I just went through a big eval regarding wheels for my tiger. I tried to
cover all options, including panasports, minilites, and superlites. The
bottom line is that I bought Minilites from England for about $720 including
shipping to California. I'm very happy with the result. They are a very
pretty wheel.
There are a lot of personal factors to consider when buying new wheels. You
probably want a wheel with a period appearance, but also have to consider
the backspace and wheel size. Some folks stick with 13" wheels, which I
feel are too small for the car. Some folks like the modern look (thin tire)
and go with the 15" or even larger. I decided to go with a 14" wheel. As
for backspace, I wanted maximum backspace on the front so that the wheel
didn't protrude from the fender, and minimum backspace on the rear to try to
make the track as even as possible. In addition, I wanted maximum backspace
on the front wheels to make the car easier to steer (that ackerman problem).
This is the result of my evaluation (all 14"):
1) Panasports: Front (14x6), Rear (14x7). Cost from Dale: $760 including
tax, shipping, caps, lugs and steel inserts). This is a tried and true
solution, but you only have a 4.4" backspace on the front, so the front
tires will protrude slightly from the fender. Also, I personally don't like
the look of the wide rear tires. Don't flame me for this, it's just a
personal opinion.
2) Minilites: 14x6 wheel. Total cost was $720 including everything. Total
time from order to receipt was 6 weeks. I got the sport wheel; the alloy
wheel is not available in 14". There are a variety of different backspaces.
My front wheels have a 115 mm backspace, and the rear a 105 mm backspace.
Check them out at http://www.minilite.co.uk
3) Superlites: 14x6 wheel. Total cost is $630 including shipping, not sure
if caps, lugs, and steel inserts are included. The Superlites have a nice
selection of backspace options, but if you compare the wheel to the
minilite, you will notice that the Superlite has a very simple, almost
primitive appearance. My personal opinion is that the minilite is a more
attractive wheel.
I'm happy to report that the wheels look good on the car and the car handles
very well. Only glitch was with the tires. I got a very large tire size
(195/65) (Dunlops, of course) so I had to bend a little metal to prevent
rubbing. This problem wouldn't exist with the 195/60 size.
Another thing - if money is a factor, you can consider the Porsche 924
wheels. They will fit for sure (4 3/8" backspace).
Hope this helps,
Randy
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-tigers@autox.team.net [mailto:owner-tigers@autox.team.net]On
Behalf Of Terry Morton
Sent: Friday, April 25, 2003 4:51 AM
To: tigers@autox.team.net
Subject: panasports vs. minilites
Fellow listers,
What is the opinion of the list concerning the differences, advantages, etc.
of Panasports vs. Minilite 8 spoke aluminum wheels (for street use)? The
best sources for either?
Thanks for your insight,
Terry Morton.
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