would you buy a set or rediculously ugly wheels if it netted you significantly lower brake temps?

 

For my track car, IDGAF what the wheels look like. Pretty is a bonus. Function is a requirement.

Are we talking scratched-to-hell ugly or design ugly?

Unless I did the scratching myself, I’d probably stay away from wheels that have been used as curb feelers. Who knows what damage may not be visible. Wheels are a consumable item for track use.

If your wheels are causing brake heat issues on the street, then either you really need to tone down your street driving before you kill someone, your current wheels are really bad at being Miata wheels, or you’ve got a brake problem.

 

Yeahhh, I think you need to look deeper at whatever issue you’re having. Wheels are almost never a cause of brake overheating, and have nearly nothing to do with brake cooling.

Short of your current wheels having a completely solid face, ala SSR mk1, I don’t think you’ll see any difference in swapping to a different set.

 

Actually, wheel design can have a profound impact on brake cooling. Valid question in my experience. We have a backburner project for a brake fan wheel actually. Some interesting data on web about that subject, if you have the time to dig.
That said, the biggest gains are in ducting and where most builders make mistakes. For a 200whp, 2300# NA/NB track car on race tires with a wee bit of downforce, I'd have 2x3" ducts per wheel in a perfect world. For a 300+whp car with lots of downforce and bigger tires, I'd have both 3 & 4" ducts per wheel up front.
Our 3" duct kit is what I consider the bare minimum. Definitely not the max. I could see adding ducts that come from the top down, instead of the traditional horizontal ducts entering from the nose.

But yeah, aero wheelz.

 

So, way back when I was young. Yeah, like eons ago... There was this set of wheels, maybe 1989-91 era. They were pairs, left and right, from Japan probably. They basically were fans, for additional brake cooling, not the most attractive, and very expensive IIRC.

 

Enkei EK90. Had a set of 15x6's on my 323 GTX back in the late 80's.

Still hot IMO

 

Awesome, but I am thinking of a different set. I want to say Ronal, but honestly can't remember.

 

Oh man, those are so sick. Love rally turbofan style wheels. I still want a set for my current 323GTX. Also, pretty cool that you had a GTX Emilio, I didn't know that.

 

This is what I remember.

 

Yah. Ronal R10 is a classic.

We will probably end up with a unidirectional wheel. Having to make separate left and right side molds is too expensive for such a low volume specialty product.

Bought it new, before the Miata existed. Had I known how good the Miata was going to be, I would have waited another year. Still, it was fun. Many hoons.

 

Rod Mullen Racing had some nice wheels. Some just went for sale in 15" size too.

 

Millen, actually.
Those were gravity cast Wheels made in Japan by passport. They were incredibly heavy. Originally designed as a rally wheel to help brake cooling. Separate left and right versions.

So many people mispronounce the name. We would joke about answering the phone "Red Miller Motoring"