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Nice wheels but...as a marketing guy, what I'm hearing is the general feedback that HRE, while impressive and admirable for it's quality, is pricing themselves out of their target market - at least for their forged rims.
Nice wheels but...as a marketing guy, what I'm hearing is the general feedback that HRE, while impressive and admirable for it's quality, is pricing themselves out of their target market - at least for their forged rims.
Ahh, not necessarily. Each of our wheel series' target a specific demographic. We believe the Series P1, our flagship series, is priced accordingly, considering the market for those certain type of wheels, including OEM forged products.
In contrast, our Classic Series targets a different group, while still being relevant to higher-end manufacturers, such as Porsche.
In a nutshell, we have something for everyone - and if we don't, and if the demand is there, we'll have it soon
Nice wheels but...as a marketing guy, what I'm hearing is the general feedback that HRE, while impressive and admirable for it's quality, is pricing themselves out of their target market - at least for their forged rims.
You could say the same thing about the 911
Not really nice to criticize sponsors pricing. They're a successful company, and know their business model better than all of us.
My resurrection of this thread was not meant to bash HRE pricing for the P101. Just wanted to understand the pricing and possibly what other options for quality wheels. HRE is doing something right. They are displayed everywhere. Clearly the "value" is there for many buyers. I just have to decide if I am one of them.
They are more expensive than OE and trying to understand why. Do they test more than Porsche? Better materials? That was my question.
How much did you pay for your Rolex? Lots more metal in four wheels than in a Submariner! Is a set worth $10k? Is a car worth $ 100k? Ask a Camry owner if he would pay that much for a car and watch the reaction.....
I'm on my second set of HRE wheels and to me they are worth it's much as a Porsche is worth what it costs.
Now one thing you might want to do is call Wheel Enhancement in California. They do a lot of HRE's and once in a while they have a set on deal. It may not be the specific style you want or color, but then they might be $6k for the set instead of $ 10k.
I appreciate the point behind your post, and yes I have a watch or 2 that I spent $$ on. Furthermore, I spent a lot on my TT. But just because I can, doesn't mean I should spend 10K on wheels. I have no doubt that HRE are awesome wheels and clearly many others have voted this way with their wallet. However, for me, I don't value wheels as I do other things and usually stick with OE.....
Appreciate the suggestion on Wheel Enhancement..... I'll pay the freight if and when I find what I like and has the value I am looking for... quite possibly they will be HRE or Forgeline or Race Tech or stick with my OE CL's.... so many choices.
I have the P101's and they are 100% perfect for what I personally was looking for. Is that the case with everyone? No. Do I think there are a few select other worthy competitors? Sure. I'd even put a few on my car. I'm the kind of guy that gets something in his head and rarely wants compromises in aesthetics and quality. In this case, my choice checked all my boxes.
I've make some mistakes with previous car purchases that cost me a lot of $$$. Buying a car or parts that you don't hold onto long can be costly. I've learned making the wrong choice is more costly than doing it right the first time. That's why with the mods I've done, etc. I've stuck with OEM or the best players in the business, not the cheaper "look alike" alternatives. Look at my TiKore Titanium lug bolts. Cheap? No. Did I think they were an important piece in my build? Absolutely. They were my Rolex of lugs.
For what it's worth ....
Custom ball seats for front/rear so they don't stick out too much in the front wheel with its shallower design. All in the details.
The 101's are sharp STG! Those are the HRE's I really wanted (confession) but I was swayed by a closeout deal from Wheel Enhancement on a set of P40SC's which were 60% of the price of the 101's. So the cash saved on the wheels paid for my Tubi Exhaust. I too, have Titanium lugs but the TORX model from a forum member that were of course, less costly.
As for Porsche OEM wheels vs HRE they are made entirely different. A factory wheel is cast, basically molten metal poured into a pressure mold. An HRE is forged and machined out of a solid piece of aluminum billet. Its much more costly to produce it with the HRE method (and there are other brands that do this as well). End result is metal sculpture - and its stronger, more chiseled, lighter and has near perfect runout in the wheel itself. But mostly you buy them for the art of the wheel, same as a swiss watch. Your OEM cast wheels are like a Seiko watch. Solid, reliable, dependable, but they are not the art of a Rolex. Both tell time, one just does it with panache.
