AME Mesh Wheels Fitting

I finally got to mount the tires on the AME wheels and I got to fit them to the Fairlady. I'm still using the Achilles Platinum tires up front - 175/65/R14. Rear tires are 185/65/R14. I had all the wheels balanced. There was a clearance issue on the right front wheel with the disc brake line. I had to carefully move it further towards the chassis to prevent the rear lip of the wheel from hitting it.

Testing the wheels on the Fairlady...full lock to lock of the steering wheel still had adequate clearance from hitting the suspension and steering components. Quite surprising that the wheels fit considering that it's 6.5 inches wide. The +23 offset was really critical.

 

  Brand new 65 series Achilles Platinum tires up front! I've used these type on the last vintage race and they really held up nicely during hard cornering and pretty stable on the straights.

Suspension components need a bit of cleaning, but the good thing is that the wheels cleared it.

 The front right brake line that I had to adjust to keep the rear lip from hitting it.

AME meshies are nicely tucked-in under the front fenders with just a tad out.

The wheels cleared the rear fenders pretty well. Still had about an inch of clearance on both sides (rear fender and chassis).

Awesome sight! AME JDM wheels finally installed on the Fairlady. A dramatic improvement in handling and steering effort. I could feel the front end has more grip than before when I used the steelies on the roadster. I got to drive this afternoon. High speed run was smooth and stable. And no rubbing issues so far on fast corners. I still have to test the wheels some more though to be sure...more excuses to drive!

Happy motoring!

AME JDM Mesh Wheels

I chanced upon these golden beauties...a set of 3-piece AME (Auto Mobile Engineering) alloy wheels. PCD is 114.3 with a diameter of 14 inches. Width is 6.5 inches. Weight is around 6kg (not bad for old school standards). Offset is +23. These are made in Japan by Enkei. AME is the high-end brand of Enkei, like Lexus is with Toyota. These mesh wheels are quite hard to find, since these were only sold in Japan. It's very popular with the racing enthusiasts due to its strong and lightweight construction. Even the welding is in such high quality workmanship.

Preliminary fitting with the Fairlady is good. I just needed to adjust the front caliper brake line further out so that it won't hit the lip of the rear rim. Fitment at the rear is also good due to its +23 offset. There's more than half an inch clearance between the lip and the rear fender flares. I just hope it doesn't rub during hard cornering. I'll have to test this soon. Each wheel seems to be in good condition. Not much corrosion on the alloy rim and hub area.

MSCC Vintage Racing 2013