I'm trying to make a decision about tires/wheels to purchase and I have an event this weekend (read https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=230422) so here is my question to all you guys with 2000/2001 R's or anyone with the ITR gunmetal wheels...

How do yours look? Scratched? Dinged? Chipped? Mangled from multiple tire mounts/balance? Or are they looking pretty much perfect even after a lot of daily driving (not track use necessarily)

See, I have a brand new second set of wheels from Acura after they chipped all 4 of my mint ones just weeks after I got my R. If I use my damaged wheels for track use, and slap the mint ones on for daily driving, I want to be sure that they too aren't going to just end up that way from normal driving after a couple years. Because if that's the case then I'll just save the mint ones or sell them now and get another set of wheels I don't mind some minimal scratching/chipping from.

(yes I know I'm making too much out of a simple decision, I just don't want to regret spending $1000's on tires/wheels later!)

 

they replaced the damaged rims but still let you keep them? damn, nice

 

They look fine besides one and other little nick on the paint from tire rotations and mounts.

Eric - who still think they ran out of gun metal paint on the assembly line at Honda


Edit: sp


[Modified by '01ITR#950, 4:00 PM 7/15/2002]

 

Use the mint wheels for track wheels.

I actually cleaned my wheels off for the first time in a while, and they're in surprisingly good condition. One wheel has a few cone marks, but that's about it.

Use the chipped wheels for daily driving, that way you won't be as annoyed as you see the quality of the wheels slowly deteriorate just from daily driving.

 

MIne have deposits of brake dust/rotor filings that have somehow hermetically bonded to the surface of the rims. I think the mixture of rotor/pad dust mixed with water and now has turned to some sort of concrete.

 

hmm, hadn't thought of that... you don't think using them on a track (not so much autocross) has more chance of scratching them up and chipping them from rocks and such? I just assumed from the start that daily driving would be less likely to wear them (assuming you don't ram into curbs and stuff) then putting them on the track.

it's kind of like this, i've ALWAYS just went from track to street with the same tires and wheels and now all of a sudden i have these brand-spanking-new shiney ITR gunmetal wheels and I'm like cringing with the thought of them getting all chipped up and stuff too. seems it'd be easier to sell later too having nice prestine wheels

 

yeah i've read about that too. seems it would be easier to keep the track wheels clean just because when you're done, you clean them and put them away instead of when they're on your car just collecting brake dust and being in the environment while your (my) lazy *** doesn't wash the poor thing

 

I'd say your wheels will be put through much more abuse on the street than on the track.

Your front bumper, now that's a different story.

 

Yes. I use my crappy wheels for the track, and the nice ones for the street.

I have roughly 12K street miles on the wheels that came on my '01 ITR when I bought it new. They still look just about perfect. There are no scratches or gouges. The only sign of wear I could find were three tiny pinpoint chips, each about the size of the tip of a pen (easily under 0.5 mm). So I consider them perfect.

Keep in mind the leading causes of damaged wheels: (a) curbing - when you park the car at a curb and you drive along the curb, so close that the curb scrapes the edge of the rim; (b) mounting - scrapes along the lip during tire mounting/remounting (when done carelessly or improperly); (c) big chips and gouges - from something hitting the wheel (typically does NOT occur on the street, more likely when you or someone else is working on your car or on another car next to yours); (d) "rash" from dropping the wheel on its face when removing it from the car. All of these causes are 100 percent controllable, by you and/or by the people you choose to work on your car.

Rocks and such kicked up by other cars in traffic tend to hit your car's front bumper and air dam, not the wheels.

My track wheels had a few big chips (like the size of a dime) when I got them. I don't think they've gotten damaged from track use, but I AM pretty careful about washing the brake dust off them once I get back from the track. Eventually, I suspect there will be brake dust caking on the inside corners of the spokes, no matter what I do.



[Modified by nsxtcjr, 6:27 PM 7/15/2002]

 

Always run the chipped. That way if you *do* sell it, you have mint ones...it'll raise the value.

Mine are messed up. that's mostly from parking on a lift for a year.

Also, you could always have them repainted.

 

haha, let's hope not... saving the wheel-2-wheel racing for the hatchy for next year hopefully

 

What's the point of going on the track if you don't look good?

Reid - who thought that's why people say you're supposed to use Spoon wheels on the track...

 

nicked, chipped, and brake dust. just the way i like them

 

It won't raise the value by as much as what you could get for those new wheels by selling them separately. If you're not going to use them, sell them.

 

with 29000 and 19 months... FUGGED Royally!

 

could be true. how much are mint gunmetal R wheels worth anyways?

 

really... what kind of use? mostly street driving or track or a combination?

 

Only what people are willing to pay.

People are such cheapasses that I'd rather beat the crap out of the wheels than be lowballed to death.

 

good question... i'd like to know that too

 

You have IM...

 

Once at limerock but 99.9% is street. and I try to take care but some ^@$ @%& scrathed them on pupose, why ??? idunno

 

My rims are chipped from mounts....and one dumb mistake by curb checking........but other than that there good rims....

 

After one year and 20k+ miles, they have slight mangling from mounting/balance and a couple, very small chips in them. Not enough for me to really even be **** about (frankly, I'm more agitated with the mounting/balancing marks).