Tire Rack just frakked up.
 

New wheel coming in Feb that you guys might like. - MX-5 Miata Forum

Can't imagine how they came up with that particular fitment. I'll never spend another dime with them.

That's pretty shitty.

I don't get it?? Looks like the same fitment as the 6UL's?

//Edit - just read the thread and you're unhappy because you'll have more choice when choosing a trackday wheel? You're kidding right?

No, he's unhappy because tire rack just ganked all of Emilio's work with the fitment. 949 from what I can tell depends on 6UL sales and tire rack is piggybacking. Such is business, but so is Sav's expression of disappointment.

I doubt tirerack can produce a wheel with the quality of the 6ul. I will assume the majority of 15x9 6ul customers care more about quality (strong & lightweight) than about the price difference.

I can definitely appreciate everyone's, especially Emilio's disgust in this. I hope he makes his 17" wheel in 5x100 for my subaru ;)

yeah that is gay, but if and this is a big if they fail and there shit is heavy/weak. It will be a win for emelio becouse he will have the only proven marketed and tested solution. Time will tell but i hope that TR falls on there face with this one. And has to come beging emelio for the rights to sell his shit if they want a real wheel.

This never clicked with me until now... Does "TR" in TR Motorsports stand for "Tire Rack"? IE, is TR Motorsports a private label "store brand" manufacturer for Tire Rack?

I hope that every feaux 6UL fails. I don't see why anyone would remotely consider buying a wheel aside from the glorious 6UL.

If I ever need that size/offset emilio will for sure get my money. It's only fair for how he has helped the community.

why does everyone care, it's like being mad about chinese turbos

Capitalism is great until someone is on the bad side of it.

I don't care that tire rack is playing business, but I think it's good to let emilio know we stand behind his product.

Google says "YES", and shows that this is their modus operandi. They find a successful fitment, draw it up, and have it built by the manufacturer or foundry that gives teh best bid.

TR MOTORSPORTS
Goods and Services IC 012. US 019 021 023 031 035 044.
G & S: automotive wheels.
Serial Number 75215255
Filing Date December 18, 1996
Registration Number 2216681
Registration Date January 5, 1999
Owner (REGISTRANT) TIRE RACK, INC., THE CORPORATION INDIANA 7101 VORDEN PARKWAY SOUTH BEND INDIANA 466288422
Attorney of Record D. MICHAEL ANDERSON

Thanks for clearing that up for me.

this thread smells of club roadster.

many of us will keep buying 6ULs. some of us will buy the TR product. but now we have more choices, which is usually pretty good for the community.

one thing will never change though: I already bought the wheels from emilio.

split personality?

I don't know, I feel conflicted on this. On the one hand, clearly Emilio is taking a much bigger risk staking his business on track guys, whereas for Tire Rack it's just a small sideline to their business. It sucks that he works hard and does cool stuff just to have someone take the shortcut based on his research, time, and money that he's already invested.

On the other hand, it's not even a particular design -- it's just a fitment. Was the expectation that nobody else would ever try to make a 15x9 ET36 wheel for track use just out of respect? That's unrealistic at best. Would people feel better if the TR wheel was ET35 or ET37? (I know, I know, but just for the sake of argument.)

If I'm missing something here, please explain it to me. I completely understand that it sucks when someone else takes advantage of the hard work of the pioneer, but I don't see how you stop that -- this isn't a patented design or process, or trademarked logo, etc. From a quick Google search I just did, it looks like there's also a BBS RS wheel available in 15x9 ET36 4x100. If the fitment is the problem, then why wasn't the BBS wheel an issue before? If you answer because it's uncommon and expensive, then doesn't that change the complaint? Is the issue that Tire Rack is using the same fitment, or that they are using it to produce a cheaper and probably more easily available wheel (albeit significantly heavier and not as high quality)?

I don't think that people have a problem paying for Emilio's wheels, it's the availablity. When people decide they want something, they want to buy it now, not get on a list, pay in advance, wait a couple of months and then get them. That said, I did buy from Emilio and will do again.

The wheels I own currently on my miata were sold to me on it... how ever if I ever build a track miata. Emilio will get my money I believe in supporting the smaller guy who has contributed something to the community... As should many other people on here.

