Monday 11th February 2013

PH Blog: deep dish

Coolest wheels on a racing car ever? Dan's got his vote in - what's yours?

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I know I've blogged about wheels before but, well, I feel I'm in safe company here.

Deep dish wins every time, especially on IMSA

Anyway, I was browsing some Youtube footage of the old IMSA Audi Quattro over the weekend and wondering if the BBS disc wheels on that absolute monster are the most awesome set of hoops ever slung on a car? Racing cars always have cool wheels of course and many of us sad cases out in the real world like to try and emulate them. Sometimes to great effect, sometimes not. Checked your centre-locks lately?

As wide as they are tall, those wheels on the IMSA Quattro are as key to its incredible looks as the bonkers arch flares and drainpipe exhaust exiting from the front wing. And just a beautiful piece of engineering, the deep dish, delicate, turbo-like cooling vanes around the rim and sheer outrageous width just appealing to my inner child. Indeed, I'm sure I remember similar wheels on the old Schumacher Cats that used to rule at R/C car club. Not that Audi would ever consider putting anything like that on its road cars though. Not conservative old Audi.

Nice little nod to rallying heritage on A1 Quattro

Oh hang on, they have! Yes, I am enough of a tart that I the main reason I love the look of the A1 Quattro is because of its OZ rally mag-style wheels. Don't care about the Haldex. Not bothered by the price. Obviously the car itself is pretty bonkers really but the fact they've deliberately contrived a wheel that looks to the untrained eye like a plastic hubcap over steelie but is, to Audi geeks, reminiscent of the competition wheels used by motorsport Quattros both road and rally is just cool. Love it.

Audi's an easy brand to mock - we've been known to - but, dammit, they know how to nail the details and how crucial the right wheel is for giving a car the necessary visual signature. The Porsche wheels (plus brakes and mirrors) were the original RS2's little nod of recognition to the geeks like us it was intended for, those chunky five-spokes on the RS6 just looked so right (especially on the Plus) and those brutal grey rims on the RS3 have great visual clout. We'll pass on the 'it's been a heavy night' red-rimmed versions though.

Deep dish look doesn't look bad on 911s either

It's not just an Audi thing of course. Plenty of wheel designs from Minilites to BBS cross-spokes to Fuchs and beyond have made the leap from race to road. But which racing car had the coolest wheels ever? You've heard my vote. Let's have yours.

Dan

[TOM500]

The original white OZ wheels are ace. I first saw them on my neighbour, Jenny Birrels, Red Lancia Delta HF Integrale. Looked awesome back in 1990, still look good now. I wonder where that car went?

[DanielSan]

Sauber C30. Love the wheels on this car!!

[Wammer]

Im a big fan of Deep dish wheels as i changed the alloy wheels on my car to deep dish steelies.

I think my favorites would have to be Fuchs Porsche wheel from the eighties.

[993RSGT3]

these are pretty cool

http://files.conceptcarz.com/img/Porsche/79_Porsch...

[Crusoe]

BBS 3 piece magnesium wheels? Fitted to plenty of Porsche and BMW racers

Edited by Crusoe on Monday 11th February 12:57

[New Scot]

Top three: Lotus 11(?) yellow "wobbly web", Borrani chrome rims (50's Ferraris), D type's centre-lock Dunlop alloys...

[iaincb1]

Love deep dish wheels.
Love Fuchs wheels.
Never seen those disc BBS and they don't do anything for me but I don't necessarily dislike them.
And I love the A1 Quattro, it looks great. Great choice in wheels which make the car, but then I do have white Compomotives on my Fiesta

[mat205125]

Integrale wheels with the additional cooling turbines / extensions

[jaik]

It has to be these. So many memories of racing my Scalextric version in this Texaco livery as a kid; it was always a bit faster and looser than the Shell one.

[DanielSan]

jaik said:

It has to be these. So many memories of racing my Scalextric version in this this Texaco livery; it was always a bit faster and looser than the Shell one.

I'm almost certain I've still got those cars. Need to dig them out and let them loose on my new Scalextric set

[g3org3y]

Deep dish BBS cross spokes (as per CSLs and 320i turbos). Accept no substitutes.

[anniesdad]

[GentlePersuasion]

[/Thread]

[Evo]

mat205125 said:

Integrale wheels with the additional cooling turbines / extensions

Well that just saved me posting a picture,

I'll second his

[405dogvan]

Funny someone should post the turbines - I hate them with a vengeance, they look like wheel trims and are as far from 'deep dish' as you can get!?

I quite like the throwing-stars which replaced them but neither is anywhere near the nicest alloy ever used

Deep dish seems to be dying-out for OEM fitting too - I guess it's down to packaging/safety etc??

Personal fave? The deep-dish minilite style which is so popular on AE86s and the like - that guy in the Singer video said that alloys make any car and he's not wrong

[vtecblack]

GentlePersuasion said:

[/Thread]

my immediate choice too, look good with/without the centre discs

[TOM500]

Evo said:

Well that just saved me posting a picture,

I'll second his

And that also corrects my post. It's the extra cooling extension that sets them apart

[Lordbenny]

How long before someone posts a pic of a Ronal Teddy Bear?

In the mean time......

[vtecblack]

ok chaps, where shall we start?

http://www.speedhunters.com/2008/09/the_101_gt_gt_...

http://cdn.speedhunters.com/wp-content/uploads/200...

[mk1chopper]

Always liked OZ super T as fitted to touring cars, the turbine alloys fitted to ph1 renault 19 16v and clio 16v too. Borbet A alloys on mk2 golfs and corrados look cool. I also loved the mim 1900 i fitted to my mk1 golf.