Upgrading the stock 17" rims???

[cfiiman]

Hey all,

I'm thinking of upgrading the stock rims on my 94 RT and was wondering a couple of questions. First how "big" do you go, I don't want to look like some baller from the bad side of town lol if you know what I mean. I'm thinking 18 or 19 at most, but honestly I don't know what would look "best".

Second, how much does going up affect your speedo/odo? Reason I ask is I am having to recalibrate anyway do to a gearing change and don't want to have to do it again if that makes sense when I put on bigger rims.

Thanks for any help!

 

[Ricketts]

Personally that all depends on the look you want and how much you wanna spend. I've always thought the 99-02 18" Factories were a great/cheap upgrade for a GEN I car. Of course any Viper factory wheel will fit your car 92-10, with the SRT 5 spokes being the best looking ones overall in my opinion. Member Tucker on here actually has a set for sale currently.

 

[DeLViper]

Go with the SRT 5 Spokes, the best in my opinion!

 

[99 R/T 10]

Couple of things come to mind:

Polished Five Spokes and Michelins - ViperClub Classifieds

 

[JonB]

Not trying to be a buzz-kill, but:

If you have 15+ year old shocks and springs and bushings, and a teen-aged braking and steering rack system that was designed for light 17" wheels and tires, please consider that you are now asking your tired, old suspension to wear COMBAT BOOTS for the rest of its life.

Heavy steering feel, worse braking and cornering, etc can be the result of adding heavy rotating, unsprung mass.

Stick with light, 18" wheels that offer LOTS of cheap tire options!

 

[crazycanuck]

Jon, I'm new to the forum,I have been watching some of Tire threads with Gen 1 with 03 10 spoke wheels but no one has mentioned the driving issues. Is this a big concern for average Hobby driver ???

As i just bought of 08 rims.. for my Gen 1

 

[tucker]

Couple of things come to mind:

Polished Five Spokes and Michelins - ViperClub Classifieds

Thanks Mike. They sure do wake up the Gen 1/2 cars and the Gen 3 split five spokes.

 

[kenmo]

Custom wheels are really going to drastically improve the appearance of any car. Pick the style you like and go with it. Browse through the "wheel/tire" thread and see what floats your boat. Vipers are pretty rare to begin with...here's a chance to make it even more "unique."

 

[cfiiman]

Thanks everyone. I want the 360 forged, someone posted a pic a while back and I have never seen a more beautiful set on a Viper, the price is fairly crazy to though

 

[Dom426h]

I think that Jon’s scare tactic was to simply shun ignorant people from going with ridiculous sized wheels like +20" not knowing that they will decrease the performance of their viper.

Anything from 18-19" is perfect IMO and should be as light or lighter than stock wheels as nearly all aftermarket wheels available for the viper are forged aluminum allowing them to use less material.

Keep in mind that overall weight isnt everything. Size matters...
Even when comparing a 17" wheel to a 21" wheel that both weigh the Same, the 17"er will accelerate faster and brake faster. Why? INERTIA

 

[Dom426h]

Thanks everyone. I want the 360 forged, someone posted a pic a while back and I have never seen a more beautiful set on a Viper, the price is fairly crazy to though

ummm, 360forged is mearly a brand of wheels that have many diff designs(most of which i assume are copied off of the other older more reputable wheel manucacture like HRE)
Which style do yo like?

Check out HRE , Iforged, and CCW. They all have similar designs and will give you plenty to drool over

HRE Performance Wheels – Official Site

iForged Performance Wheels | The next generation in forging technology - Global Site

Complete Custom Wheel - Home

 

[cfiiman]

ummm, 360forged is mearly a brand of wheels that have many diff designs(most of which i assume are copied off of the other older more reputable wheel manucacture like HRE)
Which style do yo like?

Check out HRE , Iforged, and CCW. They all have similar designs and will give you plenty to drool over

HRE Performance Wheels – Official Site

iForged Performance Wheels | The next generation in forging technology - Global Site

Complete Custom Wheel - Home

Sorry didn't know that, this is the picture that started me thinking, I've never seen a nicer look IMO. I really like my stockers, mine have been polished to a high "chrome like" shine and look much better to me then the regualr flat finish, but the pic below

 

[ZYellow01RT]

Hey all,

I'm thinking of upgrading the stock rims on my 94 RT and was wondering a couple of questions. First how "big" do you go, I don't want to look like some baller from the bad side of town lol if you know what I mean. I'm thinking 18 or 19 at most, but honestly I don't know what would look "best".

