christurismohk

iTrader: (2)

They both look about the same to me!! Anyone know if Subzero is any good? Does anyone have pictures installed on a Z?
Subzero in bronze

Subzero in steel gray

Subzero in silver/polished tip

Racing hart CP-035r

johgar

iTrader: (3)

You wouldn't want the Rota Subzero, the widest they come is 18"x7.5". Most of the Rota is 5x100 or 4x100 and 4x114.3.
Go with the real deal, the RH CP035R, you will not regret it.

Sup

Rota is a low quality knock-off company that is popular with the "cheap" Honda crowd.

Rota Subzeroes are a direct copy of the Racing Hart CP-035's which are one of the lightest wheels available for the street.

The CP-035r's are the newest versions of the CP-035. They are forged and only come in 18 inch sizes.

In all honesty the Z deserves better than anything from Rota.

Monkey Man

There are pictures all over the net of those Subzeros breaking on the auto-x course. Some regions have even banned them from events. Also, Rota is nothing but trouble from my point of view. They make it nearly impossible for us to sell their products and give little or no support.

-Jeremy

Heineken

Wow, is that a Rota wheel on that WRX? Those sorta look like the stock'ers, but I'm not sure.

I've had a different experience with Rota's. They are relatively popular in the Miata world. There they are praised as lightweight, cheap, and strong. Never heard of any breaking apart on the Miata forums. Below is my 99 Miata I gave to my Mom with Rota Circuit 8s.

Lightsped

Wrong, the SubZeros are not the Rotas that were breaking. It was the Attacks. And the breaking issue was very very rare. It was on the first batch of Attacks, later determined to be a weak area on the spokes. This weak area was beafed up, and Rota is replacing (free of charge) all of the original Attack wheels with the newer version.

I currently have Rotas on my WRX, and have been 100% trouble free. It is interesting how the web takes a few isolated cases, and blows it all out of proportion. I have heard breaking/cracking/bending issues reported with almost EVERY major wheel company out there.

Anyways, if I buy a Z in the next month or so, I probally will be putting SubZeros on it (assuming they come in the right size and offset). This would save me a TON of money for mods or other fun stuff.

amolaver

iTrader: (1)

As Lightsped says... I ran Rota Tarmac's on my WRX (before it was rear-ended and totalled) - loved 'em. They were light, and plenty strong. The Miata community loves 'em. Again, cheap, light, and reliable. The Attacks are a relatively new design, and any wheel failure is scary, but '..pictures all over the net of those Subzeros breaking on the auto-x course' is clearly an overstatement by someone with something to sell.

So the question still stands - are there appropriate sizes of any Rota wheels, preferably in 17", for the Z.

Monkey Man

Actually, I sell Rotas, but at the same time, I am not going to recommend something to my customers that I would not put on my own car. I am not trying to sway any opinions, I am simply giving my honest opinion here.

-Jeremy

amolaver

iTrader: (1)

Monkey Man - can you back this statement up, 'Some regions have even banned them from events.'

I honestly haven't heard word-one like that anywhere.

As I said, I don't know if Rota has a wheel that's appropriate for the Z, meaning bolt pattern, offset, and width/diameter. But couching a bigger profit in the language of a safety recommendation is, ahem, slightly misleading.

ahm

Monkey Man

I contacted a few people to get an update on this situation. The last time I heard about it was last fall. Since then, a discussion has been on-going at the national level about possibly restricting the use of these wheels in some regions. However, Rota has issued a recall on the wheels which they said were faulty. As of right now, Rotas are not banned, but discussions are still on going. Since there has been a recall, and Rota claims to have fixed the problems, the wheels will most likely not be banned anywhere. Both the Subzeros and Attacks had incidents during last season. There were pictures posted of both wheels breaking at events on I-club last summer. I sold 3 sets of Slipstreams to good friends whom I autocross with, and they have had no problems at all, and are very happy with their wheels. Once again, I am not trying to mislead anyone, I am just sharing my honest opinion.

-Jeremy

amolaver

iTrader: (1)

I appreciate you checking out the situation. While I happen to disagree with you on whether Rota's in a general sense could be used on the Z, that is my opinion, and you are entitled to yours. My WRX wasn't totalled until September, and I hadn't seen anything on i-club at that point, admittedly I wasn't quite as obsessed with it as some people were - I could have missed it, I guess.

Actually, just spent some time searching at nasioc, and came up with hits around the first of the year. Here is the Rota/Cosmic rep explaining the situation. It clarifies that only the first run of Attacks suffered the defect. It also shows that they are commited to satisfying their customers. All affected wheel owners have a standing offer to have the wheels replaced:

NASIOC defect link

Here is a link to thread at NASIOC discussing how Rota's are manufactured - hint, they are OEM's for a number of auto manufacturers (would quote who, but lost the damn link!)

Rota QA Explanation


Anyway - my point here is not to bash Monkey Man, or dissuade you from pointing your customers elsewhere. My point *IS* to get information out there so your customers will be able to make informed choices for themselves. I *WOULD* put Rota's on my car in a second *IF* there were proper sizes available.

As of yet, no one has answered my question regarding whether there are appropriately sized 17" Rota's available. So, the question stands. Are there 17x8.5" Rota's with appropriate offset and bolt pattern for the rear? I believe there is a 17x7.5" appropriate for the front. Would someone at least confirm those are the stock sizes for OEM 17" wheels, and provide the appropriate bolt pattern and offset info for std. width wheels?

ahm

Monkey Man

"We are OEM producers for Toyota, Mitsubishi, Nissan and Ford (which explains our QS certificaion)"

I am still waiting on a response from our distributor about 350Z offsets. Last I heard, they were still being test fitted.

-Jeremy

valuetl

Racing Hart CP-035R are great quality plus very light weight and a great selection of any offsets.

amolaver

iTrader: (1)

Let me know Jeremy - I'd be first in line to buy a set If they don't come out soon though, I might be shopping for someone elses' base or enthusiast wheels. I believe the OEM rears weigh around 21 lbs. Any idea what the Rota's might weigh? I believe their 17x7.5" wheels are around 17lbs (Tarmac's). What do the SDR's weigh in that size?

And valuetl - I never questioned the quality of the RH wheels. People seem happy with them. I'd be happier with less expensive options

ahm

Monkey Man

I have Falken Azenis mounted on my Enthusiast wheels just for auto-x days. I'm very happy with their performance.

-Jeremy

amolaver

iTrader: (1)

since this will now take us quite far off the original topic, i tried pm'ing you - mailbox full... what size azenis are you running on the 17s? given the proclivity towards push, it seems it might make sense that getting the fronts proportionately larger than the rears might be reasonable. so with factory sizes being:

front 225/50
rear 235/50

going to say, a 245/40 up front and a 245/45 in the rear might actually balance the car.

whadya think?

ahm

valuetl

No prob AMOlaver. Also take a look at the cheaper R/H CP-F Tune R wheels they are cheaper than the CP-035R and offer gun, bronze, white, silver and chrome finishes.

Monkey Man

I am running 225/45/17 and 245/45/17. I was extremely happy with the amount of grip I had at the track, and these tires are quite affordable.

-Jeremy

MugenRD1

I never owned Rota's but they are famous for making copies wheels from other famous wheels, racing hart cf, mugen mf8's, etc.

I would say spend a little more money and get something with a better quality. Don't want to regret later on the purchase you made...

Goodluck !