Ok, well I am taking my car in on Saturday to get the windows tinted and I can't wait. I'm going with 20% all around on a black sonata :grin:

So here is where the problem starts. I was pretty set on getting a new set of rims since I am going to be needing tires in the near future. I figure if I do this soon, I can get one more winter off my stock tires and then get winter tires next fall. If I get a set of wheels I think I will stick with 18" which should look nice (20" rims IMO are too big for the car and I don't want to hurt the driveability of the vehicle) So I figure I'd spend about $1,500 when its all said and done with the for the wheels and tires. Most likely I will go with chrome wheels with about 5 or six spokes (haha no bashing on the bling).

Well then I started thinking. Instead of $1,500 for wheels, maybe I should keep the stock alloys (I have the 16" alloys that were on the 2006 GLS models). I would need to get tires (say $400) but maybe I would put the rest of my budget to other parts. Afterall, I like the way the stock alloys look, and the car drives nice with them. So then I was trying to decide what other options I would consider and here is my list:

Ixion Grille from KAI - $195
Ixion Front Diffuser from KAI - $395
Ixion emblem for rear to replace the crooked H - $30
Headlights w/ Dual CCFL Halo Rims and LEDs w/ black housing & clear sides on Ebay - $242 with shipping
In the future either the lip spoiler on ebay for $124 (shipped) or the Ixion spoiler painted from KAI $309 (most likely I would go with the Ixion spoiler although its a little pricey)

So what are your opinions. Wheels or go with the options above. If I went with the options above, the only questionable item would be the Ixion front diffuser. I would probably either go with that or H&R lowering springs. I'm just not sure how the front would look without a rest of a body kit on the car nor aftermarket wheels.

Here are some pics of the options:


Attached thumbnail(s)

ok, i will give you my thoughts...

1. you like the look of the 16" alloys, but you are talking about getting 18" chrome? something there doesnt add up....

2. dont waste your money on Ixiom grilles & the like if you are going to leave the stock 16" alloys on the car.. that will NOT look good... (someone posted a pic of a body kit on a car that had stock 16" rims on it, and wow did it not look right)


my suggestion is to replace the rims with 17" rims instead of 18" (with tires) and put a lip spoiler on it.. the 17" size will keep a bit more comfort for driving while upgrading the performance of the wheels/tires a bit.... the Halo lights would look good too... but please do NOT put a body kit on it and keep the 16" alloys... Tires and spoilers are the first cosmetic upgrades anyone should do... (other than things like tint)

the rest will make it look a bit "ricey" IMO.... that's my suggestion...

I love those lights I almost got them today. But got the hyundai racing jacket on ebay and parts to upgrade my computer instead..... Next time I guess :)

Ditto.

Tint first; then spoiler; then wheels/tires. Then take it slowly from there.

I like the spoiler and the lights.

Where in Philly are you located?

Ditto!

Small wheels plus body kit = looks like someone stole your nice wheels and you had to put your winter tires on.

17"s and some nice ultra high performance all seasons or summer tires should be doable for way less than $1000.

That leaves $500 in your $1500 budget for grill and spoiler or whatever you wanna do with it.

I agree with the small wheels + body kit = not right looking opinion.

The ixion grille, headlights and spoiler are what really got my heart going. The front bumper diffuser was just an afterthought. Heck I've been drooling over that grille for the past 2 1/2 years.

Maybe I'll keep looking for deals on wheels and see if I can get a decent price and then maybe get one or two of the other items I was looking at. Heck maybe I might even find a slightly used set of OEM 17" wheels that I can pick up for cheap. I know I've seen some spring up on ebay, its just the shipping that kills the price.





Live in Drexel Hill (outside Philly) and work on the main line.

