<bigger>Jason (and others):
here's some info I compiled when searching for 13" wheels for my CRXs a
while back. I ended up getting a good deal on some used ARE wheels,
which are about 9-10 lbs. Some or all of this may be applicable, fwiw.
It comes from list postings and private email, thanks to all the
original authors.
-Ed Sawyer
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Have you considered steel wheels from Diamond Industries?
(414) 445-2000 in Wisconsin. 13x7 with 4.5" of backspacing for a FWD
car is like $67 or so. I got my 13x8's with 5" backspacing for $61,
but
they're intended for a RWD car. The RWD wheels are about 2 lbs. less
than the FWD, but you'll need a 1/4" spacer to move them away from the
front calipers. This might not apply to you since you've got your
massive brakes and all on a 1st gen and I'm only speaking from my
experience with my 2nd gen with the stock calipers. Anyway, my wheels
weigh about 15 lbs. You can get them powder coated in black or silver
(the silver is almost like a chrome finish). Being that you posted
this
to the auto-x list, John Lieberman probably tooted Diamnond's horn
before I did. Let me know what you end up doing!
send it my way? How heavy are your Diamond wheels?
So, to answer those questions: The 13x6's are spun steel and weigh 11
pounds
each. They've got a solid weld bead all the way around the inside of
the
dish. They've got large round holes equally spaced around the dish
(NASCAR-style...although the larger wheels have holes that are
trapezoidal
rather than round). They come in either silver (looks like chrome!) or
black
powder coat or you can actually get them chromed if you want to pay
extra.
They look like a million bucks!!! But don't scrub them with a
brush...they'll scratch. If you spray a clear coat over the powder
coat,
THEN you can scrub them with a brush. They're located in Milwaukee,
Cheesehead, and operate normal 8-5 hours. To my knowledge, they don't
have
e-mail or a website.
For Phil E and anyone else who cares, here's the full text of what I
posted
to the list several months ago with some updates that others supplied
after I
sent it:
OK, gang. Here's the poop on my wheel search for the Mini. My goal
was a
13x6 with a 2-1/2 inch backspace and as light as I could get within
financial
reason. My thanks to all of you who responded to my original post. I
decided to go with Diamond Racing Wheel and I owe my thanks to
Christopher
Baye for hooking me up with them. I'll try to put this into some sort
of
order so you can follow along:
Diamond Racing Wheels - (ask for Bill) - 800-937-4407 - custom made
spun
steel, 13x6, 2-1/2 inch back space, 4-on-4 bolt pattern, hub-centric if
you
want it, 11 pounds, $57 each (just exactly what I wanted!)
Fast Wheels - (This was the place I thought I wanted...Thanks to
everybody
who responded) - 918-599-9022 - 13x5.5, 2-1/2 inch back space, 4-on-4
bolt
pattern, 14 pounds, $53.50 each; or 13x6 custom built for $66 each
Paulsen Racing Wheels - (Thanks, Randy) - 209-983-0271 - 13x5.5, 2-1/2
inch
back space, 4-on-4 bolt pattern, 17 pounds, $29 each
The Wheel Source - (Thanks, Ken) - 513-299-0035 - 13x6 Panasport, 2-1/2
inch
back space, 4-on-4 bolt pattern, 13-1/2 pounds, $795 per set of 4
(ouch!)
Bogart Racing Wheels - 619-562-4518 - 13x5.5, 2-3/4 inch back space,
4-on-4
bolt pattern, 15-1/4 pounds, $44.95 each
Paul Spruel - 800-552-2532 - 13x6 Panasport, 2-1/2 inch back space,
4-on-4
bolt pattern, $148 each
Taylor Corporation - 515-276-0992 - 13x6 3-piece Dura-Light, 2-1/2 inch
back
space, 4-on-4 bolt pattern, 7 pounds, $172 each
Keiser Aluminum Wheels - 602-893-3557 - 13x6, 3-piece, 2-3/8 inch back
space,
4-on-4 bolt pattern, 7-3/4 pounds, $155 each
Weld Racing - 816-421-8040, x981, zilch in a 13 inch wheel
Performance Industries - 305-887-5000, nothing in a 13 inch wheel
Complete Custom Wheel - 562-903-5560 or 352-371-8493, nada in a 13 inch
wheel
HRE Performance Wheels - 619-598-1960 - nada mas in a 13 inch wheel
K-Speed, Inc - 800-494-0708 - nothing in a 13x6 or 13x5.5 Panasport
Monocoque Racing Wheels - 619-448-2800 - didn't even call!!!
Let's not forget The Tire Rack - 888-981-3952 - nothing in the size I
needed
Brooklands - 954-776-2748 - couldn't contact (hours)
Forgeline Forged Alloy Wheels - 937-643-0050 - couldn't contact
(hours)
Motorsport Specialties, Inc - 800-621-8408 - couldn't contact (hours)
I'm sure there are plenty of other suppliers, but those are the ones I
contacted. Anybody else care to chime in?
(Since I posted that original message, I've received the following
updates:
>From Iain Mannix Re: Weld Racing -
They are doing a 13" wheel now, called the 72. I have a set of 13x9s,
list
price for 13x8s is $230 or so. My 9s weigh 10# even, were round,
straight,
easy to mount an R1 on, light, look neato...Jeff Jordan is the
motorsports
sales guy, 816/676-9353, I enjoyed dealing with him. I like mine so
far,
only a few events on them, no leaks so far, very happy with the, and
they're
light (he claimed 9 pounds, 9 ounces for 13x8, my 13x9s came in at 10
pounds
- close enough, heard of claimed weights varying with actual weights
by a few
pounds, let alone ounces).
Re: Performance Industries -
I've had a set of PI 13x7s for a couple of years now. 3-5/8"
backspace, one
piece, cost $108 each, weigh about 15 pounds. Difficult to
mount/dismount,
other than that, no complaints - the backspace was wrong for the Rabbit
(my
car), but I knew that before I bought them, they stuck out a bit (DSP
car,
didn't matter). They worked, but Performance Industries does make a
13"
wheel - have for a few years at least, AFAIK.
>From J Brett Howell:
You may want to check out R & S Racing, Inc.
(http://www.rsracing.com/index.html) or call them (ph# 888-261-1243).
They
sell a 3-piece, spun aluminum 15x10 wheel with pressed in steel
lug-hole
inserts, 2-8" backspace (1" increments) and 4, 5, or 6 inch widths.
Description on their web page, the wheels seem to be well made with
custom
centerbores and bolt-hole spacing available (anyone have experience
with
these wheels?) The proprietors, Ron & Sonya Ver Mulm, have a good deal
of
Solo II in their backgrounds and sell Weld Wheels, too, so they should
be
able to help you find what you need.</bigger>
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