Startech 20" Wheels

[WESTCOAST JASON]

Startech 20\" Wheels

At the Coronado event in San Diego today I saw a set of 20" Startech wheels (see picture) on a Yellow RT today. They looked great! Anyone know where the best place to get these is? I assume they work fine with aftermarket brakes since they are so large? Thanks!

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[Marv S]

Re: Startech 20\" Wheels

That looks like Andy W's car. Get them direct from Star-tech in LA http://vca2.viperclub.org/marketplace/vender.php?venderid=221&from=6

CRD North America, Inc.
4040 Campus Drive
Newport Beach, CA 92660

Telefon (949) 851-1006
Telefax (949) 797-9177

E-mail: [email protected]



<FONT COLOR="#ff0000" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">This message has been edited by Marv S on 10-13-2002 at 09:43 PM</font>

 

[treynor]

Re: Startech 20\" Wheels

Interestingly, the Startech display booth was right next to the DLM booth at VOI7. My yellow RT at the DLM booth had the Forgeline VR1s in full polish, and everyone commented on how good the wheels looked -- frequently before noticing the 1200 BHP engine

By contrast, I didn't see anyone gawking at the Startechs. Since the Forgelines are much cheaper & lighter than the Startechs, and you can use the Michelin ZPs on them and ditch your spare and jack for even more weight savings, I'd recommend having a look before you make a purchase decision...

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[LTHL-GRY]

Re: Startech 20\" Wheels

Ben,

Would you comment on your centercaps?? Did they come with the wheels or are they custom made?

TIA,

 

[treynor]

Re: Startech 20\" Wheels

Forgeline ships the VR1s with those center caps if you ask nicely. If you don't specify, I believe they use a "forgeline"-logo'd cap.

 

[DEVILDOG]

Re: Startech 20\" Wheels

IMHO, anything other than solid five spokes on a Viper looks like crap. Anything bigger than 18" is a performance detriment.

 

[treynor]

Re: Startech 20\" Wheels

That's the wonderful thing about aesthetics, DD -- it's personal. Personally, I'm not a wheel guy at all, but the forgelines in full polish work really well with my RT. As for performance, perhaps you can explain how losing 8 lbs per corner while inreasing tire width can be a performance detriment?

 

[Greg D]

Re: Startech 20\" Wheels

Speaking only in reference to performance increases gained/ lost from decreasing/increasing "rotating" weight, Would total wheel weight be the only concern or would the polar moment of inertia of the increased/decreased weight be more important?

I believe that even if wheel "A" weighed more than wheel "B", with wheel "B" having a larger amount of it's weight further from the wheel's centerline than wheel "A", Then, wheel "A" could have less resistance to acceleration and deceleration (depending on the amount of weight that was moved further away from the wheels centerline and the distance that weight was moved

If so, wouldn't this make a car quicker to accelerate and decelerate (brake)thereby increasing performance?
I do realize that reducing unsprung weight also has it's advantages.
Just my 2 cents.

 

[Mike Brunton]

Re: Startech 20\" Wheels

oh my god I agree with DevilDog, but, to each his own - we buy wheels that we like - so aesthetics aside...

Greg you are completely correct.. it's not just the weight of the wheels, it's where the mass is. Most wheels are going to have the weight heavily biased towards the rim, and when the rim moves out from the centerpoint, it's a detriment.

 

[V10 MOJO]

Re: Startech 20\" Wheels

this wheel issue continues to haunt me, hence no purchase yet and its been over a year contemplating. is there performance detriment with 19's? i assume there obviously are soem with 20's. and we all know there are none with 18's, right. width is yet another issue of my dilema, i want wider tires both front and back, saw a post photo of GASDOC with rear 345/30/18 and front 335/35/18, looked great.

 

[treynor]

Re: Startech 20\" Wheels

Performance is primarily a question of weight, rotational inertia, and tire availability. The top performance street tires (Pilot Sport, S-03 pole position, et. al.) are all available in 17", 18", and 19" sizes, so there is no significant performance deficit for street use. 19" wheels will increase the rolling diameter of the tire/wheel combination, effectively decreasing your gearing by ~4%, which affects 1st-gear acceleration (at least for those of you who can still get 1st-gear traction

) For track/racing, 17" is currently the best size for tire availability, although some competition tires are becoming available in 18".

If you want maximum tire width for the street, use an 11" front wheel with 315 tires, and spoon 345s on your rears. Be aware that this will make your Viper somewhat more prone to understeer (or more precisely, less prone to understeer) so I would only recommend it for drivers who are comfortable getting a little sideways in their snake.

FWIW, I have 295/35-19 and 345/30-19 Pilot Sports mounted on my 19" VR-1s.

 

[WESTCOAST JASON]

Re: Startech 20\" Wheels

After learning more I think I also am interested in the VR-1's - just trying to find the best deal on a set of them with tires. I also am going to sell my 2000 Wheels w/tires. I hear they are worth about $2000 in set form? Is that about right?

 

[DEVILDOG]

Re: Startech 20\" Wheels

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Mike Brunton:
oh my god I agree with DevilDog, but, to each his own - we buy wheels that we like - so aesthetics aside...

Greg you are completely correct.. it's not just the weight of the wheels, it's where the mass is. Most wheels are going to have the weight heavily biased towards the rim, and when the rim moves out from the centerpoint, it's a detriment.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
And, ergo, I agree with you. Will wonders never cease?