STi Wheels

[SUBE555]

Just a thought for everyone who likes these 18" STi wheels:
http://www.subaru-sti.co.jp/parts/blbp_legacy/largeimage/1-3.jpg

The wheels shown below:
http://www.subaru-sti.co.jp/parts/blbp_legacy/largeimage/1-4.jpg
...listed through another major U.S. vendor are $640/wheel for the same 17x7 size as listed on the STi site.

The STi site lists the 18" anthracite wheels found on the S401 for 92,400yen each while the second wheel I pictured is found for 61,950yen, that's a 1.49:1 ratio, times that by the $640 for the gold one available in the U.S. through Gruppe-S, and that comes out to about $955 per wheel! :o

Wow, that's friggin crazy! I can't even find any of their larger Volk wheels for $545 each. STi prices are really bloated!

Just thought I'd share.

[EJ20H-TT]

I like the top pic - they look better than the stock 18's IMHO.

But JDM prices are high for sure - but it's a different market.

[SUBE555]

Somehow I like the Spec B's better, easier to clean for one as I have the 16" snowflakes and they're a total PITA. Either way you're not gaining much in room, they're both 18x7" which seriously compromises tire options (Tire Rack had about 5 in the 215/45R-18 SpecB/STi wheel size versus 18-some for the 225/40R-18 of the more standard 18x7.5" aftermarket size as these also cost about 3/4 the price of the smaller tire.)

[Val]

In my opinion, spending lots of money on aftermarket wheels just for show makes no sense. If you're willing to spend upwards of $300 per wheel you should look for light, forged wheels like SSR Comps (http://www.z1auto.com/prodmore.asp?model=wrx&cat=wheels&prodid=671) or Advan TC IIs (http://www.z1auto.com/prodmore.asp?model=legacy&cat=wheels&prodid=197). This way you're combining good looks with lower unsprung weight.

[ha-evolution]

I'm 99% certain the first wheel is a forged BBS wheel, hence it is probably strong and lightweight. While it may be expensive it is certainly would be a rare wheel to own in the US.

[SUBE555]

It is a BBS forged wheel. We'll let you be the first one to own those wheels for $4k. :D (I know they may be available for less, but in any case, still more expensive than most others.)

[ha-evolution]

Yikes, that's a little pricey for me. I bet you won't find them much cheaper though.

These BBS wheels are similar and they are 650 Euro in 18 inch:

http://www.bbs.com/raeder_gross/RS_2.jpg

[SUBE555]

The BBS wheels available through Tire Rack don't show their BBS wheels being quite that expensive, though they may use a slightly different forming procedure, shouldn't make that big a price difference.

[ha-evolution]

I looked at Tire Racks's wheels and some of them are forged.
The 18 inch RGRs are going for $502 each. They are kind of similar.

http://www.tirerack.com/images/wheels/bbs/swap/bbs_rgr_db_ci3_l.jpg

Add a bunch of $$$ to this price because of the STi center cap and because they have to be imported from Japan and the price will probably get out of hand quickly.

[SUBE555]

Yup, paying for the name for sure.

When I was comparing the normal Rays wheels to the STi ones which in many cases were smaller than the Rays, the STi wheels often cost $100-200 more each, just for the sake of the name I'd imagine and them coming from Japan.

[team23jordan]

im gonna get 19s
18s might look small

[Th3Franz]

im gonna get 19s
18s might look small
Huh? :roll:

[axis008]

im gonna get 19s
18s might look small
Huh? :roll:
Yeah, the wheel well isn't that small to make 18" rims look awkward.

[SUBE555]

I think we need to get steve in here!

[ha-evolution]

19s? Why not just go for 20s?

[SteVTEC]

http://www.v6performance.net/forums/images/smilies/cursin.gif http://www.v6performance.net/forums/images/smilies/banghead.gif

[Dr. Zevil]

There is no way that I can afford to put that kind of money into wheels. Holy crap.. that's just silly to me. There are so many better ways to spend that kind of coin. I wonder if there will be a factory 18" wheel option for either the GT or OBXT? That would be great to get some spec b wheels!

[Sub-attraction]

I'm hoping for the spec b wheels as well for the GT. The car has sooo much better presence with them.

[XT6Wagon]

The US 17" BBS rims are the basis for the RGR's. The rims at the top are NOT RGRs. I also can't recall ever seeing a aftermarket BBS rim that is the same exact design.

Most if not all of the STi rims are exclusive to them, and you pay for it as the sales volume isn't high enough. Basicly you have stupid expensive dies for the forging of the rim, and very few rims to spread it across.

[MotoFanatic]

I looked at Tire Racks's wheels and some of them are forged.
The 18 inch RGRs are going for $502 each. They are kind of similar.

http://www.tirerack.com/images/wheels/bbs/swap/bbs_rgr_db_ci3_l.jpg

Add a bunch of $$$ to this price because of the STi center cap and because they have to be imported from Japan and the price will probably get out of hand quickly.


On their website, it's listed at $595 a piece. I believe their prices have been up'd relatively recently.