Something like Rharris's flares don't bug me in the slightest way, but it's just something about this that rubs me the wrong way. Now let me be perfectly honest, I'm not saying I won't order a set in the future. $480 a set is cheap. What does suck is that they are going to take sales from the one company thats really evolving the track miata. So lets just say next year Emilio sells 50 less sets of 6Ul's and lets say his profit was $90 a wheel not counting time/labor/etc. Thats about $18K less he can spend on product development next year. So lets say Emilio had planned to test out a bbk, under tray, diffuser, splitter, data aq, whatever, etc. Now he has to make that money up doing something else or aka less time making us trick parts for the track. I just find it odd that they are going after the 15x9, hell they won't even show the 15x8 under a miata you have to choose a bmw to get it to pull up.

Either way.. I can't run any 15x9 unless I put my stock brakes back on....which makes me sometimes wonder if I should....... dammit.

TireRack's "fitmet" options have always been fucking retarded. I mean, you can look at wheels on a Miata, and then go look at wheels for a Civic and get wheels that didn't show up before...oh wait, because offset is 2mm different. They need to get their shit straight on that. I'll go look through Civic, BMW, MINI, Elise and Cobalt wheels to see different offerings...and it sucks. Rudy from TireRack is also Asshat...I've PM'ed him several times with questions and openly asked stuff in the W/T forum and he never has replied.

TR obviously saw a market for it, and obvious wanted to compete. Whomever makes the best product will win

Let's just hope they aren't made in China at the price they are projecting them to be.

Where else would they make them then? Relatively light 15x9 for $120 is definetely coming from low end Asia. Only question is which country.

lol

oh, and in for ban. I think Tire Rack is pretty fucking gay for this bullshit. Its highly unlikely that 50% of the children and poor people will buy the cheaper alternative. I hope that wheel fails, unfortunately anyone who knows how to drive a car will be on 6ULs and we'll never know if the TRs are worth a shit.

lol

Easy now Hustler though I think its messed up, I'm also an advocate for fair competition. I have no doubt in my mind that the 15x9 TR will be the best bang for the buck but the 6UL will be the best wheel. Will you be competing in TMC with guys on TR's...yup? Will they 6UL be faster/easier to drive...yup? How much faster 1/10? It will now be a hard choice later in the year for used 15x9's 6UL's or new TR 9's. Lets just hope Emilio can still sell enough of his products to do all of the extra stuff he does for the Miata community.

I'm not really all that worried about it. However, I hope Emilio skull-fucks the tire rack.

I look forward to comparing my mega-awesome wheels to peasant trash. With any luck they'll catch some of my ching-dow when I make it rain for you bitches off the podium...now get up off the ground with your shame.

If Emilio makes the center caps an option, gives a package price for an order of the wheels/lugs/valves he might be able to drop a few bucks on the regular 6UL and keep the 6ULR as the higher priced ubber wheel. Maybe even give a racer discount if you have them in your sig or if your car gets a lot of exposure like the Miata Challange events. idk

I hear these new wheels will be round as well, it just keeps on getting better.

Good one :bowrofl:

Once upon a time, there were 205/50-15 tires and 225/50-15 tires. Then Hoosier made a 225/45-15 for Integra Type Rs in Grand-Am Cup. Then another tire company figured out that size made a lot of sense. Now we have lots of options in that size, and the world is a better place for all of us. There's even a reason to make 15x9-in. wheels more than one set at a time. Hoosier is still doing just fine, and thanks to their 275/35-15, somebody really should get on with an affordable 15x10 solution.

Emilio's wheel is nice, and if I thought it was the right answer for my build plans, I'd already have a set. I don't. (And I'd have a spare in case something happened to one and he was out of stock for six more months. I'm serious about this - wanna buy one SSR for a BMW?) The TR wheel might be the solution that lets me have the brakes and the wheel fit I want. Or it may still not clear the brakes, or it might be ugly, or too heavy.

What I'd really like to see is Enkei, Volk and SSR all come out with 15x9s covering a range of prices, weights, strengths and styles, with different amounts of brake clearance, just as the tire companies have done with 225/45-15s, and manage to market them successfully to more people than Emilio is reaching. That way, instead of Emilio living in 2008 for the rest of our lives, he has to keep making his wheels better and better to stay in front of the competition, maybe entering more markets and selling them to more cars, building his volume and being more successful. Our Miatas wouldn't all be clones of each other. Tire companies wouldn't think twice before releasing their latest models in 225/45-15.

Footnotes:
Dual valve stems weren't Emilio's idea. Enkei's been doing it for a long-ass time, and I'm sure they weren't the first. Even Tire Rack has been doing it on Kazera for awhile. It's not like nobody there ever uses a tire pressure gauge.

The BBS is ET minus36, probably a neat look on a really wide-fendered E21, but irrelevant to this thread.

