Impreza Wheel Info Collection

jblaine · 07-17-2002, 01:09 PM

< Disclaimer: I don't claim to be a wheel expert. Anything not correct in this post will surely be corrected in subsequent posts by other users, and where appropriate, I will correct this main post. If you have a correction to make, please try to be sure your correction is ... correct. "The Honda tuner down the road told me once that..." is not trustworthy information all the time >

Please add qualified good information to this thread! Some of this information may seem very fundamental and common sense, but there's a lot in here I learned for the first time this past year. Perhaps someone else will.

* General Information *

* A thread about rotational inertia.

* The TireRack Wheel Tech pages (VERY informative -- read it all!)

* The TireRack Tire Tech pages (also VERY informative -- read it all!)

* Ravensblade Impreza is RIFE with information. Spend a good hour there, especially in the FAQ section.

* Wheel and Tyre Bible by Chris Longhurst. Tons of great information.

* Wayne Chin's Impreza Wheel Chart

* Wheels / Rims *

GENERAL: On Weight
Simply put, relative to stock and with regard to performance, heavier wheels are worse than stock and lighter wheels are better. This is a no-brainer. Some people cannot notice a difference in their car's power when fitted with wheels 5lbs (each) heavier than stock. That some cannot notice, or do not care, does not negate physics. If you don't care, then so be it. It's your car. Read the thread about rotational inertia if you care to know some more (linked above in the 'General Information' section).

See the note in the Tires section below as well.

GENERAL: "Ideal" Offsets According to Rim Width for Imprezas
6.5" --> +55ish
7.0" --> +53ish
7.5" --> +50ish

Notes:

* Long-term wheel bearing issues (and possibly other issues) may occur when the vehicle is fitted with wheels having an improper offset.

IMPREZA (all years?) Lug Info
Lug Pattern: 5 x 100
Lug Thread: 12 x 1.25
Lug Torque: 67-70 ft/lbs

Notes:

* Using an improper lug nut thread pitch can result in destroyed lugs and/or lug nuts.
* Exceeding the owner manual's torque specs can strip a lug, the nut, or break the lug completely off. Use a proper tool (one with a configureable maximum setting, like a torque wrench).
* Tighten the lugs with the wheel on the ground and in a 5-point star pattern as if you were drawning it with a pencil.
* Check the lugs' tightness after the first 20-50 miles or so.

MY02 US IMPREZA: Rims
Weight: 16.5 pounds
Width: 6.5"
Offset: +55 or +53 (both have been reported, oddly enough...)

MY00/MY01 US IMPREZA: Rims
Weight: 16.5 pounds?
Width: 7"
Offset: +53
Color: Silver

MY99 US IMPREZA: Rims
Weight: 17 pounds
Width: 7"
Offset: +53
Color: Silver

MY98 US IMPREZA: Rims
Weight: 17 pounds
Width: 7"
Offset: +53
Color: Gold

... more info to come.

* Tires *

GENERAL: Plus/Aftermarket Sizing
Tire Size Calculator

GENERAL: Tire Rubbing
Due to the rear flared fenders in the MY02 WRX sedan when compared to the MY02 WRX Wagon, wagons may have aftermarket wheel fitment issues that the sedans do not (specifics to come...).

GENERAL: On Weight
As you increase rim size (while ideally maintaining OEM overall wheel diameter), realize that you are increasing the tire's distance from the center of your rim. Due to your rims being rotational mass, you will want to keep your tires as lightweight as possible if you are concerned with performance. Spinning a 1lb weight 8 inches from the center of a rim requires less work than spinning that same weight 9 inches from the center of a rim.

MY02 US WRX: Tires
Make: Bridgestone
Model: Potenza RE92
Size: 205/55/16

... more info to come.

* Registered users of the site do not see these ads.

jblaine · 07-31-2002, 07:52 PM

Guys, help me out...

I'd like pre-02 Impreza rim and tire specs if you have them. I looked around for that huge wheel specs list/link and cannot find it.

Please state the following, and I will update the post above with the info:

Piece: (Rim or tire)
Year:
Piece model: (Ex: Potenza RE92. Does not apply to some pieces obviously)
Weight:
Width:
Color:

EDIT: Also, if you know about older Impreza lug pattern/sizing, please comment as well (see top post).