HRE's on my Porsche (P40SC in Brushed Finish)
And HRE P40's in Natural on my Aston Martin (first set I have owned)
Ahh, not necessarily. Each of our wheel series' target a specific demographic. We believe the Series P1, our flagship series, is priced accordingly, considering the market for those certain type of wheels, including OEM forged products.
In contrast, our Classic Series targets a different group, while still being relevant to higher-end manufacturers, such as Porsche.
In a nutshell, we have something for everyone - and if we don't, and if the demand is there, we'll have it soon
how about a 991 series 20 inch rear FF01 " wide body " fitment that is not 17mm more aggresive ( 35 vs 52 mm) ...but more like 42 mm...esp since front offset of FF01s is same as stock ...yes , less concaved looking , but a better front/ rear handling balance ( since PSM,PASM,PTV Plus etc are so finely optimized with each other these days to traction factors including the precise track width of the front and rear tire contact patches and may not have algorithms to adjust to where one axle is now effectively 34 mm total wider) and some can still throw on a 7 mm spacer in back if they wanna push it out max to " 35 mm" on cars and usage intended more for Cars and Coffee etc...just an idea...but I bet you'd sell a lot more of the WB front/ rears combo . You can always add metal ( spacer ) ..but you cant shave it away , on off -the- shelf price level models ! Best of both worlds, imo.
how about a 991 series 20 inch rear FF01 " wide body " fitment that is not 17mm more aggresive ( 35 vs 52 mm) ...but more like 42 mm...esp since front offset of FF01s is same as stock ...yes , less concaved looking , but a better front/ rear handling balance ( since PSM,PASM,PTV Plus etc are so finely optimized with each other these days to traction factors including the precise track width of the front and rear tire contact patches and may not have algorithms to adjust to where one axle is now effectively 34 mm total wider) and some can still throw on a 7 mm spacer in back if they wanna push it out max to " 35 mm" on cars and usage intended more for Cars and Coffee etc...just an idea...but I bet you'd sell a lot more of the WB front/ rears combo . You can always add metal ( spacer ) ..but you cant shave it away , on off -the- shelf price level models ! Best of both worlds, imo.
We try to avoid spacers as much as we can, we prefer plug and play type fitments for the most part. It's not that I personally feel spacers are bad, I just believe that bringing a wheel set that's pure plug and play rather than one that feels like it was an afterthought for another model and having to use spacers to make it work isn't the ideal we want to achieve. Given enough demand for the fitment that you're looking for though, we can look into the possibility of adding it, but the demand has to be there.
My $.02, one thing I've noticed about forged machined wheels when comparing them is the number of machining passes to remove sharp edges. Lesser wheels often times have knife edged spokes or only one pass to chamfer a spoke. If you only see smooth looking spokes like it was cast? That costs money via additional machine time not even counting complex shaped spokes to begin with. That also removes unnecessary material for lightness but doesn't usually remove strength and I've changed enough wheels to know I'd rather it was smooth where I was holding it.
In addition, think of the sharpness of the bits, some will replace as often as needed for chatter free cutting while some may use that bit longer before replacing. Minor point but it's a cost factor and could affect the fit and finish.
Think on whether a company is using CFD software to test wheel designs or if they just copy a similar design and figure, it'll work as well as the original.
These are just some of the things I think of when trying to price wheels.
All of that stuff costs and its up to you to decide where you are willing to compromise to achieve your aim. If the wheels are just for looks or certain features? Then whether they are supremely strong or light is something you should only pay for if you want that and can find one you like. Often times the trend is for popular wheel designs to copy Motorsports and some are happy with the copy while others want all the functionality of actual Motorsport designed wheel parameters.
Anyway, HRE wheels look worth the pennies they cost to me, that is, if I had the pennies to spend!
Last comment, tires and wheels are the only thing touching the ground for our cars, I personally never want to decrease quality/ability compared to OE such as add more weight per corner or decrease grip, etc. always increase ability!
my P101s for my 16 GTS are in and mounted!!! Satin black goodness!!!
unfortunately, its december in Chicago, so I get to look at them leaning against a wall in my car warehouse until March....
HRE are THE best. PERIOD. Ive bought hundreds of these wheels, and used them in pro racing for many years. SO SO SO Strong, and I've tested them like no other. are the expensive... thats REALLY relative to how much you value your safety. the overwhelming majority of after market wheels are a SERIOUS downgrade from stock. These are an upgrade.
12-16-2015, 12:11 AM
