rota wheels

[Apu]

Well said Peter.

[MattR]

Rotas are a great wheel for the price and are fine for track work or DD duties.

I know of one turbo Zed in Tasmania that runs them and has had no problems in about 5 years of racing.

Yes they are a bit heavier than some wheels, but they are also lighter than some. I am looking at running some 18x9 rotas on my race car for wets and they weigh about the same as my 18x8 OM18 Simmons wheels did. The Enkei wheels I have (3 sets, 15x8 RPF01 and 16x7 SC03 for the NA and 17x8 for my S14) are a bit lighter than the equivalent size rotas, but on a DD would be more susceptible to buckling by pot holes etc on our crap roads. The rotas will stand up a little better to that type of use.

As for the OZ wheels, which ones? The OZ wheels that are made in Western Sydney or the more famous euro manufacturer. If the famous manufacturer, you are paying a lot more than for the rotas and for a DD you will cry the first time you kerb them or they get a buckle from a pot hole. Also you need to look at availability of the worst happens to one wheel and you need to replace it. Rotas are avialble from pretty much everywhere and pretty quickly, The OZ wheels will depend on the importer.

[droo]

I have these rims on my car, and just to be clear, I only drive roads, not race tracks. My roadster is my daily. I also wasn't too concerned with trimming as much unsprung weight as possible, but i wasn't out to go stupid putting heaps more weight on..

I bought them off the eBays in Feb 2012 and after fitting tyres and getting a balance, i have had no problems with them. I've now clocked nearly 40,000km on them They were the first set of new rims i'd ever had on a car and at speed on the highway they were perfect - no wobbles, no shimmies just a smooth ride which didnt jiggle my steering wheel. I have always had second hand cars, which meant i never knew the history of the rims, and with the case of my roadster, both the original 14" daisies and a set of 17" momos were buckled slightly (seen on a wheel balance machine), and they always had some sort of wobble at road speeds above 100kph which jiggled through the steering wheel and made my grip on the steering wheel look like a high speed power fap. That said, any new rims will be fine..

While Watanabe wheels appear to be some sort of semi holy grail for many roadster enthusiasts (and i think the RBs kinda sorta maybe-ish look like the Watanabes), i'm not out to impress the enthusiasts nor anyone else, and hadn't really heard of Watanabe before starting out on this forum.

i'm quite happy to call my Rota RBs "Wannabe rims."

...and while you're driving, no one really knows what rims you have.

[Apu]

Well said droo. I've come across a few die-hard Watanabe "original" supporters only to disappoint them with "look up Mini-lite and Tecnomagnesio".

"Original" designs are bullshit as far as I'm concerned. They're more or less an interpretation of some design that existed ages ago.

[narita]

ITT:

a whole lot of people who wont commit to decent wheels convince themselves that their plastic wheels are awesome.

[Apu]

I suppose you wear a $5000 watch because it tells better time than a $200 Casio.

[16bit]

try some team dynamic racing.

they make wheels for BTCC.

they are a decent price, not tooo heavy and are a sensible choice.

on a proper race car wheels are considered a consumable, if you track the car regularly you should check them for cracks. if you find any replace them.

[MrRevhead]

I previously had a set of Rod Jane racing wheels on my 5. For those that don't already know what they are, they are a budget wheel that are made to meet with Aus Standards through Bob Jane T Mart. The previous owner purchased them and I kept them on my 5 for daily driving duties for 4 years without any problems. When they were removed they were still in top condition, no cracks or warping despite being dríven on the rough Sydney roads with the occasional country drive.

Only recently I purchased a set of Work wheels as I never was too much of a fan of the style of the Rod Jane wheels, but kept them on as there was nothing wrong with them. Although I haven't punished my car on the track, besides the aesthetic appeal my Work wheels offer, I can't tell the difference in terms of drivability day to day. Both are the same size and width, just different in offset.

For my use, I can't justify spending 1/3 - 1/4 of the car's value on a set of wheels, especially when a product meets a Aus, JIL, industry standard etc

Although I do respect that each person has a different opinion on this topic, I do believe you can still get quality wheels for <1000 (enkei etc).

[hks_kansei]

Bit of interesting trivia.

Rodney Jane Racing (RJR) wheels are actually manufactured by Rota, and in many cases are simply a Rota wheel rebadged through Bob Jane.

[Apu]

And you'd also find that the same factories that manufacture for some bigger name brands, also manufacture wheels for "knock offs" (and I use that term loosely)...so despite all the dick-waving that some guys get into, they'd be horrified to realise that.

[hks_kansei]

And you'd also find that the same factories that manufacture for some bigger name brands, also manufacture wheels for "knock offs" (and I use that term loosely)...so despite all the dick-waving that some guys get into, they'd be horrified to realise that.

Pretty much.

Don't Rota do OEM wheels for a few of the larger manufacturers?


I just look at it as, if it's passed the necessary standards to be safe for road use, then it's safe for use.

I just find it odd that people drag out the same 2-3 pictures of a broken Rota (by the way, the white rally car if I recall was on OZ racing wheels, not Rota. Rally cars break wheels, regardless of brand) and say that Rota are crap/dangerous/weak/etc.

The counterfeit argument I can understand (not that I agree) but it's the "rota are dangerous etc" that I can't get.


Just think.
How many pictures have you seen of broken Rota wheels?
How many first hand stories have you heard?
How many of those were from an accident or heavy hit rather than wear and tear?
How many wheels do you think Rota have ever sold?


Personally, I've seen 3 pics of broken Rotas, and watched one break first hand.
Of those 4, only 1 I know for sure wasn't in an accident.
The one I saw first hand had been powdercoated (maybe weakened? let's assume not for arguments sake)

So, there's 1 confirmed, and 3 maybe.

And Rota have sold what? 1million? 2million? wheels?

4:1000000 is about a 0.0004% breakage rate.

That's pretty good in my eyes, especially since in real life I imagine Rota have sold WAY more than 1million wheels





I'll also add, I've seen images of broken/cracked/smashed/bent Rays wheels, OEM wheels, and others too.

[Apu]

That's my viewpoint too hks_kansei.

There's also the "forged is better" argument...which is true to an extent, but it's well accepted that a well made cast wheel is better than a poorly forged wheel. Remember that Japanese lightweight vs stiff wheel article? From memory, they made the point that cast wheels are "just as good".

You could end up paying 3x as much for a same-sized wheel, only to save ~500grams.

But at the end of the day, if the buyer has money to burn, good for them.

[narita]

I suppose you wear a $5000 watch because it tells better time than a $200 Casio.

if your watch breaks at 100ks on the freeway it wont kill you.

[goonie]

I suppose you wear a $5000 watch because it tells better time than a $200 Casio.

if your watch breaks at 100ks on the freeway it wont kill you.

How many Rotas do you know of have broken on the freeway?

[droo]

I forgot to mention, i'd also purchased the appropriate sized hubcentric rings for them but can't recall their exact ID for the roadster or OD to fit the rim. They were about $30 or so also from the eBays.