AlgaeHater

Looky what the nice UPS man dropped off today! I wonder what could be inside...



I gave a lot of thought to what street wheels (mainly for appearance, not track use) I would buy for my C2S. I wanted to stay with 18" because I think 19" wheels look odd on non-turbo (ie, sans-spoiler) 993s. 19" look better on the chunkier 996s. Plus, I could save some $$$ by using my factory S02s.

Here was the short list:

(By the way, if you own the following wheels, please don't be insulted. These are just my $0.02!)

1. Factory Technology wheels painted gloss black. Pros: Cheap! Looks racy. Fairly light. Cons: Looks cheap! (to some). No lip
(IMO, white cars look really nice rolling with a polished lip.)

2. BBS LM. Pros: My favorite wheels - had them on my last car. Looks like they came off a race car. Forged rim and center. Cons: No 40mm offset for us big butts! (I didn't want to use spacers.) Also, not the lightest forged wheels you can buy.

4. BBS Motorsport: Pros: These DID come off a race car. Awesome looking wheels that looks like nothing else on the street. That's because they were meant for the track! Hondas with their 17" Enkeis will go running for cover! Red BBS stickers on rim add just the right amount of rice to my
p-car Cons: Rough finish is not well suited for the street (very
difficult to clean. Big $$$!

3. BBS RS-GT. Pro: Nice looking wheel. Forged center and rims. Cons: Sorry, these look too similar to stock BBS wheels found
on many BMWs. Not the lightest forged wheels you can buy.

3. Kinesis K58. Pro: Awesome light track wheel. Cons: Not too thrilled with dull grey finish for the street.
<HIGHLY SUBJECTIVE OPINION>I saw these on a 993 and they just didn't look "right." If you didn't know they were Kinesis, you
wouldn't know how much $$$ they cost</HIGHLY SUBJECTIVE OPINION>

5. Fikse FM10 Profil. Pro: Awesome light track wheel. Fairly high on the bling, bling factor. Cons: I went to a local dealer and saw an FM-10 with stress cracks and failing bolts (albeit, this was an older, Classic FM-10). If I'm spending $1K+ per rim, I don't want to see that! Also, they're hard
to clean. Many non-car enthusiasts thought they looked too busy. Shame on them!

6. Various HREs. Pro: Bulletproof construction. Mucho bling, bling! Mouth watering looks! Cons: Eye-watering price. The style I wanted would've taken 3-4 weeks to build. Plus, I think 19" HREs look best on 996 Porsches.

7. Kinesis Supercups. Pro: These just look right on a 993. Same wheel that the factory used on GT2 and 993RS cars. I believe in selecting the right "aged" wheel to the car. That's why I'm not a fan of fitting 996 rims on 993 cars since they are the wrong "age." Cons: Only rims are forged - centers are cast. Not so light (then again, not so heavy either at 22 (fr.) & 25 (rr.) lbs).

After scouring Rennlist for pics, I decided to go with the Supercups!



While many people comment on the smallish centers, I love the
meaty look of the rims that result from the small centers. My only regret is not going for an 11" rim with a fatter lip.

Group shot:


The backside. Bolts are cool...


Car being jacked..


Back in my garage (sorry for the poor pics, it was dark):



A glimse at the 2" lip:


front shot:


On a side note, I want to thank Dave over at Wheel Enhancement. Great service!

Sputnik

Fantastic!

AlgaeHater

By the way, does anyone in the Seattle area with a C2/C4S/TT need a set of unmarked Technology rims? If so, they're yours for $1200.

Phil

algae,
Are your "techs" hollow or solid?

AlgaeHater

They're technology wheels - hollow spoke.

Phil

They came off a C2S?

AlgaeHater

Yes, mine

David in LA

Nice new shoes!

FYI you can get Kinesis wheels with any finish/color/offset you want if you deal directly with Kinesis....K58Rs with a black center are my personal favorites and hopefully will be the next set I get.

Damian in NJ

Very nice.

Mike W

Good luck the wheels are beautiful. I had Fikse FM5's on my C2 for 4 years - never had a problem,they are light, easy to clean and in my opinion look great. Mike W

993Widebody

Those are my favorite wheels as well for the 993. Congrats - they look great.

Did you list the sizes/offset you got? I didn't see it in your post. Please let us know.

Martin S.

First of all, these wheels look great on a 993 narrow body car. Your pics are fantastic. I also like the factory offered Speedlines...they have spun aluminum outers and inners and a cast center. The down side, they are heavy and the centers are not forged. If I am going to spend over $3,000 on a set of wheels, forged centers would be my preference. A forged center may crack, but it probably will never break.

Your assessment of the various wheels for the 993 is an interesting read. It is point 7. I take exception to:

Algae Hater writes, "7. Kinesis Supercups. Pro: These just look right on a 993. Same wheel that the factory used on GT2 and 993RS cars. I believe in selecting the right "aged" wheel to the car. That's why I'm not a fan of fitting 996 rims on 993 cars since they are the wrong "age." Cons: Only rims are forged - centers are cast. Not so light (then again, not so heavy either at 22 (fr.) & 25 (rr.) lbs)."

Two points that may not be wholly accurate in Algae Haters post:

1. "Same wheel that the factory used on GT2 and 993RS cars." If you wrote same style wheel, you would be on the mark. I don't believe that the Porsche factory installed Kinesis wheels on any of their cars. They installed Speedlines (Made in Italy). The GT2 wheels are center lock with no holes drilled for wheel studs. The 993RS and 993RS CS used Speedlines with holes drilled for wheel studs.

2. "Only rims are forged" This is not correct. The inners and outers (rims) are spun aluminum just like the Speedlines. They are not forged. This point was made very clear to me at at PCA Technical Session presented by Peter Stacy, President of Kinesis Wheels.

My intent is not to "rain on your Parade" with this bit of errata. I am simply posting the facts as I know them. I may be completely wrong here.

Greg D.

Love your wheels.. 2 questions, in not too private..
a) how much did they cost you ?
b) is the lip always this shiny (chromed) or can you have the enite wheel the same color as the center (grey) ?

Oh, why am I asking, I doubt I can afford them right now anyway !

Martin S.

You can contact Kinesis directly. If you are a member of PCA, you may get a discount. I forget the exact percentage. As I recall, a set of these wheels is about $3,500...Algae Hater will know!

David '96 993

Algae,
Very nice taste in wheels and congrats, although I am a bit biased with Speedlines on my narrowbody 993. I do get alot of positive comments, particularly from the P-Car crowd (both 993 and non-993 folks).

I can attest to Martins comments about weight as when I change my wheels to my hollowspokes for track days, they are noticably heavier (I have not put them on a scale, but my lower lumbar can confirm).

I am a believer in a "factory look". Just my opinion, as I am into Porsche history.