Second, how much does going up affect your speedo/odo? Reason I ask is I am having to recalibrate anyway do to a gearing change and don't want to have to do it again if that makes sense when I put on bigger rims.

Thanks for any help!

FYI - my '95 was changed from 17" to 18", and I noticed that my speedometer showed that I was going slower than I actually was, by about 8 mph. In other words, when I thought I was going 42 mph, I was actually going 50 mph. Had to watch those school zones!!

 

[Dom426h]

What do you like more? the particluar style or just that they have a polished lip with black powdercoated centers?

FYI Any wheel can have the center section powercoated. Most can be done from the factory. Or if you pick up a used set of fully polished wheels you can always get them powercoated yourself.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Andrew Zee. I dont know what is up with your paricular setup. but
going from the factory 335/35R17 to a 335/30R18 only yields a 0.7mph diff at 60mph.....

 

[JonB]

Jon, I'm new to the forum,I have been watching some of Tire threads with Gen 1 with 03 10 spoke wheels but no one has mentioned the driving issues. Is this a big concern for average Hobby driver ???

As i just bought of 08 rims.. for my Gen 1

Not really...no problem. Dom and Eat have me pegged.....Im not a fan of cosmetic blingy wheels, but many are. Just dont neglect your aging shocks, etc, they were not meant to last forever, esp if you want to put 20" boots and meats on em!

PS.. there are several 1pc 19-20" wheels, like CCWs, that weigh less than 3pc 20" wheels, and cost thou$andS Le$$ too....

 

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

If you go bigger than 18" then get some bigger brakes so it doesn't look like some MTV POS. And stay away from that fat lip look. That fad is gonna be fading away in another year or two.

 

[AndyMac]

I love the gen3 ten spokes on my 95. I found a big difference in performance, but I was also going from old tires to new tires, so I'm sure that had something to do with it. Plus I was already twin turbo'd, so I didn't notice any straight line performance loss, just more traction..

Personally, the only set of rims I would have chosen over the 10 spokes, if money was not a factor, would have been the SRT 5 spokes. None of the aftermarket options appeal to me.

Either way, anything will be better than the stock 17's..

You must be registered for see images attach

BTW, sneaky pete center caps from the late Gen2 5 spokes fit the 10 spokes, I finally found a set.

 

[REDBLACK]

Not trying to be a buzz-kill, but:

If you have 15+ year old shocks and springs and bushings, and a teen-aged braking and steering rack system that was designed for light 17" wheels and tires, please consider that you are now asking your tired, old suspension to wear COMBAT BOOTS for the rest of its life.

Heavy steering feel, worse braking and cornering, etc can be the result of adding heavy rotating, unsprung mass.

Stick with light, 18" wheels that offer LOTS of cheap tire options!

And if you select the right vendor for your gears and speedo kit, they can pre-program any tire deviation you might select, now or future.

Totally agree.

 

[JonB]

WOW, a Twin Turbo Gen One! Cannot be many of those..Did U get fog-lite covers too? . Yellow/Tan is one of my favorites...... Your NEW TIRES were the sole benefactor of the improved traction and handling you discovered, since the G3 10-spokes are the heaviest OE wheel ever put on a Viper. But your 17" 3-spoke sawblade super-light on 17" stickies like a Kumho would definitely have "handled" and gripped better than 18-19 SRT heavyweights. Really!

I love the gen3 ten spokes on my 95. I found a big difference in performance, but I was also going from old tires to new tires, so I'm sure that had something to do with it. Plus I was already twin turbo'd, so I didn't notice any straight line performance loss, just more traction..

Personally, the only set of rims I would have chosen over the 10 spokes, if money was not a factor, would have been the SRT 5 spokes. None of the aftermarket options appeal to me.

Either way, anything will be better than the stock 17's..

You must be registered for see images attach

BTW, sneaky pete center caps from the late Gen2 5 spokes fit the 10 spokes, I finally found a set.

 

[FastZilla]

JonB hooked me up with a 2009 X-Mas special on 6pot/4pot StopTechs, SRT 6-spokes and even some tires (295 front & 345 rear).

Here is the end result - kind of looks like what should have been the stock set up on the 1994 RT. The speedo reads 5mph slow at all speeds (65 indicated is actually 70mph). Stopping is no longer a scary butt pucker. Handling and ride is greatly improved. It really transformed the car into a pleasure to drive. I originally had 17" Gen 2 wheels and stock brakes.

You be the judge.