Whoops, that's what I get for a quick Google search.

I have one spare nickel 15x8 still in the box, in my closet. I know if I'm involved in some sort of collision requiring 2 or more new wheels, I'm fucked.

i have a spare nickel 15x8 also. i'm sure you and I can work out a deal if one of us screws up more than one wheel ;)

Good info. :)

One million dollars :eviL:

I already do not like Tire Rack for two reasons:
- One, they do not carry Nitto for whatever reason, which is lame IMO considering the enthusiasts want the NT-01. They do carry Hoosier after all.
- Two, their prices are really not that stellar if you take the time to haggle hard with Discount Tire. Ignore DT's online prices. I can usually get DT within +/- 5% or so of TR even when shipping versus taxes, and mounting are considered.

I have had people steal my ideas and run with them and it sucks. Personally I go out of my way to give credit to my R&D coworkers when they come up with an idea that I use in something I am developing. Plus I ask them if I can use it before I run with it.

On the other hand, I am a bit of a hypocrite in that a lot of the tools in my garage are Chinese Harbor Freight items. Clearly China is one of the biggest examples of reverse-engineering something, copying it, and selling it cheaper, but at arguably lower quality. I buy their stuff, so in effect I am supporting this.

I am guessing either these TR wheels when compared to 6ULs will either be uglier and/or slightly heavier and/or not as robust, unless they are a blatant reverse-engineered knock-off.

I'm pretty sure it has to do with Toyo having told them GFY a lot of years ago, and basically maintaining that stance today. At least that's what both sides have told me.

Good luck with this. I tried, to no avail. You should start looking now if you really want them.

Anyone in for an over/under on how long it takes hustlefucker to get m.net banishment? Especially if he pokes another stick in the TR hive.

Details?

Yeah I figured it was something like that. I would like to hear details too, but I am only curious, as in effect I really do not care beyond the fact that it might be interesting.

See I hate the Tirerack. A long time ago I spent a lot of money on a set of BBS RCs and although the wheel indicated a +35 offset, the wheel stuck out too far and cut the tire immediately. Well, Tirerack told me to fuck myself so i had a $100 tire with a gash in it and a $350 wheel that I couldn't use or return because I mounted it. I never knew I needed to get a micrometer and a jig to measure each wheel

Tirerack is a company that actively seeks child rapists to staff their organization who also club Harp Seals and rape their corpses. I strongly recommend that you do not ship tires to your home from Tirerack because they will certainly violently rape your wives and children AND flip the toilet paper roll the wrong way. They will also use a portion of the money you send them to finance "female circumcision" campaigns in sub-Saharan Africa.

It's not that hard... I have two sets bought used in the last year.

:rofl:

Okay, you'll probably all go buy a couple extra sets of NT-01s, but here it is. Toyo reps have told me they believe they are better off supporting local distribution and local tire stores than allowing their product to be sold significantly based on price through The Tire Rack. Which didn't stop Edge Racing from getting access to the product and whoring it out online for several years until they made some bad decisions and put themselves out of business, so the whole thing is kinda pointless, IMO.

I'm mildly suprised they let him use the "Black Jesus" moniker over there!

They actually threw a shit fit over it. I then asked if it were a Christian website and engaged a respectful debate on the ethnicity of Jesus Christ. I'm not making this up.

e: nm

TIRE rack sells wheels? well fuck a goat sideways....

Couldn't a similar case be Rota VS all the wheels they've copied? People still buy the better wheels and people still break the rotas.

Fighting the tight asses with well reasoned yet controversial debate. Nicely done. :makeout:

Ethnicity? What about species? Jesus was a space alien. Ask any Scientologist.

Like many other others, I have mixed feelings about this. Personally, I will support Emilio.

What I do wonder, is how many people complaining about the tire rack rip-off, purchased the knock off frame rails that were originally designed and sold by FM.

Everyone with a brain knows Jesus was a Velociraptor.

I was touched by his noodly appendage.

or TougeRun knockoff GV front lips...

I'd buy from Emilio long before Tire Rack because I know his quality and Miata specific experience is first rate, but competition is a fact of life for businesses.

What will hurt him the most is the package deals that tirerack will be able to offer.

I personally would buy the better wheel (wait, I did), but I don't see anything truly wrong with what Tirerack has done.

haha

Trey, if they end up banning you I will PP you $5 if you come back as alienjesus.

More options for me. Even if I get these over those. 949 still has some shit that I want.

I remember the black jesus discussion...good times.