But more importantly than the wheel problem, the age of the tire was the biggest red flag. These Toyo Proxes 4 tires were manufactured back in 2004! That makes them 18 years old and well past the general rule of thumb of replacing tires every 8-10 years. For performance tires, it’s preferable to replace them every 5-6 years at the latest.
When it comes to buying older sports cars, it’s really important to look at the age of the tire and replace them if they’re aged-out, even if the tire (or car) has very low mileage. Our Project Viper GTS was not the legendary terrifying monster that it’s made out to be, after we installed modern Michelin Pilot Super Sports on it. However, it was a death trap on its original low-mile tires.
At FSE-Irvine, an exotic car high-end collision repair and performance shop in Irvine, California. We were ready to replace the stock wheels and old tires on the RX-7.
Titan 7 are pioneering the “FORGED FOR ALL” movement and are motivated to provide higher tech, wheels to the entire industry. While they are a relatively new player in the forged wheel world, they were founded by people with over 40 years of experience in the wheel industry supporting motorsports, OEMs, and aftermarket enthusiasts alike. Their mission is to provide premium forged wheels to the masses at a very aggressive price point.
They are able to design and build forged wheels at the same or higher specifications than traditional forged wheel companies at a more affordable price by cutting out many layers of middlemen and doing everything in-house. Their factory has an A-Z process under one roof: from design, tooling, forging, machining, heat treating, finishing, testing, and shipping/logistics is handled by them. This streamlined process is how they can offer this level of quality and engineering at a price point well below their competitors.
The 6-spoke T-D6 wheel features a full-face design for its excellent balance of strength and rigidity. The Techna Bronze color will contrast nicely with the black of the RX-7.
Taking the super-strong “I-Beam” spoke design to the next level, they connected the machining work from the hub, spoke, and rim. They highlighted this feature in their “Launch Edition versions” by leaving it exposed in raw aluminum for a nice design contrast. This is a first for any wheel manufacturer. All Titan 7 wheels are created with 10,000 tons of industry-leading forging force.
9 comments
Great article. I can’t wait for the track test. I am also looking at some Titan 7 made wheels for my 08 Miata. Evasive Motorsports has a custom line made for them by Titan. 17×10 +47 EVS Tuning 52R, which should need just a 3-5mm spacer to fit the NC properly. They are meant for S2000’s, but luckily that offset is very close to what the NC’s need, too.
Where are the Titan’s made?
Minor correction: the reinforced wheel is on the left, unreinforced on the right.
Valve stems are placed where they are most aesthetic on modern aluminum wheels, not on the heavy spot of the wheel. It’s nice to be consistent about aligning the dot on the tire with the valve stem but it really means nothing.
That’s all well and good but the author didn’t even mention the dot.
I think he was just saying that on pro race cars, they make a mark on the tire at the valve stem to keep an eye on slip.
Correct, it’s easy to make a small line with a paint pen to mark the valve stem position to monitor tire slippage on the wheel.
Why didn’t you use 265/35 tires? That would be much closer to stock diameter and would not be stretched over the 9.5″ wheel. Were you concerned about rubbing on the front fender? With a +51 offset, I would think a 265 would have plenty of clearance.
The Titan 7 T-D6 wheel is only available for the S2000/FD RX-7 (which have the same fitment) in 17×9.5 5×114.3 +51 square. This fitment makes the 255/40-17 an ideal tire for that wheel due to its 25.0″ OD, which is right in between the stock FD’s 24.9″ 225/50-16 front tire and 25.3″ 235/45-17 rear tire. I am assuming you are referring to a 265/35-18 tire size with it’s 25.3″ OD that matches the stock FD’s rear tire. For an 18″ wheel, the Titan 7 T-R10 18×10.5 5×114.3 +51 would be more preferable with a 285/30-18 tire.
Thanks for the reply. Yes I was referring to an 18″ wheel. You are correct, a 255/40-17 is closer to stock diameter than a 265/35-17.
I don’t love the T-R10 style as much, and 10.5″ even at +51 would need some camber, stretch or fender work to fit the front.
If I go to Titan 7’s site, they don’t let you view the wheels by size, only by fitment. It seems like there would be other fitments you could use with a stagger, but their site makes that very difficult to find.