Enkei Wheels Review: Are They Good Or Are They Reps?
If you have spent any time in the car world at all, watched almost any motorsport or looked at buying wheels, you will have heard the name Enkei.
Enkei are one of the biggest wheel manufacturers on the planet, producing wheels for OEMs, tuning and motorsports.
The question is, however, just how good are their wheels?
In this guide, we’ll take a look at Enkei detail, and I’m going to give you everything you need to know about them and their wheels.
Who Are Enkei?
Founded in 1950 in Sinzuoka, Japan, Enkei (pronounced “En-Kay”) are one of the biggest wheel producers on the planet, making around 25 million wheels per year (that’s about 68,500 per day!).
Enkei produce wheels for OEM car manufacturers, a huge number of aftermarket wheels and wheels for motorsport.
They have been heavily involved in motorsport for the last 3 decades, with their most notable contribution being the official wheel supplier to the McLaren Formula 1 team since 1995.
They also actively supply wheels to many other club level and top tier motorsports including rallying, drifting, sportscar and single seater racing.
Enkei put a large emphasis on the quality of their wheels, with a strong focus on making them lightweight, strong and durable.
They have practically all certifications they can get including Q9000, ISOs, JWL and more, but they don’t stop there. Enkei have their own standard called Spec-E that includes a range of tests that exceed all the industry certifications to ensure their wheels are absolutely top quality, similar to other top of the line wheel brands like Rays Engineering and Work.
Enkei has factories all over the world including Japan, Thailand, USA, Germany, China, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, India & Vietnam, and they put great effort into ensuring that the quality is always the same no matter where they are produced.
However, what sets Enkei apart from many of the other best wheel brands is that unlike many of the other brands who produce expensive forged wheels, Enkei wheels are actually affordable.
They are able to do this because they have developed several manufacturing technologies which allow them to produce extremely high quality and lightweight wheels for a much lower cost than forged wheels.
How Enkei Wheels Are Made
Enkei have developed two main technologies for producing their wheels – Durville Die Casting and the MAT Process. When these two processes are combined, they result in a very strong yet lightweight wheel that is far cheaper to produce than a forged wheel.
Durville Die Casting
Durville Die Casting is a process where molten aluminium is poured into a mold from the inner rim side, with the wheel face facing downwards. The aluminium is then rapidly cooled (known as “quenching”) and solidifies, starting with the face.
This process is a form of heat treating and created a finer metallic structure which results in significantly higher tensile strength, making the wheels stronger and stiffer.
This process is used to make the wheel faces and material for the barrel, which is then put through the MAT process.
MAT Process
The MAT Process is similar to flow forming, the cast face is placed on a mandrel and spun at high speed while rollers apply pressure to form the barrel.
This process creates a “metal flow” in the structure of the metal and is somewhat similar to the forging process, making the wheel significantly stronger than regular casting.
The benefit of using this process is that it results in a wheel that is similar in both weight and strength to a forged wheel, while being much more affordable to produce and giving more freedom with the design of the wheel face.
Designed For Stiffness
Enkei also puts a great deal of thought and development into the design of their wheels to ensure they are as stiff as possible.
Generally, to create a wheel that maintains stiffness under force, more material must be applied in the area of the direction opposite the force. The problem is that this means more weight is added to the wheel.
However, due to Enkei’s extremely large accumulation of wheel design data, and by using 3D computer engineering simulations, they have been able to design wheels with the proper layout and cross section shape of the spokes and rim profile to ensure that the wheel will maintain maximum stiffness without extra weight being added.
This is the benefit of having so much experience designing wheels, particular in motorsport where they can collect the data to produce these kinds of technologies.
Enkei Wheel Lines
Enkei have made hundreds if not thousands of wheel designs over the years. Currently, they have 6 main lines of wheels that they produce.
Racing Series
The Racing Series are probably Enkei’s best known lineup with the extremely popular RPF1s being part of these.
These wheels are designed for performance and for use on both the street and track. They currently have 15 designs in this line, each of which has been carefully constructed for a specific purpose to provide excellent performance and strength.
The RPF1 for instance, came from Formula 1 technology, and the twin spoke design is specifically used to achieve better stress dispersion under hard cornering and heavy braking.
If you are intending to spend a lot of time at the track, the Enkei Racing Series wheels are a fantastic option and one of the best value for money wheels you are going to find.
Racing Revolution Series
These are Enkei’s most advanced wheels and are made using a process called MAT Dura II. I couldn’t find any information about what exactly this is, but it seems to a be a slighter more advanced version of the MAT Process I mentioned earlier.
These wheels only come in 3 designs and are basically made to be the top performance wheels. A distinct feature of these wheels is they come in a range of concave face options, called Front Face, Mid Face and Rear Face, depending on how deep they are.
Basically, if you are after super high performance wheels, these are it.
Tuning Series
The Tuning Series wheels are designed primarily with street cars in mind and feature a range of designs that are popular with street car tuners.
