OEM Wheels: Any Concerns RE: Potholes?

[BatesMotelXIV]

Hey everyone,

I wanted to know if any owners had issues with OEM wheels taking damage (e.g. dents) from potholes. Does anyone feel the wheel is extremely vulnerable to even a modest pothole?

I know that was a big problem with FK8 Type Rs, but they were on 20” wheels compared to the lighter, 19” wheels for the DE5.

I am considering some 18s when I get mine, but I wonder if that’s even necessary for added defense against potholes.

Thanks and have a good one!

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[nawfoo]

No rim is safe from a pothole

 

[optronix]

I don't understand this phobia of potholes.

Buy an SUV?

 

[Integra23]

Add more air

 

[BatesMotelXIV]

Let me try to add some clarity. I was under the impression that the 20" rims on the FK8 were easily damaged even when hitting small potholes such that many owners changed their wheel/tire package to avoid this issue. Maybe I misunderstood that issue?

Anyway, by comparison, my '20 Civic Si (which is on 18" OEM wheels) handles potholes just fine, so my concern about potholes is not necessarily based on a phobia. I am just wondering if the ITS-owning community had any major concerns about the OEM wheels having the same issue as the OEM wheels for the FK8. If not, then I'll probably keep those wheels or get a new set of 19s instead of the 18s.

Hope that helps explain where I'm coming from. Thanks again.

 

[optronix]

No, you're crystal. You're not the only one who's brought this up so my comment wasn't directed solely at you.

So to answer your question, yes- there are plenty of people who cite potholes as a reason they ruin the look of their cars and defeat thousands of hours of R&D to engineer a nearly perfect suspension design by switching to 18s.

As far as empirical evidence that it's actually something you should worry about? Haven't seen any.

 

[ChromaPop]

I don't understand this phobia of potholes.

Buy an SUV?

Then you likely haven't had a pothole blowout of your tire where you had to limp off of an Interstate late at night in a metropolitan area that is very short on tow trucks, so then you had to limp the car to find a safe place to park it overnight to meet up with a tow truck the next day and then had to pay $250 for a new tire.

 

[Gansan]

Let me try to add some clarity. I was under the impression that the 20" rims on the FK8 were easily damaged even when hitting small potholes such that many owners changed their wheel/tire package to avoid this issue. Maybe I misunderstood that issue?

Anyway, by comparison, my '20 Civic Si (which is on 18" OEM wheels) handles potholes just fine, so my concern about potholes is not necessarily based on a phobia. I am just wondering if the ITS-owning community had any major concerns about the OEM wheels having the same issue as the OEM wheels for the FK8. If not, then I'll probably keep those wheels or get a new set of 19s instead of the 18s.

Hope that helps explain where I'm coming from. Thanks again.

From my FK8 experience, small potholes are ok but I try to avoid them from paranoia. When I do hit them it's been generally ok. Large, deep ones like those crazy 6" sunken manhole covers are not ok and highly risky unless you're going slowly, like 10-20 mph. It's not just wheels, think of tires too.

One day a small gash in concrete with sharp edges cut my tire at 20mph and gave me an insta-flat. That one's probably not about wheel size.

The other thing is 20" wheels are vulnerable to high track curbs. I bent a wheel when I took too much curbing in a high speed chicane. The car felt like it handled it great, hopping about 10 inches on one side, but turned out my wheel was bent.

 

[optronix]

Then you likely haven't had a pothole blowout of your tire where you had to limp off of an Interstate late at night in a metropolitan area that is very short on tow trucks, so then you had to limp the car to find a safe place to park it overnight to meet up with a tow truck the next day and then had to pay $250 for a new tire.

And you think 1" of wheel diameter would have spared you that experience?

 

[ChromaPop]

And you think 1" of wheel diameter would have spared you that experience?

Not at all, it's the extra tire sidewall height that might.

 

[optronix]

Not at all, it's the extra tire sidewall height that might.

Tomato-tomato.

If it gives you peace of mind then a worthy purchase. Whether or not 1" of wheel dimeter/higher sidewall justifies lowering the likelihood of destroying a wheel in a pothole vs how it makes the car look or handle is a personal decision. As is how much the look of 18s bothers me on these cars... it clearly doesn't bother everyone to the same degree.

Personally I can't reconcile it for all the reasons I listed, especially considering that a bad enough pothole will destroy just about any wheel on a sports car.

 

[BatesMotelXIV]

No, you're crystal. You're not the only one who's brought this up so my comment wasn't directed solely at you.

So to answer your question, yes- there are plenty of people who cite potholes as a reason they ruin the look of their cars and defeat thousands of hours of R&D to engineer a nearly perfect suspension design by switching to 18s.

As far as empirical evidence that it's actually something you should worry about? Haven't seen any.

Fair enough, Optronix. I haven't seen any evidence either, which was my main motivation for this post. I'm just reaching out to see what others have experienced, but I wish I would've caught those other posts regarding this issue.

And to your point, 18s generally do look worse on this car from what I've seen. However, if it made a real difference on the whole pothole issue (which does not seem to be the case at this point), I'd probably move forward with it.

Thank you again for the feedback.

 

[bpebler]

There have been ITS owners who bent oem wheels fairly quickly due to potholes they claim. A few on FB anyway. Forged would definitely have been an awesome oem option.

 

[creaturemachine]

If you're running rubber bands for tires it's only a matter of when. The two times in my life I've had tire problems were due to potholes, both in my old Corolla with relatively fat 185/65-15s. One blew the bead and destroyed the tire, the other bent the rim but somehow spared the tire. That time it was on winter steelies so it was just a matter of hammering it back out. A donut spare might not be such a bad idea after all.

 

[SlippyFist]

ive never bent/broken a wheel from even very severe potholes- only scratched/gouged them (and popped their tires RIP)

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