AllWheelDrift · 07-31-2002, 11:17 PM

No point reinventing the wheel. (pardon the pun)

Here's a large list with most of the subaru wheel weights and lots of aftermarket ones as well...

http://wac.addr.com/auto/obs/wheels.html

ConeMasher · 08-01-2002, 08:51 AM

Yeah but the provided link is rather out of date (no Rotas listed, etc). Perhaps combining forces could yield an even more comprehensive library of information...

-- ConeMasher

jblaine · 08-01-2002, 09:00 AM

Thanks for the link AllWheelDrift. I don't think I'm reinventing the wheel per se. Wayne's wheel information also is not listed in the 'FAQs and Threads of Interest' sticky in this forum. This thread is, and is here amongst the other posts. I've updated the information above with both a) information from Wayne's page and b) a link to Wayne's page. Sweet.

ConeMasher, sorry, I didn't intend at all to post any information about aftermarket rims/tires. I think that would make an excellent separate thread though. I wanted this to just be a gathering for stock specs and general basic wheel/tire information (tips).

ciper · 08-13-2002, 06:17 PM

Stock USDM 16 by 6.5 rims are FIFTY THREE, 53mm

NETWRX · 08-13-2002, 08:11 PM

Check them out at
http://www.ronalusa.com
or e-mail [email protected]
They have a great selection of actual photos of various wheels on all manner of cars. Look at the index of cars page under Subaru...

WRXforME · 08-13-2002, 08:28 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by ciper
Stock USDM 16 by 6.5 rims are FIFTY THREE, 53mm

Ya' mean THESE wheels? '02, or do you mean the earlier ones...These are '02's

jblaine · 08-13-2002, 08:57 PM

Ouch

paultg · 08-13-2002, 10:08 PM

Sweet.

Thanks for doing this Jeff.

Paul G. <--you must be bored at work.
I'll keep my eyes open for a set of RS rims for ya.

Uncle Scotty · 08-13-2002, 10:32 PM

Mine(Aug/01 mfg. date) were, stamped '53mm" and a tape measure 'SEEMED' to indicate a 7" rim width.....

I think they changed deseign spec's along the way....

ciper · 08-14-2002, 12:10 PM

I have the 02 wheels and they read 53mm. Do I really have to take a picture to prove it?

edit: Damn, never had my post repeated so many times! Extra replies deleted.

Those Meddling Kids · 08-14-2002, 12:56 PM

Holy crap quintuple post!

TMK

Dori Dori · 08-14-2002, 01:34 PM

Prove it.
Prove it.
Prove it.
Prove it.

I'm just kidding.

jblaine · 08-14-2002, 02:02 PM

For now, I've updated it to say "Offset: +55 or +53 (both have been reported, oddly enough...)"

I'll check my rims tonight since they're off my car.

STI RDY · 08-14-2002, 05:24 PM

Mine is +55 offset too...build date February 2001

jblaine · 08-14-2002, 05:34 PM

Okay, mine read 55. That's pretty freaky that they changed spec in the middle of production or something. ciper, do you know when your manufacture date was?

subysouth · 08-15-2002, 05:42 PM

read 55 offset. I bought them in may of 2001, right after the rexes came out.

AEA-1919 · 08-15-2002, 09:40 PM

My January 02 built WRX has 55 offset wheels too. Maybe if enough people reply we can figure out when SoA changed it.

Subietonic · 08-19-2002, 11:49 PM

Just hypothesizing now...Could it be that all the '02 and beyond ('01 and beyond for our JDM and other DM brethren) Impreza based platforms needed the +55 offset to match with the new chassis' geometry? Has anyone checked an '02 OBS alloy wheel or possibly even the new '03 Forester to see if those models have moved to the +55. Just a thought.

Br, Dale

STI RDY · 08-20-2002, 12:29 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Subietonic
Just hypothesizing now...Could it be that all the '02 and beyond ('01 and beyond for our JDM and other DM brethren) Impreza based platforms needed the +55 offset to match with the new chassis' geometry? Has anyone checked an '02 OBS alloy wheel or possibly even the new '03 Forester to see if those models have moved to the +55. Just a thought.

Good hypothesis and very intriguing...mine is built Feb '01 and is stamped 55mm but Uncle Scotty's Aug '01 is 53mm. That seemed "backwards" to your hypothesis

. Unless Subaru flip, flop and then flip back to 55mm?

Could the "55" looked like "53" due to brake dust or grime accumulation under insufficient lighting?
(just kidding!