Never the less, these wheels are made suing the same technologies as all of Enkei’s wheels, ensuring high strength and lightweight to give you excellent performance.
There are 19 different designs to choose from in the Tuning series including the popular Raijin wheel, with a wide range of sizes and PCDs to suit practically any car.
Classic Series
The Classic Series are a remake of old school wheels that Enkei used to make that were so popular that Enkei put them back into production.
Right now these include the very popular Enkei 92 as well as the Compe, both of which are designed to suit classic cars with low offsets and deep lips and come in 15” diameters, with the Compe’s also being available in 16”.
If you are looking for modern lightweight wheels that match the look of your classic car, these are a fantastic choice.
Performance Series
Designed with modern performance cars in mind, these wheels feature more complex and bolder designs in larger sizes to suit newer vehicles.
Made with the same focus on quality, stiffness and lightweight, these wheels offer an “OEM plus” look while giving your car an extra bit of performance over the factory wheels.
These wheels are available in 26 different designs, making them suitable for many different vehicles from performance sedans to SUVs.
Truck & SUV
Designed specifically for large vehicles like trucks, SUVs and 4x4s, the Truck & SUV Series wheels come in 5 and 6 hole PCDs and a wide range of sizes to suit both road and off-road vehicles.
Tough, durable lightweight wheels are just as important off-road as they are on, and this wheel series will ensure you have some of the best wheels possible on your vehicle no matter where you intend to go. Whether you are after show or go, there is a wheel in this lineup to suit you.
GET ENKEI WHEELS HERE FOR THE BEST PRICE
Discontinued Enkei Wheels
Over the years, Enkei has made hundreds if not thousands of wheel designs, and many of these have been discontinued and are no longer in production (probably a good thing in some cases as you are able to see).
While I can’t list every single discontinued Enkei wheel, I will include some notable mentions:
J Speed IIIs
“Spiders”
RT6
Arashi
EK98
Popular Enkei Wheels
Since there are so many Enkei wheels and I can’t include them all, I thought it fair to include a list of some of the most popular Enkei wheels.
Enkei RPF1 Review
Probably the most popular wheel from Enkei, the RPF1s use the twin 6 spoke design that Enkei used for the Formula 1 wheels.
These wheels were produced directly off the technology from the Formula 1 wheel, with the twin 6 spoke design used to achieve better stress dispersion under heavy cornering and hard braking.
The simple yet classic look of these wheels, along with their light weight, excellent quality and low price have made these wheels one of the most popular on the marketing.
They are the go-to choice for people who don’t have the money to spend on wheels like Volks but are looking for light and durable wheels they can use on the track.
The RPF1s are available in many different sizes and fitments so no matter what car you have, chances are there is a set that will fit perfectly.
GET ENKEI RPF1 WHEELS HERE FOR THE BEST PRICE
Enkei Raijin Wheels Review
Enkei Raijins are another popular wheel which is made for larger more modern cars and is part of the Tuning wheel series.
These wheels feature a cross-spoke design similar to BBS wheels, and are designed to be a lightweight street wheel that will help you accelerate and brake faster and get better fuel economy.
These are made in 18 and 19” diameters and 8-10.5” widths with a variety of offsets to suit many different vehicles. They come in a range of finishes including Silver, Black, Matte Gunmetal, Copper or Bronze.
GET ENKEI RAIJIN WHEELS FOR THE BEST PRICE HERE
Enkei Compe Wheels Review
The Compe wheels are from the Classic wheel series and are specifically design to suit 70s, 80s and 90s Japanese cars like the Datsun 240Z, Mazda Miata, Toyota AE86 and more.
Featuring a classic stepped lip and thick 8 spoke designs, these wheels are based on the classic wheel design popular in previous decades, when import car racing was at its peak.
These are available in 15 and 16” diameters in a range of widths and offsets from 0 to 38, making them suitable for a wide range of cars.
GET ENKEI COMPE WHEELS FOR THE BEST PRICE HERE
Enkei GTC01 Wheels Review
The GTC01 is a very popular wheel made by Enkei that is made for drivers looking to get the best handling and performance from their car.
One special feature these wheels have is a twin valve system that allows you to accurately monitor the tire pressure while simultaneously adjusting it on the second valve.
The spokes on these wheels feature a light-weight pocket design which is shaved from the sides of the spokes. This technique was actually made for the McLaren Mercedes Formula 1 car, and relieves wheel stress while making the wheel lighter.
It’s clear that these wheel were made for people serious about performance, and they come in range of diameters from 17-20” and widths from 7-10.5”, making them suitable for a wide range of cars.
These wheels are also the base of the GTC01RR wheel which is an ultra-high performance version.
GET ENKEI GTC01 WHEELS FOR THE BEST PRICE HERE
19 inch Enkei Wheels
19 inch isn’t an incredibly popular size when it comes to Enkei wheels, with many of their most famous models not available in this size.
