Southern Ways is best known for their Glids II mesh, but as this advertisement from 1979 shows, there are a whole lot of great kyusha wheels by Southern Ways.  The headline reads, “Your disk, will you change it?” As the image suggests, all six wheels pictured share the same shell design and construction.

In 1979, when three-piece wheels were still in their relative youth, the ability to swap centres around was probably little more than novelty.  Almost forty years later, this has the potential to be a game changer for collectors and treasure hunters.

While five of the six wheels pictured here are ultra-rare at best, the Glids II is an attainable find.  With a longer production run, the Southern Ways Glids II mesh is still relatively popular today.  Often it can even be found in aggressive sizes. Now, the other five wheels feel like once in a lifetime finds at best.

And yet… if you do manage to get your hands on some, rejoice in the fact that they can easily be resized to suit your tastes by mixing and matching shells with other S.W. wheels… all without fighting welds like the wheels from most other main brands will make you do.

While I understand the benefits of modular construction, even when welds are used, if a wheel can’t be taken apart and put back together with some simple tools in my garage, or even trackside, then the term “3-piece” seems a bit of a misnomer. In this ad, Southern Ways is encouraging people to take apart and swap wheel parts? They obviously understand our wheel love.

あなたのディスクは変えられますか? 
“Your disk, will you change it?”

If you have spent any time here at all, you have probably figured out, that I’m a huge Yokohama Advan honk.  Yokohama makes some of my favourite wheels in both the eighties and nineties as part of their Advan line up.  The Yokohama Almex line up however, is something that I’ve done pretty well to ignore.  By some standards, Almex wheels are considered bland or even ugly.  Sizing options are mild at best.  Until recently, there have been so many of them in marketplaces that sorting through them to find wheels you actually wanted has been a nuisance.

But that’s all part of the fun of Kyusha Shoes.  The Almex line is slowly disappearing.  My personal tastes are evolving.  And as I have become more learned about the Japanese Wheel League, I have discovered some unique shoes within Yokohama’s first wheel line.

The line launched originally in late 1974 with four wheels: the YSA, YSB, YDA and YMA.  Thanks to Tanaka-san for sending in some resources, including this advertisement from 1976 that shows an expanded line-up two years after launch.  I’ve taken the time to translate text to English… and that text give a bit of a sense as to the state of the wheel in the mid seventies.

A wheel designed specifically for tubeless tires!

Smooth push type installation and removal. WTF?

Exclusive clamping type valve stem?

In wheel design, Yokohama has never been ahead of the game, but it’s a bit surprising that they are talking like this eight years after JWL standards were created.

With gravity cast construction, the designs achievements of some are certainly impressive, but weights are not, even by the standards of the day.  For most models, narrow 14″ sizes are in the rand of 6.5kg.  That makes them more than 50% heavier than the real seventies lightweights.

Nevertheless, the wheels were picked up by other brands, both in OEM and aftermarket sectors.  The YSD, was used by Mazda on the Cosmo. Nitto Tire rebranded and sold the YMA, YSD and YSA for their Panther A line.

Today, none of the Almex wheels that I’m aware of fall into the ultra-rare or unobtainable category.  At the time of production, all models were priced quite economically… and as the first ad says, Yokohama even allowed buyers to finance their purchases.  Forty years later, they are still relatively abundant!

If any models stand out as being more rare than the rest, it might be these four.   Yet even here, weights and sizes that are far from performance oriented (even for the smallest cars today), result in a wheels that can now be found for ultra-affordable prices. That makes them a great choice for an older sedan or restoration product… especially for a Yokohama fan like myself.

The Novan Wonder Rabbit is such a rare and unique wheel that I never imagined I’d ever find an advertisement for one.  This comes from Robbie’s Motorfan collection and an issue from 1979.  The translation reads.

By our hand,something universal, the Wonder Rabbit, is created.