)

Quote:

Originally posted by Subietonic
Mine(Aug/01 mfg. date) were, stamped '53mm" and a tape measure 'SEEMED' to indicate a 7" rim width.....I think they changed deseign spec's along the way....

aspera · 10-22-2002, 06:25 AM

They did it just to freak me out! Now I have to go to the garage and look! AAAAARRRRGGG!

aspera · 10-22-2002, 06:32 AM

I'm back. They're 55mm, at least one of them is...
I got mine in early 01. It's old enough to have the early clutch problems, but not the ECU problem (I think?).

GravelRash · 10-23-2002, 01:45 AM

Ordered 7/01, received 9/06/01: 55 offset, 16x6.5.

To add to the list:
B4 wheels (B4 Legacy, Japan, but available from a number of US dealers), 17x7, 55 offset.

A friend has them on his wagon - with the 4-pots and DBA rotors; very nice looking wheel on the car; Web pictures I've seen don't do it justice at all. (If I'd seen them before I bought the P1s the decision would have been a lot harder

)

subysouth · 10-23-2002, 09:51 AM

Has any one figured the WRX wheel offset out? When it changed etc.?

subysouth

07-17-2002, 01:09 PM	#1
jblaine Scooby Guru Member#: 8512 Join Date: Jul 2001 Chapter/Region: South East Location: St. Pete, FL Vehicle: 2002 WRX chassis... stage-infinity.com	Impreza Wheel Info Collection < Disclaimer: I don't claim to be a wheel expert. Anything not correct in this post will surely be corrected in subsequent posts by other users, and where appropriate, I will correct this main post. If you have a correction to make, please try to be sure your correction is ... correct. "The Honda tuner down the road told me once that..." is not trustworthy information all the time > Please add qualified good information to this thread! Some of this information may seem very fundamental and common sense, but there's a lot in here I learned for the first time this past year. Perhaps someone else will. * General Information * * A thread about rotational inertia. * The TireRack Wheel Tech pages (VERY informative -- read it all!) * The TireRack Tire Tech pages (also VERY informative -- read it all!) * Ravensblade Impreza is RIFE with information. Spend a good hour there, especially in the FAQ section. * Wheel and Tyre Bible by Chris Longhurst. Tons of great information. * Wayne Chin's Impreza Wheel Chart * Wheels / Rims * GENERAL: On Weight Simply put, relative to stock and with regard to performance, heavier wheels are worse than stock and lighter wheels are better. This is a no-brainer. Some people cannot notice a difference in their car's power when fitted with wheels 5lbs (each) heavier than stock. That some cannot notice, or do not care, does not negate physics. If you don't care, then so be it. It's your car. Read the thread about rotational inertia if you care to know some more (linked above in the 'General Information' section). See the note in the Tires section below as well. GENERAL: "Ideal" Offsets According to Rim Width for Imprezas 6.5" --> +55ish 7.0" --> +53ish 7.5" --> +50ish Notes: * Long-term wheel bearing issues (and possibly other issues) may occur when the vehicle is fitted with wheels having an improper offset. IMPREZA (all years?) Lug Info Lug Pattern: 5 x 100 Lug Thread: 12 x 1.25 Lug Torque: 67-70 ft/lbs Notes: * Using an improper lug nut thread pitch can result in destroyed lugs and/or lug nuts. * Exceeding the owner manual's torque specs can strip a lug, the nut, or break the lug completely off. Use a proper tool (one with a configureable maximum setting, like a torque wrench). * Tighten the lugs with the wheel on the ground and in a 5-point star pattern as if you were drawning it with a pencil. * Check the lugs' tightness after the first 20-50 miles or so. MY02 US IMPREZA: Rims Weight: 16.5 pounds Width: 6.5" Offset: +55 or +53 (both have been reported, oddly enough...) MY00/MY01 US IMPREZA: Rims Weight: 16.5 pounds? Width: 7" Offset: +53 Color: Silver MY99 US IMPREZA: Rims Weight: 17 pounds Width: 7" Offset: +53 Color: Silver MY98 US IMPREZA: Rims Weight: 17 pounds Width: 7" Offset: +53 Color: Gold ... more info to come. * Tires * GENERAL: Plus/Aftermarket Sizing Tire Size Calculator GENERAL: Tire Rubbing Due to the rear flared fenders in the MY02 WRX sedan when compared to the MY02 WRX Wagon, wagons may have aftermarket wheel fitment issues that the sedans do not (specifics to come...). GENERAL: On Weight As you increase rim size (while ideally maintaining OEM overall wheel diameter), realize that you are increasing the tire's distance from the center of your rim. Due to your rims being rotational mass, you will want to keep your tires as lightweight as possible if you are concerned with performance. Spinning a 1lb weight 8 inches from the center of a rim requires less work than spinning that same weight 9 inches from the center of a rim. MY02 US WRX: Tires Make: Bridgestone Model: Potenza RE92 Size: 205/55/16 ... more info to come. * Registered users of the site do not see these ads. Last edited by jblaine; 01-13-2004 at 08:24 AM.

