mcubed45

Hey guys

I'm shopping for wheels right now. I currently have an 04 base with stock brakes but I'm considering upgrading to the akebonos in the future. I know CZP has the template you can use to check if your current wheels will clear the kit, but it's a bit more complicated if you don't have the wheels yet. I guess I could try asking the wheel vendors to print out a template and check each wheel, but that seems like a hassle and I doubt they'd want to take any responsibility for verifying clearance of non-oem brakes.

So I was wondering, can I just shop for wheels that are compatible with the 370z sport package? The 370z's use a much higher offset in the front, so I would think any wheel design that fits the 370 sport should be fine on a 350z with Akebonos. With the 350z's lower offset, the spokes should be the same distance or further away and the barrel clearance should be the same.

MicVelo

Seems logical (370Z sport/Nismo wheels to fit sport brakes) but I wouldn't assume that the Akes will clear Z34 wheels necessarily. It's still best to measure. There are other factors to take into consideration besides offset.

Plus, it's counter intuitive and almost a waste of money to run a really nice set of brakes on the car when the scrub radius is all screwed up based on running the high offset Z34 fronts such that the car doesn't handle/respond the way it needs to. That said, you WILL want to run at least 20mm spacers on Z34 wheels to get the geometry back to where it needs to be.

But if this helps, I measured my 370 S-Tune wheels (LMZ5) for Z34 Sport brake clearance (Akebono) on my Z33 WITH 20mm spacer installed on the front wheels and they appear to fit based on the template. If anything, the spacers will afford you more clearance. Not a guaranty but a datapoint for your research.

EDIT: Oh, and by the way, there is a thread here somewhere that has some details on what wheeks will fit the Akebono brakes. I seem to recall that it only listed the factory wheels they work with but it may have been updated since I read it at least a year ago.

turboed350z

I think he meant, wheels that will fit the 370z with big brakes will fit the z33 with big brakes. Aka use 370z wheel spec/design(with z33 offset), not the actual 370z wheel itself.

IE: if wheel A design with say 30 offset clears the brakes on the z34, hes asking if he can get wheel A with a 20ish offset and still clear his brakes.

MicVelo

OK, but problem is the same as shopping for ANY wheel then. Wheels specifically meant for Z34 will have the 47mm (or similar) front offset and proper sized barrel. (Note that all Z34 Sport and Nismo wheels are 19")

And, even if you put a 370Z "design" wheel on with factory 350Z offset, +30, it still may not clear. As I mentioned, it's not just about the offset, it's about the concavity of the wheel spokes, inner barrel diameter as above, and how the wheel sits on the hub (which is different between the 350 and 370).

Net result is: No matter what wheel we're talking about, factory, "factory like" or aftermarket, the clearance problem may STILL exist, regardless of wheel design.

"Measure twice, cut (or in this case, fit) once."

But I could be wrong. Let's wait for OP's clarification on exactly what he's looking for...

turboed350z

Yea, its going to be easier if op puts up the wheels hes wants with specs

VenomGT9

iTrader: (1)

Disc type will be a bigger factor for bbk clearance

mcubed45

Yep that's exactly what I meant.

In my head I can't really see a scenario where the wheel face/spokes on a +30 offset wheel would clear akebonos on 370z but the +20 offset version wouldn't clear on 350z. I mean lower offset means everything is moving further away from center line. Or at least staying the same, depending on wheel design. It'd be really odd for a lower offset to end up with the spokes closer to center line, right?

jdmfetish

iTrader: (3)

I have a z33
base brakes
2006
Work VSXX
O disk
19 x 9.5 F + 12 offset
19 x 11 R + 7 Rear

http://voodoo13usa.com/shop/350z-z33...acket-adapter/

using a bracket like this
will 370Z brakes fit mine

if no what spacer MM would i need

MicVelo

Your grasp of the clearance THEORY vis a vis offset is correct but not quite definitive enough to be proof of fitment.

Let's see if I can muddy the waters some more.

Here's some threads where you can search for answers:

https://my350z.com/forum/brakes-and-...-wheels-2.html

https://my350z.com/forum/brakes-and-...l-fitment.html

https://my350z.com/forum/brakes/4142...1200-a-31.html

https://my350z.com/forum/brakes-and-...ent-gurus.html

https://my350z.com/forum/brakes-and-...-question.html

And so on and so forth.

The takeaway from these threads is that no matter what the size and offset, fitment of the Akebonos on a Z33 is, well, not a crapshoot since there's research one can do, but not easy.