This is the era for the west coast, a spot in California.
What is the new direction for eighties car supplies?
We made our decision: American Spirit!
Wonder Rabbit.
As we ponder the value of the era…

Car Supplies VOLUME 1: Wonder Rabbit – Alloy Wheels

At the time, it is certainly true that Japan was in love with the idea of American life… but in my mind, it is doubtful that the state of the Japanese auto-industry was so dire in 1979 that a yankee wannabe super rabbit was going rescue anyone from anything.  In fact, the automobile in Japan may have never been stronger.  The SA22 was the car of the decade, and the Japanese Wheel League was fully charged.  Turbo technology was spooling up.  In the USA, the EPA was killing American muscle and Chrysler needed a huge sum of cash from the US government to continue operating.  This was the first year of the McDonald’s happy meal though! Oh what highs and lows…

From stickers and markings, we know that the Wonder Rabbit was made by Enkei for Novan Internationals.  It was distributed by Chuo Jidousha aka Central Automotive Products.  Sizes that I have observed are 13 6J +13 and 13 6.5J +10 with 4H PCD114.3.  Others may have been available, but finding them now would be a serious task.

The Wonder Rabbit is a good-looking wheel, with a great name… but by all other measures, might be considered a flop.  From the usual sources, I wasn’t able to discover anything meaningful about Novan Internationals, or the Wonder Rabbit.  In wheel catalogs and articles from the era that I have seen, the Wonder Rabbit is strangely absent.  That seems like a terrible oversight, as the wheel does have some unique features compared to other four spokes of the time.  It’s doubtful that many were purchased back in 1979 and 1980.

Today the Wonder Rabbit is an ultra-rare find at best. And, as far as I can tell the Novan brand never produced anything else.  If they left behind any legacy for Kyusha lovers, this Rabbit wearing a cape and singing the praises of California might just be it.  So much for Volume 2…

If you’ve found me on Instagram, you will know that I got a nice gift in the wheel last week from Robbie: nine beautiful Motorfan mags from the late seventies. Instant content, and a serious high that made my wife question my alcohol tolerance. The buzz is now wearing off and I’m ready to do some sharing.

Since we’ve been on a bit of a Keystone/Target Racing kick lately, I’ll start with this advertisement from 1979. As little as the name Target Racing is known, Keystone Racing Original Wheels is even less known. Keystone however, is the overarching brand and manufacturer behind the Target Racing line-up. That line up, appears to have spawned from this Keystone Target Mag, which you’ll note doesn’t actually carry the name “Target Racing”.

The Japanese text in the advertisement translates as follows:

Attractive Mag
Elegant, or hard tune – the best partner to tailor your car.
Sold by Keystone – only developing good things!

 I love the fact that the word hard (ハード) gets used in the ad with respect to style or state of tune!

In terms of size offerings on the Target Mag, I wouldn’t say that any of them really fit with what we would consider “hard tune” today, but they would have been reasonably aggressive in a time when 6J was a big OEM size.  A good variety of offsets and PCD options were available though, and retail price was quite reasonable in comparison to premium brands.  That however, came with some significant compromises in the mass department.  Compared to the Rays Engineering Xray featured earlier this week, there is approximately a 20% penalty to be paid in kilograms.

This is a single piece cast wheel after all, and in terms of weight and performance simply can’t compare with the spun shell sections of modular wheels, and the more complex designs that casting a centre individually allows.  Like the Target Racing wheels we have looked at before, the Keystone Target Mag has no identifying marks on the hub pad, or back of the wheel.  Instead, on the wheel face each of the four main spokes has different text cast on them: JWL, “Target Mag”, “K R” and the fourth spoke identifies wheel size and offset.

The original production date of the Target Mag is at this time unknown, with references to it seen in 1978, we know that it preceded the Target Racing line-up by at least 1 year.  Likely it came much sooner than that.  The Target Racing line-up, with modular construction represented a shift towards a high-end wheel.  In comparison to the Target Mag, the Target Racing TR-01 which shared a similarly designed centre, was a full 1kg lighter and right in the neighbourhood of premium ultra-light wheels, but still more affordable.

