New 18 and 19" wheels that look like the stock wheels

[MannyC]

New 18 and 19\" wheels that look like the stock wheels

Guys, I have a friend who potentially can make replicas of the 96 - 98 wheels like in the photo below, only they would be in an 18 or 19 inch size.

Thing is, he only deals with cast wheels and not forged wheels. Would this be something of interest? I'm not entirely sure on cost, but I am guessing they would be less than $2000 for the set. This came up during one of our lunch meetings, and I really didn't have a lot of time to ask too much, so this is all preliminary. I don't know much about cast wheels either, other than you probably shouldn't race on them (I broke one off my car doing that.) But for street applications and 95% of the Viper owners, wouldn't a Cast replica wheel work fine?

Would there be any interest in this? If so, what size? I can find out how many orders would be needed to make this a reality.

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[Doc.]

Re: New 18 and 19

Superbar,
I have been trying to get this done but to no avail. I was not looking at forged wheels though as I do like to go to the track. That being said, I would gladly fork over 2 big ones for a set of stock looking 18's forged or not.
Doc

 

[Qualitywires.com]

Re: New 18 and 19

I think it would look sweet since I havenot seen too many aftermarket wheels I like.

 

[MannyC]

Re: New 18 and 19

Could we get 10 of us together to order a set of the exact size? I would be in for a 19" set. I'll find out if they do them in Chrome or if they need to be chromed elsewhere.

Perhaps John Purner can chime in here in terms of what is important for these wheels. Even though they would be run on the street and not a track, are there issues with putting cast wheels on say a Supercharged car that has 750 RWHP ? I don't mind Poser wheels, but I want to make sure I am not the 1st Viper guy in history to sheer a 2nd wheel off his car with stock tires.

 

[ViperJoe]

Re: New 18 and 19

http://vca2.viperclub.org/forums/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=genvipdis&Number=338146&Forum=All_Forums&Words=wheels&Match=Entire%20Phrase&Searchpage=9&Limit=25&Old=1month&Main=338146&Search=true#Post338146

 

[WilBriK]

Re: New 18 and 19\" wheels that look like the stock wheels

superbar,

I couldn't agree more. The 96-98 wheels are the best looking ones for the Viper, IMO. It's a real shame Dodge failed to make them available in 18"

I'd be in for a set of 18", but I'd want a brushed aluminum surface, not highly polished or chrome. I imagine the surfacing is the easy part, anyway.

A friend of mine owns a CNC machine shop and he said it would be relatively easy, but to be cost effective he'd need several orders, just as your friend said.

Anyway, if he can pull off a strong 18" wheel in that design, I'd buy a set.

 

[malcoll]

Re: New 18 and 19

I definitely would want a set... but I would want silver powder coating.... versus polish or chrome.....

Are we sure that he cannot make "track safe" wheels?

 

[MannyC]

Re: New 18 and 19

So what would be more popular in a forged set, 18 or 19 inch? I myself would prefer the 19's to make them really stand out from the stock 17's.

 

[WilBriK]

Re: New 18 and 19

18"

Personally, I find the 19" wheels to be a mismatch. They look too big, IMO.

 

[Casey]

Re: New 18 and 19

If we are talking forged, then I would be interested, in a set of 18s. But I would like to know the weight of the wheels as well, as I don't want Heavy wheels.
I actually think the 19s would look great, but I don't think you can find Drag Radials to fit.

 

[HOdbleFman]

Re: New 18 and 19

Superbar, find out what type of aluminum alloy your buddy is going to be using on the wheels. I'm guessing 295-T4 aluminum. I don't know what method your buddy does for stress analysis on the wheels, but you could still make a set of wheels from cast aluminum that would be track worthy. Maybe slightly heavier, but I would bet you could make the weight gains minimal.

 

[malcoll]

Re: New 18 and 19

I would want 18"... as I agree the 19" wheels seem too big.


This would be great if it works out... I do love that wheel design......

 

[ViperJoe]

Re: New 18 and 19

Probably be cheapest to design the center portion of the wheel like the stock 18" wheel (no center cao to fool with) or copy the 17" in this area and use the stock 17" center caps.

Check to see how much forging adds to the price per wheel.

 

[Ron]

Re: New 18 and 19

Interesting project. Would consider only if 18" and forged with original stock center cap dimensions. Would choose polished just like OEM.

My interest would be in being able to fit larger brake rotors with a stock look someday.

 

[Qualitywires.com]

Re: New 18 and 19

can anyone photoshop a set?

 

[Bandit3]

Re: New 18 and 19

I have a preference towards the gen one wheels. All others seem to be a variation on spoke design. The gen ones were unique. If they could be made in 19's for the rear and 18's for the front at a reasonable cost-- count me in. Oh, they must be forged. Chrome? This might be asking for a lot, but I have never seen a wheel of similar design. BTW- I have weighed the stock 2000 wheels with rubber-- fronts are 53 lbs and rears are 63 lbs. Joseph Dells aftermarket wheels were 43 front and 51 rear. That's a saving of 44 lbs of unsprung weight. If the wheels can be forged and still weigh in at those low numbers-- sounds like a winner! John