As it's been pointed out in previous answers in this thread, there's more to it than just offset. As Venom mentions (as did I and others), concavity (wheel "disc" measurement) of the spoke arrangement, overall backspacing, barrel size and design need to be considered.

Key: One of the sticking points (no pun) is the length of the Akebono caliper; the ends are the points that will more likely interfere with the improperly sized wheel due to barrel design and LESS prone to interference problems with the spokes.

Example: One day I had the wheels off of my Z34 Nismo to do some P.M. and cleaning. Nismo 350 V3 wheel happened to be laying nearby so I tried it on just for kicks. Did NOT clear. Inners of the spoke area no problem but the barrel interfered with the ends of the Akebono calipers.

Now, that was on my 370 so cannot say definitively if this will be a problem on the 350 but since it was barrel interference, I'm going to give it a 90% probability of same problem on the 350 unless the hub allows the rotor to sit further inboard and the ends of the calipers are placed closer to the inboard barrel which is a tad wider.

But again, since I don't actually have these, this is all just theory - but at least based on research.

Hopefully, some members with the Akebonos can share their wheel set ups.

JMII

Those are 18"s right? If so that makes sense. The Akebonos are very tight to the barrels on 18"s because as mentioned then ends are kind of pointy, plus there is a bulge on one end near the middle of the caliper. Basically the Akebonos are HUGE.

They are so tight on my factory 18" Touring V1 ('03) and V2 ('06) rims that even wheel weights for balancing can interfere unless they are placed at the very edges of the barrels. If you running 19"s I would think you would be fine from a barrel stand point... but double check to be sure.

MicVelo

Yep, 18" Fronts - same exact spec as the GT wheels.

By the way, OP, here's the thread that I was referencing that mentions all the factory wheels that DO and DO NOT fit with Akebonos.

https://my350z.com/forum/brakes-and-...ng-wheels.html

JMII talked about the fit in this thread and is the thread that made me even try my Z33 Nismo V3 wheel on the 370 for the halibut. It confirmed what the thread was saying about the GT/Nismo wheels. (No joy.)

So, as has been said throughout.... not every "same AESTHETIC design wheel" (say, real TE37 vs Varrdawg ES222s) even with same diameter/width specs fits, necessarily.

mcubed45

All good info there. But I don't see any wheels (oem or otherwise) listed in that thread that DO fit on a 370Z Sport but DO NOT fit on a 350z+akebono (with appropriate offset/spacers).

It's also worth noting that CZP actually uses the exact same template to check wheel clearance for 370z and 350z applications:

https://conceptzperformance.com/item...ntTemplate.pdf

I realize nothing is gonna guarantee fitment as good as using the CZP template yourself, but knowing what wheels are already compatible with the 370z Sport gives you a lot more info to go on versus trying to find someone with a 350z AND akebonos AND the exact wheel you're interested in.

MicVelo

All true. FWIW, 370 OEM (sorta) wheels, Sport, Nismo, Nismo S-Tune (LMZ5) all fit. They're all 19s. (Even more front spoke room with the 20mm+ spacers you need to run 'em.) Never tried my Volk SFWs on the 370, hmmm....

OK, all you Akebono-on-Z33 people, help a brother out and post up your wheels! (Good reference for future brake upgraders too!)

mcubed45

Good to know

I ended up getting these wheels (verde parallax 19x8.5 +15, 19x9.5 +20):

https://my350z.com/forum/wheels-and-...l#post10759936

They're listed as compatible for 370z Sport on a couple vendor sites (even with the lower 350z offsets). Wheels came in yesterday. The CZP templates clear the rear, but the front has some interference with the valve stem. I just hafta switch to flush valve stems at some point before I get Akebonos. The spokes and barrels have plenty of clearance. I had read that the stem placement caused some problems on some OEM applications as well so I wanted tire rack to use flush stems when they mounted/balanced to be safe, but they don't carry any

MicVelo

Congrats on the new shoes.

Flush mount valve stems? That's a new one on me. From the pic, it looks like the stems are recessed away from the face of the wheel. Interesting.

Had a set of Volks (I think.... so many diff wheels, I don't remember which ones specifically) that had a recessed stem towards the centerline of the wheel and required use of Volk specific valve stems that have a 90-deg bend to them. I tried those screw-on 90-deg extenders that didn't work too well because of the flex on the rubber stem but maybe a set of the actual Volk stems (solid metal) would work.

In any event, very cool!

mcubed45

Thanks!

Basically the stem is removable and you just screw it in when you're adding air or checking pressure. Just sucks that I'll have to pull the tires off to install them.