That said, the Target Mag is still a sought after wheel that today can command as much as 60000円 for larger sizes when in good condition.  The look offered could be considered unique to, but reminiscent of  the popular Hayashi Street. Like the Street, which works well in both OEM fitment for Uncle Bob, and hacked and flared shakotan fitment for Tanaka-san, the words “elegant” and “hard” likely do apply to the Target Mag just as the ad suggests.

And as the ad suggests… hard or elegant, your girl will probably be indifferent and do her own thing.  In 1979 she looked at a toy airplane.  In 2016 she looks at her freaking cell phone.  Keystone Target Mag… the best partner to tailor your car.  Maybe the best partner period.

Debuting in 1977, the Xray was the fourth wheel produced by Rays Engineering.  Preceding it, was the now near unobtainable Volk Dish, and the more popular Volk 3-piece mesh and Volk II mesh. Like the Volk II mesh which also launched in 1977, the Xray used a two piece welded construction.  This may have been considered a thrifty move, in a period when assembly bolts were novel and fashionable. “The Wheels Forecasting The Future” was the tagline seen in advertisements.

In appearance, the Xray is unique from other Rays products of the era.  Thick spokes and a recessed PCD area that is highlighted by a raised polished edge might make it visually unattractive to some eyes, but for others that is part of the intrigue and appeal. Regardless of ones taste in looks, the Xray impresses in other areas.  Sizing options were reasonably aggressive, and weights are as minimal as any wheel of the time.

14 8J versions were an impressive 5.0kg!  Most competitors wheels were more than 1kg heavier in the identical size. As was popular at the time, 5H version of the wheel used slightly different designs.  In this case, an extra spoke to go with the extra hole.

This catalog gives us some idea of wheel purchasing options at the time.  Centre caps are very hard to come by nowadays. They were included in the box at the time though.  A metal valve stem is a 500 yen option.  Standard colours for this year of production were silver and gold.  That implies that custom colours are available.  I’ve seen many examples in black like the pictured wheel above submitted by reader Timothy Baker.  This was likely a standard colour at some point.

The second line from the bottom suggests custom offsets were available!? (I think that’s what it says but I’m not sure what VII refers to.)  With the centre disk simply welded to the shell custom offsets may have been as simple as welding in another place.  Finally, 4H PCD100 was available for only 2000 yen.  That seems like a helluva small price to pay considering the work involved nowadays to find old PCD100 wheels.

Production of the Xray continued from 1977 until at least 1984.  This is a reasonable span of time for a wheel, but given the very rare status of the Xray today, we can conclude that they probably weren’t overly popular back in the day. Today the wheel isn’t a highly sought after choice either, although maybe it should be.  Prices are often quite reasonable in comparison to other premium brand wheels, and sizing options plus low weight make them a good choice for someone looking for both real performance and kyusha style.

For Rays Engineering, perhaps the greatest legacy of the Xray, is that it was the first wheel to demonstrate the true benefit of bolt free construction.  Today, one piece wheel technology has allowed construction techniques to evolve, beyond cast and welded centres, but assembly bolts are still considered unnecessary weight, cost and complication.  In that sense, “Forecasting the Future” may have actually been a reality rather than a catchy tagline in an era where medical CT scans and X-rays were cutting edge!

Last week Robbie showed us his Target Racing TR-03.  With a four spoke style reminiscent of the SSR MK-II, the TR-03 is not a well known wheel.  It’s usage however, probably goes unrecognized more than it should simple because of its similarity to the popular MK-II. It takes an educated eye to tell the two wheels apart. Much of the Target Racing line up in fact, does well to hide behind wheels of similar design made by other manufacturers. This advertisement sent in from a 1979 issue of Motor Fan, shows nine Target Racing wheel models by Keystone.

Kyusha shoes fans will recognize some familiar shapes besides that of the SSR MK-II.  There is the familiar style of the Hayashi Racing Street, which is not at all unique to, but certainly done best by Hayashi.  Itall Racing, Toyo Z, Dunlop all have similar designs.  On the bottom row, we see something very similar to the Focus Racing 5,  the Easy Rider Spit Modena and the Work Equip 01.  Unfortunately, the sent advertisement doesn’t include any model names. I’ve translated the original text into english, and done my best to fill in what model names we know from other references.

