Motegi Racing Wheels

[Eric91Z]

Just wondering if anyone has any experience with Motegi Racing wheels? I have seen a couple of ads for their wheels and checked out their website and they have a couple that I like. Also, looking at some of the big discount wheel warehouses, they have some decent wheel/tire packages for a 17x7 with 215/45/-17 tires.

Just wondering what the quality of the wheels are. I like the FF6 in silver and it weighs in at 19 pounds each for a 17x7. The other one I like is their new DP6, but they weigh in at 21 pounds each.

Another question I have is their website lists the bolt spacing availability as 4x100 and 4x4.5. Is the 4x4.5 the same as 4x114.3 that we need on a CB7?

Here is their website if you are interested:

www.motegiracing.com

[Fritz the Cat]

Yeah, I've got a set of the Gunmetal FF6's and I like 'em. Good quality, but a little heavy. The bolt pattern you're asking about is what we need. 4 x 114.3 is the same as 4 X 4.5. BTW, the FF6's have also have the 4 X 100 bolt holes on the wheels. You're going to need some tuner bolts to put them on though, the openings are pretty tight for the lugs. I've got 214/45/17 ZR rated tires with a 1.5 inch drop so it's not really slammed, but it's what I need on the roads I drive on.

I got mine at www.tiretrends.com, they're a Canadian site, so their prices are in Canadian dollars, big savings for anybody in the states.

[Eric91Z]

Fritz,

Thanks for the input. That is about what I am looking at. I am not overly concerned about weight as my Accord, with me in it, weighs about 2780 pounds (and I weigh about 240 of that) and my old '91 Camaro Z28 weighed in at about 3550 pounds with me in it. That is a weight savings of about 800 pounds, which, if you believe what people say, equates to about 80 horsepower gain for the CB7.

Anyway, I want the 17x7, would probably go with silver, although I would like to see what the hyper black looks like either in person or on a car. Especially on a Seattle Silver car like mine.

Fritz - any pictures of your car with that wheels on it?

[yofmatt]

make sure u get good tires, tho. Good, sticky tires can make a HUGE difference. I love Motegis theyre nice rims

[Eric91Z]

Yes, I don't see much point in upgrading to bigger wheels without going with better tires. Right now my number one tire choice is the new Nitto Neo Gens, but they add another $300 for a tire/wheel package above the Hankook's that come with the package from www.wheelmax.com. Plus, they don't have the wheels in stock right now in the silver, only the gun metal.

[Slateboy]

Motegi's are knockoffs of real brand wheels. They look good, but they're heavy and not durable. They're "cast alloy." Real wheels are normally either forged alloy or forged alluminum. Difference being the Motegi's are "poured" into a cast, cooled, and painted. The lighter, real wheels, are metal that is pounded into its current form, like a blacksmith forges a sword. I've gone through one set of alluminum ICW wheels, and one set of Moegi cast wheels, warped them both to death because they are structurally weak.

Disclaimer: Motegi is going to be retailing ONE style of forged wheel. However, that is going to turn into the new MR7, so I wouldn't jump on the bandwagon too quick. Everyone's gonna have them.

That is the #1 reason I picked up some BBS wheels. They're 10 years old, are in perfect condition. Forged ownz cast.

[Eric91Z]

Where did you find the information on the Motegi's being a cast wheel instead of forged? I may have missed it, but I could not find it on their website. And it seems anymore that everyone copies everyone elses wheels. It seems like most manufacturers make some copy of the "Shu" style.

Anyway, I am not a big "mesh" type wheel fan. I want something in a 5 or 6 spoke design and in a polished/silver or maybe a hyper black color. What are thoughts on the Racing Hart, TenzoR, or 5 Zeigen wheels?

[Eric91Z]

Where did you find the information on the Motegi's being a cast wheel instead of forged? I may have missed it, but I could not find it on their website. And it seems anymore that everyone copies everyone elses wheels. It seems like most manufacturers make some copy of the "Shu" style.

Anyway, I am not a big "mesh" type wheel fan. I want something in a 5 or 6 spoke design and in a polished/silver or maybe a hyper black color. What are thoughts on the Racing Hart, TenzoR, or 5 Zeigen wheels?

[Slateboy]

Ok, this is what I'm pretty sure, but not 100% on:

The stock Honda alloy wheels, made of alluminum, are milled. They are cut from a block of alluminum-alloy with super-advanced versions of CNC milling.

Cheaper wheels, such as American Racing, Motegi, Tenzo-R, Enkei, ICW, are all cast. They all look nice, but are heavy from their composition, and aren't durable because it is merely a casting process. Cheap swords, such as display samurai swords, are all cast steel. If you strike them against somethng, the shatter. They are just no resilliant.

Higher dollar wheels are where the lower-quality wheel companies steal their designs. I do not know too many of the companies, for I have not dealt with them. Roja is a good forged wheel, but still a subsidiary of Motegi. Racing Hart tops my list on style and quality. BBS has the signature mesh design, anyone else is a copy/knockoff. Everyone has seen the Volk Rays, Volk being the wheel manufacturer.


Disclaimer: (Many lower-end companies such as Motegi and Tenzo-R may already be carrying forged wheels. However, the forged quality of these wheels are still a Motegi and Tenzo-R quality wheel, the title "forged" does not autmatically make it an awesome wheel)

Edit >> If a wheel is forged, it will be labeled as so. Also, the price will be about 3X what you expect.

[Slateboy]

With all that info out of the way, here are the most decently priced forged wheels I've seen. This is a link to the website. Cruise around man, these wheels are dope. The Formula series wheels are all forged, as well as the new Mecury series.





My buddy had these on his turbo hatch, they were so light and very pimp.

[Eric91Z]

The link is not showing up for me. Is it working for you? I would like to check out the wheels. I am a fan of the Racing Hart wheels, too. And their prices aren't to bad, especially if they are a forged wheel. I like the C5 wheels, personally.

[Fritz the Cat]

BTW, the weight of the wheels is not an issue in contributing to the total weight of the car. It's the rotational inertia involved in having to turn a wheel and tire combo that will probably weigh more than ten pounds more than a stock tire/rim setup. On top of that, more of the weight is towards the outside of the diameter, adding more rotational inertia. It's not so much of an issue once you're moving, but it takes more torque to get the wheels moving in the first place, and they're harder to slow down when you want to brake. My new wheels and tires weigh 11 pounds more than stock, so you lose some WHP, but you gain in cornering ability with better tires. Same thing happens when you put on oversize brake rotors.

[Jerizzle]

i've got the motegi RT5's in black w/205/40/17's, there was no real difference in my track times, but i'm buying new tires every 6 months. i love the wheels, they don't "feel "heavier than stock. Look up Motegi's history in racing wheel production, they've been at it for a long time, and sponser alot of japan's races. they are affordable but i believe there is alot of quality in their product too. just my 2 cents.

[cp[mike]]

Originally posted by Slateboy
The stock Honda alloy wheels, made of alluminum, are milled. They are cut from a block of alluminum-alloy with super-advanced versions of CNC milling.

Cheaper wheels, such as American Racing, Motegi, Tenzo-R, Enkei, ICW, are all cast. They all look nice, but are heavy from their composition, and aren't durable because it is merely a casting process.

enkei produces the OEM honda wheels... at least some of them.