MGB: Need opinions on Wheels for a 71B

I need wheels for my restoration project. What are your thoughts about the Moss replicas of the minilite"s? (Listed at $219 for the 15 inch) What are the pros and cons of 14 inc or 15 inc When you run the 15s do you have problems with rubbing on the body in corners etc? Any suggestions for other wheels and sources for wheels would be appreciated. Have been away from these cars for so long I need your thoughts.

Before you buy the mini lites, talk with Hap (speed racer). He sells superlites. They are great looking wheels. He should be able to help with any questions you have,
Hal

I've got some 15 by 6 inch supa lites, 10 spokes. They come with polished rims, which is nice. If you use 195 by 60 tyres on them they come out about the same diameter. After rostyles, they do make the steering lighter and more precise.

http://www.performancewheels.com.au/superlite.asp

However I regret not getting these instead,
http://www.britishv8.org/Articles/Dayton-Wire-Wheels.htm

The wheels are 24positive. Standard guards etc. The only rub I had was a very faint mark above the RHS bump stop base, where it looks like I've rubbed once or twice when I've taken a corner fast. However I later found that the bushes in the shakel on that side were worn through. You'll be aware that all MGB's have the appearance of the axle being offset tothe left about 10mm.
eg

Here's another vote for Hap Waldrop and his Superlites.

I bought a set of 15" charcoal from him for the GT.

I'm in the same situation with new wheels for my GT. I need to replace the ancient wires and just purchased a set of Dayton wire wheels for the car. I went with the painted ones rather than the chrome and was 3/4 of the way through having them mounted when I noticed the colour was different on one compared to the other two. I placed the fourth wheel beside the rest and sure enough, it was a lighter shade of grey.

So now I've got two each of light and dark grey. Yes, I'm aware that I could put the same colour on each side but that's not the point. Needless to say, they've gone back and will wait out the 6 weeks for more to show up and hopefully get a matched set.

In the meantime, I'm looking at Minilites for the car but will check out the Superlites as well.

15x6 Superlites here. I do rub a little.

If you can afford them, why not invest in REAL Minilites? Neither the Minators nor the Superlites really duplicate the original styling. They're still making Minilites in England, and the quality is superb. (Moss is great, but the fake Minilites they sell are made in China.)

Is Moss not selling Minotors any more. Minotors used to be made in England. Has that changed?

The Fall/Winter 2008 Moss catalog lists two options for bolt-on "8-spoke" aluminum wheels:

The less expensive option is labeled "Bolt-on Replica of the Original MiniLite Wheels". Even in the fine print, they don't call it a Minator anymore - they do however say "Manufactured using the latest techniques and testing procedures." I called and asked some months ago - and confirmed that indeed these wheels are Made-In-China. Are they still labeled Minator on the wheel? That's not so clear. If you squint at the photo you can find the word Minator on the rim of the wheel shown - but it might be an old photo. The hub cap shown isn't quite as rounded as what came with my Minators years ago, and it doesn't have an MG decal on it.

The second option from Moss is from Panasport, and is still made in Japan. I bought a set last winter, and they're very very nice. The Panasports are lighter weight than all the other wheels mentioned in this thread (although both Panasport and Superlite have even lighter-weight 8-spoke wheels that are available at a premium price for racers.) Moss shows the Panasport with a chromed hex-shaped hub cap, but the Panasports they shipped me last winter had a different (round) hub cap.

Since I went and brought up Panasport wheels, I guess I might as well include a photo...



My MGB GT V8 weighs 2180#, measured with a full tank of fuel. I got a smokin' deal on the Panasports, and also weight was a factor in my decision. Anyway, my car currently wears Falken Azenis RT-615 tires (205/50, 20.4# new) on Panasport 8-spoke wheels (15"x6", -22mm offset, 15.0# each, polished rim). McGard 64000 lug nuts (1/2"x20 by 1.5", cone seat). My tires don't rub on my sheetmetal, but it took a bit of work to get it that way! Long story... but basically I didn't narrow the Ford rear axle as much as I should have years ago. I formerly used Goodyear 195/60 tires on Minator 8-spoke (14"x5.5", 13.6#) wheels, and they're also shown on this webpage: http://www.britishv8.org/MG/CurtisJacobson.htm (24 photos)

Real Minilites can be seen here: http://www.britishv8.org/MG/DarrenJones.htm (83 photos)

Incidentally, the best place to see what wheels and tires have been installed on MGBs is the BritishV8 site... in total, the site now hosts well over 6000 photos of modified classic British sports cars.

Ironic you should post about real Minilites, Curtis. I sent a query to Minilite UK and received a reply back fromr John Targett as he's the NA dealer for them. I hope he won't mind me posting his reply to my query here (edited for content):

"As you are considering centre-lock Minilites. The snag, of course, is the cost.
Minilite has a unique splined centre hub design, which is still made in England, and which is much more elegant (less bulky and heavy) than any of the alternatives. However, that hub about doubles the price of the wheels.

Finally, a note about wheel width and tyres. Forgive me if you know all this already, but pretty much the widest tyre that will fit under the rear without risk of interference is a 185. If you fold up the edge "lip" that joins the inner and outer fenders at the back, then you can squeeze in a 205, fitted to a 14 x 6 rim.
If you prefer not to fold the lip, then my suggestion is to fit 185 tyres to the 14 x 5 1/2 Minilite.

For a set of four genuine Minilite® centre lock wheels, size 14 x 6, in traditional silver, the cost will be $1648 ($412 each). To this must be added the shipping costs. For customers in the U.S., the most cost effective shipping is by a full skid of wheels to my warehouse in Ohio, which I then breakdown and ship via FedEx Ground to each customer. We have learned the hard way (it took only once) that sending the wheels from the U.S. to Canada attracted numerous Canadian taxes.

Options include a diamond polished rim, which looks most attractive, and a range of colours, either of which adds $16.00 per wheel. The more popular colours are anthracite (a mid-grey metallic), black (satin or gloss), white, and gold." (end reply)

Due to the added cost of centre-lock wheels, I'll probably stay with wires (as long as I can get 4 in the same colour!!). I really like the Minilites and have a set of Antracite 15x8" on the V8 but these were bolt-on's and thus, quite a bit cheaper. To bring these into Canada from the UK, the total cost was about $1580.

Simon wrote: "I really like the Minilites and have a set of Anthracite 15x8" on the V8..."


Simon, you forgot to include a photo - or a link to your gallery page! Your V8 is super cool and certainly deserves a shout out.



Sebring flares facilitated installation of 15 x 8 genuine Minilite wheels...
http://www.britishv8.org/MG/SimonAustin.htm (20 photos)