Am having the OEM wheels restored. Trim rings are ok. Think the color was silver or gray. Restoration will cost about $1000 for 5 wheels. What was the original color? As an option, are OEM wheels available? If yes, where?

 

You can buy OEM wheels for $100 a set every day, you just gotta look.

Getting them restored for $1000 is honestly insane. You can buy some of the rarest aftermarket wheels for that much in already restored condition.

 

Ok. Thanks for the info. Have just begun to work on the wheels. If OEM wheels are available at a lower price than the restoration, then I will go that way. I have looked for the OEM slotted steel wheels on the web, but so far without success. I'll keep looking. Thanks again for the info.

 

You should look in the classified section of RX7club.com

https://www.rx7club.com/1st-generation-rx-7-1979-1985-parts-101/

 

Post pics of the condition on your wheels. I have 4 steel wheels off my 83 S that I'll sell you if they are in better shape than your's. Mine only have slight surface rust, nothing major

 

Of the 15 7s, and 1 non-7 rotarys I have bought, only one was more than 1k to purchase. Your restoration guy is bending you over. Do some research and find the paint code for the oem steel wheels. If you can find it, it shouldn't cost more than 200 bucks to sandblast and paint them. If you do find the paint code and are willing to ship, I will do it for that price, plus shipping, and be happy with the profit.

If you can't find the paint code, some automotive paint suppliers are set up to match an exisiting paint color, if they can find a spot on the wheel that is not sunfaded or damaged. Best spot would be on the inside of the rim that has been protected by the tire.

 

How heavy are the steel wheels as compared to the alloys? They might be nice for racing.

 

There's not a whole lot of weight difference but the steels are noticably heavier

 

And they are 5" wide, where the 13s and 14s are 5.5".