From the advertisement featured in Robbie’s Target Racing TR-03 post, we know the TR-01 and TR-02.  We have to note however, that the wheels in his advertisement, and all Target Racing wheels that I have ever seen anywhere except for the advertisement featured in this post, use 12 bolts to hold wheel shells to centres. The wheels in this ad from 1979 all use 16 bolts. It’s an interesting dilemma.  As this ad announces the debut of Target Racing, perhaps we should consider that original wheels all used 16 bolts, but the design was quickly revised to use only 12. Regardless, I’m not going to get hung up on it. If you are, then stop reading now and skip to the next post.

The third wheel featured in the ad, is certainly the most unique! The Mario, was featured in a separate post four years ago, as a mystery wheel that I had purchased in pursuit of the Advan A3B.  At the time I had no idea what it was, but have since come across this ad which seems to identify it as a product of Target Racing/Keystone Racing Original Wheels… and another separate reference which identifies it with Aoi Enterprise.  More info is needed. Hopefully we can find sufficient ammunition to address that in the future.

The Alspeed mesh is the Target Racing model that I have known the longest, but it doesn’t quite match the rendering in the advertisement.  Besides the number of shell bolts, the PCD area and mesh pattern is slightly different.  The ad might show an original version of the Alspeed, or it may be another model altogether.  Unlike the other known Target Racing models, the Alspeed uses a front mounted centre section, as opposed to a sandwich mount or rear mount.  Common to all Target Racing wheels though, seems to be black socket head cap fasteners, and JWL markings directly opposite of the valve stem on the outer shell, or wheel center in the case of the Alspeed.

All sizing stickers that I’ve seen on Target Racing wheels are the same as well: simply formatted with size, PCD and nothing else.  Most examples that I’ve observed also have a sticker on the top of the lip, opposite the valve stem above the JWL markings.  On the TR-01 through TR-03 that sticker says “Target Racing”.  The Alspeed gets a model specific sticker.  Markings on the back of the wheel pad unfortunately, are inconsistent from model to model. Many having no markings at all, and thus using them to identify wheels is not simple.

These things in mind, I went back through my notes on the Focus Racing 5 and Work Equip 01 looking for a Target Racing wheel that was mistaken for something from a more popular brand.

Voila! Twelve black socket head cap bolts.  The remnants of a sticker in the usual spot on the lip, and it’s hard to make out, but JWL on the shell directly opposite of the valve stem.  Looking at the wheel center itself, compared to the Equip 01, the area in black is different, with a taller raised ridges and larger edges.  This is clearly not an Equip 01.

Now… if someone can send me some better images and maybe a model name… we can add a new model to the database.

A couple of years ago while searching through craigslist for the usual tags I came across an ad marked something along the lines of “JDM Wheel Pair”. Thinking that I’d had some luck flipping pairs of wheels in the past I clicked that ad and looked a bit a further only to find a practically useless description and one completely indistinguishable pixellated photo. For $40 however, I figured it was still worth pursuing.

After a few texts back and forth with the seller, it turned out that the he was just down the street from me. I swung over, but as luck would have, found not a wheel pair of wheels but two completely different individual wheels in a mud covered mess. One wheel I quickly identified as an SSR EX-C. The other was a four spoke design, and total mystery to me. I didn’t think that anyone would want to buy these single wheels, but thought they would make cool display pieces so I picked them up anyways!

Checking the database here at the time, as well as all the other online resources I knew of, I had no luck identifying the 4 spoke wheel. A few years later I had purchased some vintage Motor Fan magazines off of Yahoo Auctions. I was flipping through the pages of the earliest one I had (from 1979) and one advertisement caught my eye. I quickly ran to the garage, grabbed the crusty mystery wheel and compared details. It was the Target Racing “TR-03”. My particular wheel was the 14 6J +15 size. I still have very little information on the Target Racing brand, and their various models of wheels. If wheels could talk it would be very interesting to know how it ended up just a few miles away from me after more than a 30 year-long journey.