08-13-2002, 08:11 PM	#7
NETWRX Scooby Newbie Member#: 17364 Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Fallbrook, CA Vehicle: 2002 WRX wagon Sedona Red Pearl	Ronal also makes a number of wheels with offsets as high as 45mm... Check them out at http://www.ronalusa.com or e-mail [email protected] They have a great selection of actual photos of various wheels on all manner of cars. Look at the index of cars page under Subaru...

08-14-2002, 12:10 PM	#12
ciper Scooby Guru Member#: 15543 Join Date: Feb 2002 Vehicle: 555 Having a Subaru shop means too many cars	I have the 02 wheels and they read 53mm. Do I really have to take a picture to prove it? edit: Damn, never had my post repeated so many times! Extra replies deleted. Last edited by ciper; 08-14-2002 at 01:47 PM.

08-15-2002, 05:42 PM	#18
subysouth Scooby Guru Member#: 5039 Join Date: Mar 2001 Chapter/Region: South East Location: Ocean Springs, MS Vehicle: 2007 Outback XT Grey 5-speed (sold)	My wrx wheels read 55 offset. I bought them in may of 2001, right after the rexes came out.

08-15-2002, 09:40 PM	#19
AEA-1919 Scooby Newbie Member#: 18768 Join Date: May 2002	My contribution My January 02 built WRX has 55 offset wheels too. Maybe if enough people reply we can figure out when SoA changed it.

07-31-2002, 07:52 PM	#2
jblaine Scooby Guru Member#: 8512 Join Date: Jul 2001 Chapter/Region: South East Location: St. Pete, FL Vehicle: 2002 WRX chassis... stage-infinity.com	Guys, help me out... I'd like pre-02 Impreza rim and tire specs if you have them. I looked around for that huge wheel specs list/link and cannot find it. Please state the following, and I will update the post above with the info: Piece: (Rim or tire) Year: Piece model: (Ex: Potenza RE92. Does not apply to some pieces obviously) Weight: Width: Color: EDIT: Also, if you know about older Impreza lug pattern/sizing, please comment as well (see top post).

07-31-2002, 11:17 PM	#3
AllWheelDrift Scooby Specialist Member#: 9191 Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Vancouver, BC Vehicle: 2002 Impreza 2.5TS Blue Ridge Pearl	No point reinventing the wheel. (pardon the pun) Here's a large list with most of the subaru wheel weights and lots of aftermarket ones as well... http://wac.addr.com/auto/obs/wheels.html

08-01-2002, 08:51 AM	#4
ConeMasher Scooby Specialist Member#: 2135 Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Chicagoland, IL, USA Vehicle: 2002 WRX Silver	Yeah but the provided link is rather out of date (no Rotas listed, etc). Perhaps combining forces could yield an even more comprehensive library of information... -- ConeMasher

08-01-2002, 09:00 AM	#5
jblaine Scooby Guru Member#: 8512 Join Date: Jul 2001 Chapter/Region: South East Location: St. Pete, FL Vehicle: 2002 WRX chassis... stage-infinity.com	Thanks for the link AllWheelDrift. I don't think I'm reinventing the wheel per se. Wayne's wheel information also is not listed in the 'FAQs and Threads of Interest' sticky in this forum. This thread is, and is here amongst the other posts. I've updated the information above with both a) information from Wayne's page and b) a link to Wayne's page. Sweet. ConeMasher, sorry, I didn't intend at all to post any information about aftermarket rims/tires. I think that would make an excellent separate thread though. I wanted this to just be a gathering for stock specs and general basic wheel/tire information (tips).

