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How do you guys feel about factory reproduction wheels ? I'm looking to put a set of Z06 style on my Stingray because I haven't found another rim that I like any better.
However, I do not want to put something cheap on the car that's not worthy. I had a set of them on my previous C5 for a short time and had no issues but I'm still skeptical.
Thanks
Given some of the problems with OEM wheels, staying OEM may not be the best option. If you buy from a reputable dealer you should be good. There are some forum dealers who can help you who are reputable. I elected to stay with OEM Z51 wheels.
waited for a 15% off coupon $100 max, and got them for $790. Remember these are not as wide for the Stingray as they are on the Z06, GS, so you aren't hearing about the bent rims on the stingray as much.
Made in China of course. The packing was a little better than the packing on the $3,740 dealer-installed vette wheels that you can order on the build a vette website! These boxes were thick cardboard, plenty of cardboard corner pieces to keep the packing box solid and square, foam sheets on the top and bottom in the boxes, clear plastic bag over the entire wheel, "hairnet" foam surround around the outside rim, cardboard flat sheets top and bottom too. Arrived perfectly packed and no scratches on the black rims anywhere. included gloss black hubcaps and from other ebay stores you can get metal hubcap covers in whatever design you want that fit perfectly on the black hubcaps and the stickon glue holds them securely. just got a set of vette tpms off amazon 4 for $59.99 C7 Corvette 2014-2019 433 MHz Sensors 13598775 (for my new alternate Z06 wheels), so they are cheaper than a year ago. mounted A/S 3+ tires, wheels balanced without alot of weights, and had 3300 trouble free miles until the Z06 itch had to be scratched in May. my selling dealer on ebay gave a no-hassle return as long as you didn't try to mount them, eg got them out of the box and decided you didn't like them.
Took them off for the trade-in, still looked perfect and the dealer was happy to get the z51 with the original wheels/tires put back on looking nearly new too.
Last edited by SilverGhost; 06-16-2019 at 11:06 PM.
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My last C5 had a set of Factory Repoduction chrome C5 Z06 wheels on it since it was new and I have to say the wheels were excellent. Even after nearly 16 years of being on the car, the chrome was in excellent shape and I never had any problems with the wheels balancing out right. I would recommend them. I am looking at a set of their wheels in the C7 ZR1 style now.
I cannot speak to C7 replica wheels directly. However, I have had friends with other replicas and the most striking thing about the ones I had a chance to look at before they were mounted is that they were gawd-awful heavy. Hence, I would want to know how much replicas weigh compared to OEM. You don't want "boat anchors" on the corners of a anything, much less a sports car.
I just bought one for my Z06 last week. I ordered it from Keith at Florida Speed Shop Mon. and I got it Thursday. $368.00 total cost delivered to my door. It looks exactly like the stock chrome Z06 rims I ordered with the car except the Z06 is not cast in the wheel. Same wheel will cost you over
$800.00 from GM and they are out of them.
Last edited by robertbruce; 06-17-2019 at 06:45 PM.
I put a set of their ZO6 style wheels on my Z51 over a year ago. After 5000 miles they are fine. I would suggest you check them for lateral and radial runout before you mount tires on them. Three of mine were fine but one of the rear was pretty far out. I contacted my seller who gave me a direct line to Factory Reproductions and told me if I had any problems to call him back. There were no problems, they sent out a replacement (and a call tag for the old one) immediately. For those that will ask, I don't remember what Factory Reproductions said was acceptable for runout. I also did a search and found recommendations from several sites.
It is easy to check for runout if you have a dial indicator. Mount the wheels on one of your hubs, torque them down, and check both lateral and radial on the inside and outside of each. You probably should check your hub for runout before you start.
They were each a couple of pounds heavier than the stock Z51 wheels for those that care.
Ive put 10k miles on my black Z06 ( stingray size ) repop wheels and ZERO issues, they balance very well, the finish has held up better than my silver OEM wheels.
The design of the z06 style mixed with the more narrow width makes them a very sturdy wheel. iam not afraid of them and we have some pretty rough roads here.
I cannot speak to C7 replica wheels directly. However, I have had friends with other replicas and the most striking thing about the ones I had a chance to look at before they were mounted is that they were gawd-awful heavy. Hence, I would want to know how much replicas weigh compared to OEM. You don't want "boat anchors" on the corners of a anything, much less a sports car.
Unsprung weight is never a good thing, but if it's in the right place then maybe they won't bend like taffy.
I've had them on 2 C6 ZO6's and more recently a Z51 and never had any issues. I would order them again. Got them from Florida Speedshop. I believe they are a vendor here.
OP, I put over 15K miles on these before I traded for my GS. They still looked good as new (they had approx. 12K on them in this picture), and were true and straight as an arrow.
I bought them from Keith at Docz 1st Rate Corvette Parts (AKA Florida Speed Shop)
Last edited by Rebel Yell; 06-17-2019 at 03:02 PM.
Ironically, the only consistent and serious problem that I can recall in the ever recurring 'OEM vs replica' wheel debates over the last 20 years of this forum is the bending C7 OEM GS/Z06 wheels!
[QUOTE=robertbruce;1599595584]I just bought one for my Z06 last week. I ordered it from Keith at Florida Speed Shop Mon. and I got it Thursday. $368.00 total cost delivered to my door. It looks exactly like the stock chrome Z06 rims I ordered with the car except the Z06 is not cast in the wheel. Same wheel will cost you over
$800.00 from GM and they are out of them.[/QUOTE
I dont know if ZO6 wheels are the same as 2019 GS wheels...but I tried to obtain chrome GS wheels, and they were not available last week even though Chevy dealer showed in stock 4 wheels I needed in their Pontiac Michigan warehouse,
seems that they changed over their inventory tracking system and it crashed, or they found many issues when they tried to implement their new system...and they were basically in limbo.So I was told by 2 sources. I dont know if this still the case, but parts mgr told me they are still waiting for ordered parts from this site.
Got my Z06 Style wheels from Keith at FL Speed Shop and have had no problems in 15K miles. Very happy with finish, still look like new. As 65fastback said, OEM wheels made in China and Replica wheels made in China. The OEM GS wheels have had a serious problem with cracking. Give Keith a call.
06-16-2019, 10:15 PM
Replica wheels? Do you trust them?
