Rota's are better quality than stock R3 or the rims he listed?

 

no way is a rota at all allowed to be in the same sentence as the word quality

 

Just buy these

http://wheelflip.com/listing/151/vol...x10-37-5x1143/

 

Obviously not better than the stock BBS rims. Is that really a question?

But definitely better than random brands like Advanti.


Sorry, but that's just your opinion. And OP is just daily driving his 8 (for now). He/she obviously doesn't have the budget for something as good or better than the R3s, so just trying to help find the best wheel for that budget.

FWIW, the only replacements I'd ever consider for my R3 are Volk and other wheels in that league.

 

Rotas are bad, period. When you can have real wheels like enkei\oz\speedline for just a tad more it's simply stupid to buy rotas
The best replacement\choice in his situation are.... straightened OE\bbs wheels

 

100% agree

Regarding aftermarket ones, though, and using tire rack as a reference, go find a 19" wheel under $300 per that's in the same weight class as stock (19-24lbs). Enkeis are $400 and up. OZs are almost or over a grand.

If $300/per is the top end of your budget, $100 more might as well be $1000 more.

 

19-24lbs is not the same class.

I would never even consider 19" wheels. 17" or 18" tops Cheaper and overall better.

 

Difficulty: The car comes stock with 19" wheels.

Drop down to 17-18 and it's wheel gap city.

Stock R3 BBS wheels are about 22 lbs. I would call +/- 3lbs the same class.

 

uh no. If you use a properly sized tire (same rolling diameter) then the fender gap will be the same. It will just look like you have more tire.

 

Can we agree that there are no good answers to OPs problem (Besides fixing his stockers), instead of arguing about all the bad ones?

 

3lbs per wheel are worth .5" on a 2' lap. That's a huge difference!

 

The problem with going with a 19" aftermarket is your going to be hard pressed to find one that is close to 20 lbs like the stock R3 for a reasonable price, unless he goes used.

 

As someone said, seriously consider an 18" wheel. It is the default option on S2's anyway...just get the rolling diamter correct.

If you aim for a wheel which has for example multispokes, lets say > 8 or so, and they extend to the lip, they will look like 19's anyway. You'll also pick up a lot more comfort over 19's, not too mention save a bomb in wheels and tyres by doing so.

 

Hope he doesn't mind me posting this, but a picture is worth a thousand words... 18" inch rim.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/9krpmrx8/7087467115/

 

There is no way that blue R3 isn't lowered so the wheel gap problem may have been there BEFORE the drop.

I don't agree with the "cheap wheels aren't even worth the material their cast out of" nonsense. People buy cheap wheels all the time and get along just fine for daily driving! In the past I have bought Konig, Enkei, ADR, and are currently running XXR wheels. I have NEVER BENT A WHEEL! I think keeping air in the tires is key. If you live somewhere that the roads are in total disrepair it would probably be best to have cheaper wheels on your car. Think of hitting what you hit to bend your wheels in the first place on $1,000+ new wheels. The factory BBS wheels on your car got bent somehow and those are supposedly some of the strongest and best manufactured wheels.

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/show....php?t=2304558

Depending on what you hit, the link above proves no matter how tough the wheel, no wheel is invincible. Ill bet, for the right deal, you could buy 2 sets of cheaper made wheels for the cost of 1 set of the factory R3 Wheels. I wouldn't say having the factory R3 wheels repaired would be a bad option but there is no way after doing what needs to be done to repair them they would be as strong as they were factory fresh. So unless you go racing often and weight savings is really important I would keep looking at the lower cost wheels just get decent tires and keep air in them.

 

I am not quite sure I understand your argument. So go cheap and with 19's??? So you really think hanging an extra 10 lbs per wheel on each end won't make a difference in steering and your handling? I added two lbs per wheel and I can definately tell a difference. Why would you want to ruin the most fundamentally important part of owning this vehicle is beyond me, but hey if it's just the look, then have at it. Yes, Rotas are cheap and yes they are fairly light, but the majority of "cheap" cast wheels are heavy and that's a fact.

As far as your wheel gap issue, this has been explained already.

 

if the rolling diameter is the same the wheel gap would be identical.

straightening the wheel is not as bad as you may think. It should come damn near factory spec with straightening.