You are right, we do live in a consumer based economy and substitute goods will always have a place in this market whether it's store brand goods or wheels.

 

This is true. I was in China for two months last summer, don't get me started on the kind of cheap/counterfeit stuff I saw.

 

I'll see your bent Rotas and raise you a bent 2 piece forged wheel:



My track car (superchaged Miata) rolls on Rotas on the street. In the Miata community, arguably the most tracked street car ever, there are gobs of guys who run Rotas on the track. They are cheap and easily replaceable - especially for guys who have several sets of wheels. When you track your car, wheels become a wear and tear item just like everything else.

The photo of the twisted rota wheel is from a guy who was running the **** out of those wheels on a regular basis. 500hp, sticky tires, Nurburgring....you do the math. No $150 wheel is going to handle that. Even very expensive wheels are subject to breaking under those conditions.

Rota gets a bad rap because they make cheap "replicas" - usually in sizes and offsets that the original wheel was never available in. The anti-rota hate has been propagated by wheel snobs of all sorts. Fact remains that Rota makes a decent wheel for the price and actually is the OEM wheel manufacturer for several brands (including Toyota, Mercedes, VW, etc.).

 

There have been tons of threads on Honda-Tech of people with Rotas getting them destroyed like the other post from a not so big pothole or a regular track. Just because there are gobs of people running them don't mean they are high quality wheels. They are cheap so people buy them. They are what they are but there are better quality replicas than Rota.

 

Can't argue with that. I agree. My point is that Rotas are not any more awful than any other wheel in their price range. Nobody buys Rotas expecting them to be high quality and uber durable....but they're not garbage and for what most members on this forum do (ie. NOT regular track days) they're perfectly suited.

I've tracked Rotas and I won't hesitate to do it again if I feel the need. I just know to budget for replacements as needed.

 

I want to see pics of the S/C MIata!!!

 

As not to threadjack, just follow the link in my signature. The interior looks a bit different now, but otherwise the rest of the pics are current.

 

linea corse wheels come from the same factory as rota wheels. i know a lot of you love your linea corse wheels.

 

Nice NB. Makes me miss my 95-R (stock as it was though).

 

Thanks. I was ----><---- that close to making a '95M my next project. (low miles car, nicer suspension setup than my NB, FM2 turbo kit 250whp = winner). But then I decided that something different would be in order. I'll be going with an Aristo swap on my GS and trying to piece together a suspension setup that works well on the track. IMO it'll be almost as much fun as a boosted Roadster.

 

You'll get better Customer Service with LC though.

 

I can't conform or deny that. However, I will say that 18racing.com are AWESOME with customer service on Rota wheels. They have, on several occasions, worked with car forums to get Rota to make short runs of custom sizes on some of their wheels. Even when just buying one set for yourself, they're always available by phone, email and IM if you need them. Forget wheels, specifically....I've only dealt with a rare handful of online retailers in any industry with customer service that great.

No...I don't work for them. haha...just a happy customer.

 

Well I think the main difference is when you work with 18racing.com you are working with the middle man. When you are working with LC, you can work with them directly, as opposed to a middle man. LC has quite an online presence and participates in many forums, including this one.

For the record, I do not own LC wheels but I do know many people that do.