsets only appear to go up to +20mm. We'll see what they say.
I believe the VTOs are cast in China, custom machined to your offset and pcd by VTO in the US. I've also heard good things about them.
Their OTS classic 8 16x7 et35 4x130 is listed as 18.1 lb. A touch lighter than a victory spoke, but not a Watanabe or Kosei. Other fitments should be very close.
I found some 12.5lb 16x6.5s K4Rs Koseis on eBay. I'm having them redrilled from 5x114. They'll be completely legal for street stock autocross. 😁
Worked out way cheaper than anything else that weight.
Well, the Watanabe folks are very responsive. Had three replies from them today following my questions.
Unfortunately, they do not make (nor will they as a custom) a 40mm offset in the magnesium 16" wheel, and the 17" magnesium wheel with 40mm offset weighs in at 15lbs - and there are *much* cheaper options in that weight category.
So, looks like it's back to the drawing board. Am thinking about the Enkei PF01 in 16" at 13.9lbs or in 17" around 15.5lbs. I would paint it a different color though. Maybe gunmetal.
Well, the Watanabe folks are very responsive. Had three replies from them today following my questions.
Unfortunately, they do not make (nor will they as a custom) a 40mm offset in the magnesium 16" wheel, and the 17" magnesium wheel with 40mm offset weighs in at 15lbs - and there are *much* cheaper options in that weight category.
So, looks like it's back to the drawing board. Am thinking about the Enkei PF01 in 16" at 13.9lbs or in 17" around 15.5lbs. I would paint it a different color though. Maybe gunmetal.
I have a set of Enkei PF01s for the track, and besides being quite light, even in the 17" size, they look good too!
Well, the Watanabe folks are very responsive. Had three replies from them today following my questions.
Unfortunately, they do not make (nor will they as a custom) a 40mm offset in the magnesium 16" wheel, and the 17" magnesium wheel with 40mm offset weighs in at 15lbs - and there are *much* cheaper options in that weight category.
So, looks like it's back to the drawing board. Am thinking about the Enkei PF01 in 16" at 13.9lbs or in 17" around 15.5lbs. I would paint it a different color though. Maybe gunmetal.
Thanks for the update.
Bummer.
Would be cool if someone made this style with the forged process.
Previous owner of my car went with 16x7 Konig Feathers...
I don't think that they were even "flow formed" although they could have been, but regardless they weigh 15lbs each in 16" size so I didn't take too massive of a penalty when swapping for the Rota RB's.
The Feathers appear to be a knockoff of the famous Volk CE28 which are hot-forged and weigh in at 11.9 pounds in 16" size,
their bronze finish is beautiful too...
A newer Volk 8-spoke design has a strange asymmetry going on, or "2x4 spoke" in their lingo...
"Designed with a racing-based name for the first time in seven years, the new NE24 is a wheel that transforms conventional ideas and evokes a feel of "entering a new phase." The name of this new series consists of "N" deriving from the VOLK RACING Gr.N —the roots of the developed wheel, or Group N, the racing class for stock cars with a minimum level of modifications—and "E," the common initial for the existing series such as TE, CE, and ZE, meaning "evolution."In an attempt to create an unconventional geometry, we not only secured sufficient mass at the center area, but also reduced the number of spokes while keeping a necessary volume at the center fastening area and rim joint area. Especially for the outer circumference, we adopted a high-performance design assuming that the wheel is used in combination with a tire with hard specifications.
Making this design feasible essentially required steadily repeated trial and error by RAYS R&D Analytical Team. The skills to give shape to something new were necessary. In addition, using the latest forging technology also helped to achieve the delicate and slight spike. The undercut of the spoke was employed with a further increased level difference. This design is intended to ensure a stereoscopic look even when the narrow size is used.
A new thing is created by embodying something difficult to realize. We will tackle the creation of new styling and performance of street wheels, leveraging our skills and experience that have been acquired through design and development of racing wheels. We will produce both racing wheels and street wheels from the same team members and from the same factory. This is the world of VOLK RACING."
This guy does a nice video breakdown on the design:
Only available right now in a huge 18" size weighing in at around 20 pounds.
Here they are fitted to a GP3 ~
:
:
side-note:
I really like running 16" wheels, but tire choice is becoming more limited. I've ran 2 sets of BFG Sport Comp 2's and I love that tire but it has been discontinued so I've been looking for what to replace with when the time comes. The Firehawk Indy 500's get lots of praise but I'm just not too keen on them and have been considering Yokohama Fleva V701 instead which also has bonus of being a very light tire although I have read reports of excessive sidewall flex on them so I just don't know, have even been considering going to 200TW tires because it opens the door for more choice and leaning towards maybe Accelera 651 Sport which from what I've read are not "real" 200TW and tend to wear longer.
When I first got my car it was shod with some fairly fresh Conti's and I drove for about a year with them on, they were okay but nothing to write home about, then got a new set of BFG Sport COMP-2's and I absolutely loved them, so much so that I chose them again when the time came, and I might just go with them again LOL they just work for me and are a great street tire...
Good looking wheels for those looking for a robust (read: not so light) wheel. Just heard back from the warehouse in Japan: 9.3kg, or just a smidge over 20.5lbs for the 17" 4x100.