However, they do make some 19” wheels, and here is the list of models currently available:
GTC02
PX-10
4 Lug Enkei Wheels
Enkei make many very popular 4 lug wheels which are particular popular on older Japanese and European cars. Here are some of their most popular models currently available:
5×114.3 Enkei Wheels
5×114.3 is the most popular PCD, with the majority of Japanese cars along with a wide range of other vehicles using this pattern. With that being the case, almost every Enkei wheel is made in this PCD, giving you a very wide selection when it comes to their wheels.
Here are some of the most popular 5×114.3 Enkei wheels:
Enkei 5 Spoke Wheels
Enkei have made many popular 5 spoke wheels. 5 spoke wheels are some of the most popular because of their simple yet classic design that works with almost any car. Here are some of Enkei’s most popular 5 spoke wheels:
VR5
RP03
Enkei 6 Spoke Wheels
If one thing Enkei is known for, it’s their 6 spoke wheels. They have used the twin 6 spoke design with much success on both street and motorsport wheels. Along with that, they also make a range of single 6 spoke wheels as well. Here are some of their most popular 6 spoke wheels:
T6S
Conclusion – Should You Buy Enkei Wheels
Short answer – Yes! Enkei are one of the best wheel producers on the planet, making not only some of the best wheels in terms of quality and performance, but also extremely good value for money.
Enkei has really made themselves stand out by make affordable wheels in a huge range of options and designs which suit a wide range of people, cars and uses, making them extremely popular.
But overall, what really makes them good is that their wheels are quality. When you buy Enkei wheels, you know you are getting a quality wheel that is made to the highest standard possible.
I would not hesitate to put Enkei wheels on my car and am happy to recommend them as a fantastic, affordable wheel option especially if you want lightweight wheels for track use.
GET ENKEI WHEELS FOR THE BEST PRICE HERE
Some FAQ About Enkei Wheels
Is Enkei a Good Brand?
Yes, Enkei is a good brand. In fact, Enkei wheels are some of the best wheels in the world, and Enkei is one of the biggest wheel produces currently in existence, making wheels for OEM, aftermarket and top teir motorsport including Formula 1.
Are Enkei Wheels Good?
Yes, Enkei wheels are very good. Enkei wheels are actually some of the best quality wheels you can get. They are strong, lightweight and durable, making them good for both street and track use.
Are Enkei Wheels Reps?
No, Enkei wheels are not rep wheels. While some of Enkei’s wheels do look similar to other wheel brands, Enkei are an original wheel manufacturer who produce hundreds of unique wheel designs, most of which are based on their own R&D in motorsport.
Where Are Enkei Wheels Made?
Enkei wheels are made all over the globe. Enkei has wheel factories in Japan, Thailand, USA, Germany, China, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, India & Vietnam.
Are Enkei Wheels Forged?
No, Enkei currently does not make forged wheels. Their wheels are made using a process that combines casting and flow forming called Durville Die Casting and MAT Process which produces wheels which are very close to forged wheels in terms of weight and strength, but are much cheaper to produce.
Are Enkei Wheels Real?
Yes, Enkei wheels are real. Enkei are one of the top wheel manufacturers on the planet, and they produce some of the highest quality wheels available.
Are Enkei Wheels Expensive?
No, Enkei wheels are not very expensive. In fact, Enkei wheels are some of the best value for money wheels you can buy. They are similar in quality and weight to forged wheels, but cost significantly less, sometimes up to 6x less than a set of forged wheels.
Who Makes Enkei Wheels?
Enkei make their own wheels, and have their own wheel manufacturing facilities all over the world in up to 19 different countries.
Enkei Tuning Vs Performance Wheels
The choice between Enkei’s Tuning Vs Performance wheels really comes down to personal preference. The biggest difference between these wheels is the design, as both lines are made to be very high quality, strong and lightweight.
Are Enkei Wheels Cast?
Yes, Enkei wheels are cast, to a degree. Enkei uses a two-step process which combines a cast wheel center with a special flow forming technique to make wheels which are lighter and stronger than regular cast wheels.
Is Enkei German?
No, Enkei is not German. Enkei is a Japanese wheel brand, though they do have a facility in Germany.
Does Enkei Make Forged Wheels?
No, Enkei currently does not make forged wheels. Enkei using a combination of Durville Die Casting and MAT Process (a form of flow forming) to create their wheels, which results in a wheel that is very close to a forged wheel in terms of strength, quality and weight, but is far cheaper to produce.
Does Enkei Make 3 Piece Wheels?
No, Enkei currently does not make 3 piece wheels. However, in the past, Enkei has produced many 3 piece wheels designs including the Aegis, EK98, Apache and more.
GET ENKEI WHEELS FOR THE BEST PRICE HERE
Cars owned: Mk2 Golf with 1.8T swap, BMW E28 with M30B35 swap, BMW E36 328I Mtech, BMW 750IL, Nissan 300ZX, Honda Civic EF
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