For Those Crazy Enough To Buy Wheels From Outside The U.S..... (Part 1 of 2)

[Advancedynamix]

My TD wheels were made for me in England and shipped here. Took 2 months to get them, but I think that's mostly because the Britts only work 4 hours a day. Lol

[Bert]

So, what year Aspires should I be searching for? (And, yes, I confess I have done very, very little research thus far on it. Just starting out....)

Sorry to hijack the thread momentarily.
All Aspires are suitable as donors. The autos have thicker rotors (and by extension: wider calipers) and whether you get a 3 or a 5 door really doesn't matter. You can always move up a notch (ie you manage to find an MTX version) when re-doing the brakes simply by ordering ATX rotors and calipers. Not likely the lads collecting the cores will notice that what you turn in is not quite the same as what you purchased.
I think the early Aspires are OBDI like Festys (meaning lots of compatible engine and electronic parts) whereas the later ones are OBDII (meaning that only the B3 long block is of any use). If you happen to get a 2 door you can scavenge the Festy-compatible gas tank while you're at it. Make sure to check with the forum when you do find one so as not to accidently throw away, or leave behind, stuff you might be able to use. Simple things like a 4x100 bolt spare tire for instance!

[Twistiva]

Easier way: get ahold of someone that deals in rare wheels and/or shipping them. Have them acquire said wheels. Have them shipped to you. Most of those guys have pretty good to awesome setups as they have been at it for a long while.

Milton -

Well....this is good info for those behind me but as for me, it's "OBE"...."Overcome By Events"....meaning, I've bought wheels for both my Festivas now (including 1 spare for each Festiva in case of curb rash) so I won't need any more. However, I am curious....how the heck do you find someone who deals in rare wheels???

Sorry to hijack the thread momentarily.
All Aspires are suitable as donors. The autos have thicker rotors (and by extension: wider calipers) and whether you get a 3 or a 5 door really doesn't matter. You can always move up a notch (ie you manage to find an MTX version) when re-doing the brakes simply by ordering ATX rotors and calipers. Not likely the lads collecting the cores will notice that what you turn in is not quite the same as what you purchased.
I think the early Aspires are OBDI like Festys (meaning lots of compatible engine and electronic parts) whereas the later ones are OBDII (meaning that only the B3 long block is of any use). If you happen to get a 2 door you can scavenge the Festy-compatible gas tank while you're at it. Make sure to check with the forum when you do find one so as not to accidently throw away, or leave behind, stuff you might be able to use. Simple things like a 4x100 bolt spare tire for instance!

Bert -

Many thanks for the info. I am sure I will have many more questions before I go out and buy the Aspire parts.

Cheers!

[MiltonHavoc]

Twistiva, sorry I forgot about this thread.
With the Stace movement and the dorisha movement still in full swing, plus the Japanese nostalgic cars still going strong, wheel "meisters" frequent the Japanese car forums. Places like ratsun, Japanese nostalgic car, club 4age, and the 510 forums are abundant with them.

[zoom zoom]

You talked about spacers for those wheels, what about spacer/adapters to go from 4x114.3 to 4x100? I believe Bravekozak posted a link to a site that makes them specially by order at 90$ a set.(pair?)

[JPT]

Very interesting info.

...Can't remember off the top of my nugget what the Aspire hub diameter is nor what the center-bore is on these wheels.

Aspire center bore is 54.1mm. For comparison, Festiva center bore is 59.6mm.

[Twistiva]

You talked about spacers for those wheels, what about spacer/adapters to go from 4x114.3 to 4x100? I believe Bravekozak posted a link to a site that makes them specially by order at 90$ a set.(pair?)

zoom zoom / anyone -

Mechanically speaking, how reliable are these adapters? Still haven't bought any Aspire parts yet. Too busy with other stuff. Would be very interested if they would bolt on and rock-solid strong. Might be a problem, though, because if I remember correctly I only need spacers on the rear wheels...

[TominMO]

You talked about spacers for those wheels, what about spacer/adapters to go from 4x114.3 to 4x100? I believe Bravekozak posted a link to a site that makes them specially by order at 90$ a set.(pair?)

Going with the bolt-pattern adapters will require a very different wheel, or restrict tire sizes, or require fender clearancing. The adapters are pretty thick (~1.5" IIRC), so whatever wheel you install will stick out significantly. I bought a pair for my Accord 15" space-saver wheels; this worked because the offset is ridiculous--the center part of the wheel, where the holes are for the studs, is basically flush with the rim!