crw41

I was wondering if anyone on the site has gotten a new new set of knockoffs lately since they are now being manufactured in China?

How are they with respect to fit, finish, and quality?

I saw several people picking up theirs at Carlisle in August.

joec

I got them on as soon as they hit our shores (literally) and I have to tell you they look nice... I personally think the underside of the spinners could have been done a bit better, but overall I am extremely happy.. Look in my space for pics...

/joe

BarryK

Joe

the wheels look great. They are something I definately want to add to my car also.

BTW, nice car............. but than, I AM a bit partial to '65 Milano Maroon coupes as you know!

ctjackster

I've always thought that Joe and Barry had two of the best looking cars around here

BarryK

Thanks Jack You are a bit biased towards MM cars too though

I can't aswer for Joe, but mine is definately still a work in progress and has quite a ways to go yet. I planned on trying to make a significant dent in my list over this winter but now that Linda is pregnant and we are expecting a new Corvette Fan in the spring I have a feeling my Corvette budget just shrunk by a large margin......

joec

I think that barry's and my car are long lost brothers... Since mine is still a 5 footer until new paint, I have the homely looking one... hehehehe... Soon it'll be going in for one of those makeover...

I will say that after putting on the KO's, it did totally change the look of the car...

/joe

ctjackster

hmm, I admit to favoring the vert, but the color, sidepipes and KOs are a match (ok, ya got me on the BB hood, but it is a 65 BB hood at least ) Y'all just need to get your goldlines now:

ragtopman

I just bought a set from Va. Vettes. There made in China for Corvette America. They look very nice. As far as fit goes, I havent gotten any tires yet, so will find out at a later date. The one problem that I had was the 1st set of 4, 1 had a blem in it. Dick made it right and sent another one, and it also had a blem in it and he made it right also, so no problems with dealing with Va. Vettes. So needless to say, I also have a spare which isnt all that bad either.

joec

Congrats to you and your wife!!!!! Back in 80 I was doing a body off on a 63 SWC... My wife got pregnant and that was the end of that.. I NEVER got to drive it or anything as it was in pieces... I did sit in it on a milk crate tho... My son was born and it was better than a vette anyday or year for sure... Fast forward 24 years and although I didn't get my SWC, the 65 coupe is close enough... ENJOY!!!!

/joe

BarryK

Joe
I got very lucky. When she told me the news one of my first thoughts was that i'd have to sell the Vette. She knew immediately what I was thinking and told me in no uncertain terms that selling the Vette is NOT an option. She knows how much the car means to me and she has fallen in love with it also.

Now, enough about this and our own cars - we sidetracked crw's thread too much already. Back to the regularly scheduled program of KO wheels!

MarvBarrish

Hi friend, I also bought a set of direct knock offs from Va Vette and they are very nice. However I don't use them and am planning on listing them on ebay soon. I only had about a 100 miles on them and still have the original boxes and such. Polished cones. If you're interested, $1400 will take them and will include shipping. Marv

crw41

PM, e-mail sent

ragtopman

Hi friend, I also bought a set of direct knock offs from Va Vette and they are very nice. However I don't use them and am planning on listing them on ebay soon. I only had about a 100 miles on them and still have the original boxes and such. Polished cones. If you're interested, $1400 will take them and will include shipping. Marv


Thats a pretty good deal people, I shelled out 2k for mine.

66BlkBB

I also purchased a set of the Bolt On's from Va Vettes. They were shipped to me directly from Corvette Central. I got the wheels and opened up one box. The first wheel was OK. The second wheel was out of round in the center area. I did not open up anything else as I was not going to put these wheels on until I had all of them. I called Va Vettes to let them know. They told me to call Corvette Central. I did that and they sent me a shipping sheet to send it back with a description of what was wrong. I got another wheel back in a couple of weeks. I had the tires mounted on the wheels and brought the car home to install the center adapter and put the spinners on. When I opened the spinner boxes I found one that had severe pitting on it. A second one had minor pitting on it but that one was at least acceptable. I called the same guy at Corvette Central that I talked to about the wheel. He told me to call Va Vettes. I called Va Vettes to let them know that the spinner was bad. When I talked to their rep, he tried to say that he had already replaced all four cones for me along with a wheel and he felt I was overly picky with the spinner. I indicated to him that so far the only thing he had replaced for me was the one wheel which Corvette Central acknowledged was out of round. I then showed the spinner to a friend and asked his opinion. He said he would never accept it. I explained to him that the ad on E-bay where I purchased these stated that these were No. 1 units with no blemishes. He said if they are No. 1's there shouldn't be any blemishes on any of the parts. I was told by Va Vettes to send the spinner back and they would look at it to see if they would replace it. I wrote a long letter to Va Vettes stating my objections to this spinner and my views on their handling of this whole matter. They did replace the spinner but I never got an apology for the accusations that they had against me. I won't buy another item from this outfit. Even if it costs more I'll go to another outlet. Just my experience with Va Vettes.

stepinwolf

I can remember a few heated discussions we had on the Forum months ago, regarding certain issues that were experienced using these wheels, and also my objections in installing these type of wheels in the future.

I noticed in this thread, just as I had predicted, there seem to be quite a few who have received sets that were less then acceptable. Sadly this will not end with the cosmetics when the box is opened, but rather when they are installed, and tire shops have to balance them.

Normally here is where the fun starts.

Once they are installed I would like to hear comments from some new users, other then the dyed in the wool "knock-off lovers "

Please don't let my above statements be mis-interpret, or think for a minute I do not like the excellent look that it gives to our Corvettes. What I find objectionable, or questionable, is the poor quality of the wheels.

Stepinwolf

gonefishn

I agree with stepinwolf's comments. Would also like to get a set but have the added concern on the safety aspect as well as long term durability.

John

stepinwolf

Thank you John for your support. In the past I have seen some of these knock-offs with the equivalent of more then 12" of stick on weights, to try and bring then close to where they should be, in order to be balanced correctly. A lot of as far as I'm concerned, especially since they are not giving these away.

Stepinwolf

dmentzer

I wouldn't mind some KO's, but no way would I ever buy them as they are made in China. I just got some repro rallys and was surprised that I had to actually shop around to find some that were not foreign made. This will be an increasing problem for me as I can't see putting foreign parts on my Covette.

joec

I have my KO bolt ons for a couple of months and really like them... What added saftey concern are you talking about??? From what I can tell they are just machined from a hunk of aluminum ($40 worth at that) and have 5 bolt holes... I had a local specialty shop install and balance them for my 65 wtih no problems.... Please enlighten us ...

/joe

joec

pm sent for a friend...