-Moto

[jedison]

I had my stock 17" wheels chromed and they look great at a fraction of the cost of new wheels.

[MotoFanatic]

Chrome looks great! I had it done on my old car but I've also had problems as well. At about 4 years after the chroming, I had a sealing problem between the tire and the rim. As it turns out there was rusting "inside" the wheel. Don't know why but the chroming was done by a reputable place in CA. Only thing I can think of is maybe I filled it up with air in the rain and maybe water got in there. Don't know for sure.

Just my .02

-Moto

[NonovUrbizniz]

The sti wheels are more expensive yes because they say sti... but also because their hub seats perfectly... generic aftermarket wheels are designed to fit many different hub sizes with the same bolt pattern... so you use hubcentric rings to center them on the hub perfectly... the sti wheels have hubs that will only fit subaru sized hubs or smaller.... so they're more expensive because. also the company who makes them needs to make money on them and so does subaru... so they get marked up a little more.

Over all I think cheap light NOT forged wheels are the best unless you have enough money... Even if I could afford a set of forged wheels I wouldn't get them... for the same price as a set of forged LW wheels you can get 2 sets of cast light weight wheels...

I drive my car daily and if I curbed a $300+ wheel I'd probobly kill myself. where as if I curb a $150 wheel I wouldn't really care.

I have konig heliums on my civic and they're light as hell and cheap as hell... Sure I've bent one on a pothole that probobly wouldn't even have bent the stock steel wheel much less a forged wheel... but I can replace it for next to nothing.

[GTWag]

check out www.jdmpartstx.com for some good deals on these JDM wheels. They seem to be good people (I have been emailing back and forth with them about some other 18" OEM wheels for the Legacy).

[agctr]

For further information on any rims etc, please see our resident expert, XenonK or Keefe as his parents call him.
Adam.

[mmanus88]

check out the piaa mesh sports rims. thats what i got. i was about to buy those BBS rims in 18 but hit myself aftewr taking a good look at the price. i got the piaa sports mesh in 18s fitted onto toyo proxes 4 tires for 2030 shipped. that price is lower then the raw price of the BBS rims themselves! it is rediculous

[Xenonk]

btw, the 5 spoke STi wheel is made by Volk

Keefe

[eurospec]

An alternative to the mesh STi wheels, Enkei RPM2.

[Gumby]

Moved to Wheels/Tires.

[Xenonk]

I think the RPM2 are only made in 17x7 and 18x7.5 (not wide enough for me) :p

Keefe

[agctr]

Gotta love those Volks.
Adam.

[subastyle]

do the 04 sti wheels fit the LGT???

[mmm def]

Yes but the 05 STI wheels won't, different bolt pattern for 05, 5X100

[subastyle]

where can i find the gold 04 sti wheels any suggestions?? and can anyone chop them on a lowered garnet red pearl car .. i dont know how to chop

[Xenonk]

just buy them used from another STi owner. Usually, you can find them once in a while on www.nasioc.com which I was a few hours late picking up a set in gold for myself.

Keefe

[FiftyTwoEighty]

You guys crack me up. Most of you act like the STi rims at $1k a piece is prohibitively expensive for a one piece, lip forged wheel that is manufacturer specific to Subaru. If you want cheap wheels or wheels that are less expensive, there are many options but there really is no substitute for BBS quality in my opinion. There are many excellent manufacturer's for wheels and many of them have adopted/purchased rights to BBS specific technology that enables them to manufacturer better and better wheels. For consumers, this is a good thing but BBS is not a name that is synonomous with racing for no reason.

Considering the number of wheels that they will sell for the STi specific model, its only reasonable that they would want enough money to make a profit. But if you really want to see high wheel prices, take a look at what you'll spend if you buy HRE, Fikse or a host of other higher end wheel manufacturers.

And then there are many other manufacturers who will charge you alot of money but the quality is poor at best. At least you know exactly what your getting with BBS. I had a set of BBS RXII's on my GTI in 17 inches. (not the OEM 16 inch versions on the Jetta - the real deal). They set the car off perfectly. The finish on them was impeccable regardless of what I drove them through, they were very light for a two piece forged rim in 17 inches. They were also immune to bending as far as I could tell. I would consider other wheel manufacturer's for the Legacy but if I had the coin, I would get the STi rims in a heartbeat.

And by the way, you can easily drop the same coin on 18 inch LM's if your heart so desires. I don't know that the STi centercap really adds much of anything to the pricetag in this case.

[PGT]

Most BBS for Subaru's are no more than $600/wheel. The STi versions of the BBS wheels are $800/wheel. Forged.....yes. So are some of the regular BBS models. Call it dealer mark-up to get the Subaru and STi logo. Prodrive and Volk make similar forged models for $5-650/wheel. There is a certainly a premium for STi parts (doubt it? check out the $1400 mufflers).

[Xenonk]

in other words, you are paying the extra money for the STi center cap on the rim, otherwise it's a just a BBS/VOLK/PRODRIVE rim.

Keefe