styleee

we want to get my mom new wheels for her miata, cause her factory wheels are a disaster.

where is a good place to look? and what am i looking for? i've never looked for wheels, so i have no idea what matters.

and i know she wants something a little funky, but not too over the top.

oh, and this is sooo funny, i'm going to have to get one.
http://www.auto-expressions.com/home.htm

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boba world

I need to get that "shark attack" thing for my car NOW!! I can't believe somebody is actually selling that stuff-

Wheel configurator guide-

http://www.tirerack.com/affiliates/vwvortex/

Some random sites:

http://www.wheelwarehouse.com/galleryindex.htm

www.thewheelconnection.com

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palayah8ta

OMG the Wabbit is da funniest **** i have ever seen!!.

Dont get heavyass 17inch rims, ur car will never make it uphill.
and stay away from chrome, especially with a miata.

johnnymk

If you want to limit yourself to three styles, Sears has been having a deal on wheels for a couple of months now. Look in their Sunday pull-out. They are not too shabby!
I got four of them for $199 a couple of years ago for my 4 door every-day car. I needed a couple of original hubcaps. The price for the wheels weren't that much more than the hubcaps.

palayah8ta

$199 Rimz and tires? what size? and Sears; suprises, suprises.

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johnnymk

They are a little more expensive right now. I forget the exact price... They usually run the $199 sale a couple of times a year for 14" sizes. Check Sunday's paper.

palayah8ta

BTW hows the import scene where ur at? Southern Cali is closer to japan than Penn. I always wondered how good the cars are and how people drop there cars in places where it snows.

johnnymk

As usual, the fads start in California and then about three years later, arrive here.
There are more and more lowered Hondas and Integras and whatever around here, especially in the cities.
And we don't get that much snow in this area anymore, so it's not that much of an issue, I guess.
I have been working on an 83 Chevy Stepside for a couple of years. It is radically lowered with a shortened short bed. I hope I get it on the road this year.
You guys can work on cars all year 'round, while we are limited to only about six months a year.

Nanotech9

styleee.... I've been looking for a set of wheels for my car also. Mine would be for race days only, but still...

things to consider when guying wheels...

wheel size.
Miata's probably have a stock size of 14", MAYBE 15". Lets just say its a 14" wheel for discussions sake. I'ts usually ok, and almost always looks better to go up one wheel size. In this case, you would theoreticaly look for a 15" wheel.

increasing the wheel size increases teh cost of the tires. the bigger you go, the more they cost. Add anywhere from $10 to $30 a tire for each inch larger.

wheel width.
probably have a stock 14"x6" maybe 14x6.5" wheel. If you go one inch larger, you probably want to go about 1/2" wider... so, probably a 15x6.5 or 15x7" (remember, these are just theoretical numbers, they probably are NOT your exact wheel size, just an example).

BTW, Dont get too wide, or to much larger, cause you dont want the wheels to start rubbing on the fenders or suspension components when you hit a bump or take a turn.

Wheel OFFSET.
This is a little more complicated... basically, the center of the wheel (from side to side - width-wise) needs to be directly in line with the pivot point of the steering mechanism. If a wheel sticks out too far, or is set to far in towards the car, it wont work well, and will wear the tires faster, as well as other bad stuff. offset is listed as "et##" (example: et40, or et25, or et0, or -10et (negative offset))

go read this site, and maybe it will make sense... either that, or stick to wheels that are KNOWN to work with the Miata.
http://www.usacomp.com/Offset.htm

Bolt Pattern.
well, makes a difference if you have a 4 or 5 leg bolt pattern, and how far apart the holes are from each other...

example... my wheels are 14x6.5" with an offset of et25 and a 4x100 bolt pattern. Other bolt pattern sizes are like 4x114.5, 5x100, 5x120, and many more.

and last thing i can think of is the center bore... if your car is supposed to have a hub-centric ring, then you need to make sure the center bore is compatible... Its basically a large 1.5" - 2" hole in the center of the wheel (the lugnut holes are around the center hole) that helps you or your mechanic fasten the wheel to the car properly - it basically centers the wheel on the hub and ligns it up automatically. It just makes life a lot easier having the correct centerbore for a hub-centric hub.