08-13-2002, 06:17 PM	#6
ciper Scooby Guru Member#: 15543 Join Date: Feb 2002 Vehicle: 555 Having a Subaru shop means too many cars	Stock USDM 16 by 6.5 rims are FIFTY THREE, 53mm

08-13-2002, 08:57 PM	#9
jblaine Scooby Guru Member#: 8512 Join Date: Jul 2001 Chapter/Region: South East Location: St. Pete, FL Vehicle: 2002 WRX chassis... stage-infinity.com	Ouch

08-13-2002, 10:08 PM	#10
paultg NASIOC Supporter Member#: 437 Join Date: Oct 1999 Chapter/Region: NESIC Location: Londonderry, NH	Sweet. Thanks for doing this Jeff. Paul G. <--you must be bored at work. I'll keep my eyes open for a set of RS rims for ya.

08-13-2002, 10:32 PM	#11
Uncle Scotty * Banned * Member#: 16200 Join Date: Mar 2002 Vehicle: OK buy Nates beans westcoastroasting.com	Mine(Aug/01 mfg. date) were, stamped '53mm" and a tape measure 'SEEMED' to indicate a 7" rim width..... I think they changed deseign spec's along the way....

08-14-2002, 12:56 PM	#13
Those Meddling Kids Scooby Specialist Member#: 4140 Join Date: Feb 2001 Chapter/Region: NESIC Location: Hingham, MA Vehicle: 02 WRX 00 MR-S	Holy crap quintuple post! TMK

08-14-2002, 01:34 PM	#14
Dori Dori Scooby Specialist Member#: 6780 Join Date: May 2001 Chapter/Region: South East Location: South Florida Vehicle: 1993 Nissan	Prove it. Prove it. Prove it. Prove it. I'm just kidding.

08-14-2002, 02:02 PM	#15
jblaine Scooby Guru Member#: 8512 Join Date: Jul 2001 Chapter/Region: South East Location: St. Pete, FL Vehicle: 2002 WRX chassis... stage-infinity.com	For now, I've updated it to say "Offset: +55 or +53 (both have been reported, oddly enough...)" I'll check my rims tonight since they're off my car.

08-14-2002, 05:24 PM	#16
STI RDY Scooby Newbie Member#: 5738 Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Ontario, Canada Vehicle: 2002 WRX Sedan Sedona Red Pearl	Mine is +55 offset too...build date February 2001

08-14-2002, 05:34 PM	#17
jblaine Scooby Guru Member#: 8512 Join Date: Jul 2001 Chapter/Region: South East Location: St. Pete, FL Vehicle: 2002 WRX chassis... stage-infinity.com	Okay, mine read 55. That's pretty freaky that they changed spec in the middle of production or something. ciper, do you know when your manufacture date was?

08-19-2002, 11:49 PM	#20
Subietonic Scooby Specialist Member#: 12588 Join Date: Nov 2001 Chapter/Region: SCIC Location: Down by the sea Vehicle: Four Count 'em GF5,BDA,BD5, BP5	Just hypothesizing now...Could it be that all the '02 and beyond ('01 and beyond for our JDM and other DM brethren) Impreza based platforms needed the +55 offset to match with the new chassis' geometry? Has anyone checked an '02 OBS alloy wheel or possibly even the new '03 Forester to see if those models have moved to the +55. Just a thought. Br, Dale

10-22-2002, 06:25 AM	#22
aspera Scooby Specialist Member#: 7879 Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: east of Zzyzx	They did it just to freak me out! Now I have to go to the garage and look! AAAAARRRRGGG!

10-22-2002, 06:32 AM	#23
aspera Scooby Specialist Member#: 7879 Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: east of Zzyzx	I'm back. They're 55mm, at least one of them is... I got mine in early 01. It's old enough to have the early clutch problems, but not the ECU problem (I think?).

10-23-2002, 01:45 AM	#24
GravelRash Scooby Specialist Member#: 16318 Join Date: Mar 2002 Chapter/Region: NWIC Location: Kirkland, WA Vehicle: 2002 WRX Franknwagen Grime over Sedona Red	Ordered 7/01, received 9/06/01: 55 offset, 16x6.5. To add to the list: B4 wheels (B4 Legacy, Japan, but available from a number of US dealers), 17x7, 55 offset. A friend has them on his wagon - with the 4-pots and DBA rotors; very nice looking wheel on the car; Web pictures I've seen don't do it justice at all. (If I'd seen them before I bought the P1s the decision would have been a lot harder )

10-23-2002, 09:51 AM	#25
subysouth Scooby Guru Member#: 5039 Join Date: Mar 2001 Chapter/Region: South East Location: Ocean Springs, MS Vehicle: 2007 Outback XT Grey 5-speed (sold)	Weird Has any one figured the WRX wheel offset out? When it changed etc.? subysouth

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