UPDATE: Just bought the headlights off Ebay. Still not sure about wheel options, but decided to spend less on wheels and get one or two other things. Now comes the long wait till I receive them. Definitely not going to get the bumper diffuser, but still might consider a new grille (depending on wheel costs) and then next would be a spoiler :w00t:

This post has been edited by alex2006sonata: Jun 26 2008, 07:47 PM

If you like the chrome 5-spoke look have you thought of going with a set of chromed 17" factory wheels (with warranty) ? Yeah, yeah - I'm posting another pic of my car. :grin:

haha I've looked at your wheels several times :beer:

Actually after you said that I checked ebay and found a set of OEM chrome plated wheels that are used for $599 + $100 shipping. Unfortunately they don't have tires, but that will definitely be an item I'm going to watch! If they had tires for that price (or even a little more) they would have already been ordered. :grin:

Well the headlights are on their way, and I just ordered the lip spoiler off ebay today. I think I have decided on the wheels too, though I'm going to sleep on it.

They are 18" chrome Stern ST-8 wheels with 245/40-18 Nexen N300 tires. The offset is +48mm. Any opinions on the wheels before I make the plunge? Once I get everything on the car I'll be sure to post plenty of pics and create a garage!!!

I keep going back and forth between wanting 5/6 spoke wheels or a mesh style. Haha i like both and don't know which I'd rather have.

This post has been edited by alex2006sonata: Jun 27 2008, 11:43 PM

Attached thumbnail(s)

Mesh = teh sexxxy :D

those wont look bad at all.. but those grommets are going to be a b*tch to keep dirt out of.. :grin:

Alex, do you know the width of the wheels? I'm thinking that +48 offset might be a bit much.


Assuming the new wheels are 8" wide, the 48mm offset means they'll extend about 0.83" further into the well than the factory 17" wheels. If they're 8.5" wide, that's an extra 1.08" difference on the inside. Does anyone know what the actual clearance is under there (from factory)? Is there an extra inch of free space to play with?

you're car is one of the main reasons I decided mesh would look great on the sonata.

The width is 8". My only concern was the space in the wheel well. I was trying to figure out last night if there was enough space by looking at other people's wheels. I'll keep looking, but the last thing I want is to get a wheel and have it rub.

Here's the link.

I just looked and Dogstar's wheels are 17x8 with a 45mm offset. I'm thinking if those are fine than the 48mm offset might work too.

This post has been edited by alex2006sonata: Jun 28 2008, 06:49 AM

If the +45 fits without rubbing, I'm sure another 0.118" isn't gonna hurt anything. Good choice BTW - those are some really nice looking wheels.

I don't recall exactly, but I've got something like 1/2-3/4" between the strut and wheel with my setup.
You should be fine, and it'll look great.

Received email today showing scheduled delivery is Monday 7/7 for the wheels. I was really hoping to get them Thursday, but I guess I'll have to wait one more weekend.

I am supposed to receive the headlights on Thursday. Pics will be posted after I install them :460:

Ixion grill from KAI is on backorder. Their ETA is 7/18, so hopefully they get it by then.

Spoiler went out today too. Now I just need to figure out what shop I am going to have install it, as I really don't feel comfortable drilling into the car.

I absolutely can't wait. I feel like a little kid on christmas :banana:

Heres where my budget went to:
Headlights - $242 less $10 coupon from ebay on shipping = $232
Spoiler - $124 less $10 coupon from ebay on shipping = $114
Wheels - $1,089 less 10% coupon off item from ebay = $1,004
Grille - $207
Total - $1,557 ($57 over budget) With the coupons from ebay I basically got the spoiler for free!!!! All those prices include shipping too. And to think I was just going to order wheels for $1,500. Overall I'm very happy with the choices.


This post has been edited by alex2006sonata: Jul 1 2008, 09:32 PM

i think you'll be pretty happy with the results.. will almost look like a completely different car... i think those pieces (minus the grille, which i dont particularly care for - but that's just me) will look pretty good.. the wheels, lights and spoiler...

congrats, and you know you have to post pics of everything when its all done... (before and after pics from the same angles of course).. LOL :thumbsup:


edit - that particular grille doesnt look too bad...

This post has been edited by ddix1026: Jul 2 2008, 08:22 AM