I was going to wait a few months for wheels, but
Wheeldude in Fremont, CA
had too good of a price to pass up. Luckily I am local so I was able to visit the shop to
see the color and finish for myself since this was definitely important to me.
I spoke directly with Tommy Duong who is a member of their sales team.
He was very helpful and patient. I had many questions to ask and concerns to
put to rest. Being well versed in the details of wheel fitment, he addressed all of my inquiries.
I even asked to cut open the boxes to inspect the finish and color.
Tommy and one of the shop hands brought them out right away and
allowed me to pull them out of the boxes to see the wheels in the light.
I was delighted to see that the 8.5" width Rotas had a bit of a concave
face which is something I certainly appreciate. As much as I am a function over form
kind of guy, I'm glad Rota made these with some shape to the face.
If I'm not mistaken, 8.5" TE37s simply have a flat face.
Regardless, I was certain that this was the wheel set that I'd be buying. One swipe of
the credit card later, the boxes were loaded up and I was on my way. It was nice to
spend the rest of the day at work playing with the lugs and hub-centric rings.
Working with Wheeldude was simple and straightforward. I appreciate that they
were able to give me an additional 10% discount for their July Sale that I just barely missed.
The bronze looks great with the (now discontinued) Galaxy Blue Silica.
TL;DR:
Rota Grid Sport Bronze 18/8.5/e44
Weight: 21lbs
Rice Rating: 4/10
Customer Service: 9/10
Vendor Responsiveness: 9/10
Pricing for Value: 10/10
I would buy from Wheeldude again and I would suggest others do so as well.
I'm hoping to get these up and mounted in a few days with Hankook Ventus V12 (235/40/18)
Party hard!
EDIT:
Wheels and tires mounted. The front offset is spot on. It will likely be more aggressive when I drop an inch around xmas time. I need to stop dumping cash into this thing for a bit.
I'll try to get some shots in the sun.