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Nanotech9

www.tirerack.com and http://www.1010tires.com/ both have car selection guides to help you pick out compatible wheels.

aglio412

i'm originally from PA...the scene there isn't so bad...especially in Pittsburgh and Philly...as usual, the fads do start in cali and are slowly getting bigger and bigger on the east coast...but i've seen alot of realllly nice cars over here in PA.

actually, one of the biggest car shows on the east coast is in carlisle pa...here's a link:

http://www.carsatcarlisle.com/CCPJ/ccpj.htm

as for dropping cars where it snows...that's what winter tires/wheels are for my friend...and coilovers

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palayah8ta

I dunt think a chevy stepside is an import my friend, but hey whatever floats ur boat, at least its not a FORD, (fix or repair Daily) i bet it will smoke a stock civic or integra, but hey a little more money into it and u can make it a 12-13 second car. Too bad they dont make rotary engines for all car company's. A stock TT RX7 runs high 12's, so imports win again. Sorry

(the key is 'ajustable' coilovers)

palayah8ta

man i need to learn to type correctly.
a stepside ISNT an import, oops

aglio412

ummm, i think he was making two different points...

1. he was commenting on the 'scene'
2. he was talking about his current project

you show me a civic with a 'little' money that's runnin 12's

and, are you comparing a truck's 1/4 mile time to that of an rx7?

coherence is a wonderful thing

palayah8ta

In the latest Super Street magazine, there featuring a honda civic hatchback that runs 12's with just an engine swap.
a chevy smallblock runs 11's and 12's, that was i was reffering to, a little money can turn that stepside into a speed demon.

palayah8ta

BTW wat have u done to ur GTi? looks good. scary faces but sweet rimz

aglio412

not my gti...it's the gti 337 edition, coming out next month...decided to buy a condo first, then a car, so i'm prolly not gettin my hands on one...but that leaves me open for the driver's edition coming out early '03 (same wheels, 18" BBS, lowered, exhaust, etc...) or, i'm gonna try to get a '02 Audi A4 V6.

palayah8ta

o well thats life, i had a choice, car now, or prom now and car later. man i kinda feel bad for my date. GTi is very good car, if u do get one later on, replace the stock turbo with a garret T33 and watch it fly!!

aglio412

yeah the 1.8t is a killer...few grand into it and you got a monster. i'm really considering dropping the extra money on the audi tho...i almost want to get something i won't want to mess with too much...if i get the gti, i'll be searchin for a new mod everyday, with the audi, i could sit back in my leather, turn on my xenon lights, and still go hella fast....errrr, i have some time tho...gotta close on the condo first

palayah8ta

cmon man forget the A4 v6, its all about the S4 quattro. turbo that beotch too!

aglio412

dude, what's wrong with you? you come in here talkin like you know cars or something...and have no idea that the S4 is a twin turbo V6.

from www.audiusa.com




poser

johnnymk

Thanks, aglio..You are right, I was just commenting on the "scene" here in Pennsylvania. There are more and more low riders in every conceivable vehicle imaginable. One thing I don't see are the hydraulic low riders that are very prevalent on the West Coast. I think they are so cool.
And performance mods in my pickup...I could care less. In the seventies, I use to street race practically every night of the week with my '68 Vette. I got it worked out of my system.:sure:

styleee

really? i think that is a little fast. my brother has one that's been in the shop since last june... and i swear he said he thinks his QM time will be around 12.... i don't think he would put a year's worth of work into a car for 1 second. but then again, maybe it will be faster than 12s, who knows.

palayah8ta

Lol aglio, i was sayin
That beotch is turboo too. i be typin during luch break.
I know its turbo bro.Lol