Option — Shōwa Car Tuning & Buyers Guide (2000 Edition)

Used tire and wheel shops take trade-ins from customers and put them out for sale, so inventory turns over quickly. You will not necessarily find what you want every time you stop by. The reliable approach is to visit regularly and ask the shop to contact you as soon as the item you want comes in. You could also check many shops, but popular items sell quickly everywhere, so timing matters. If you ask the shop in advance, you can buy at the right moment. If you find wheels you like at a used-wheel shop, it may be best to buy them right away; people often return later only to discover they are gone. SSR wheels are especially popular now, and many change hands privately, so shops rarely get them. Watanabe and Longchamp wheels also remain popular. If you are interested, buy before they disappear from used-wheel shops!

The two shops featured above can check stock at other locations in their chain or ask partner shops to find wheels that are not in their own inventory. Sometimes they find what you want, and sometimes they do not. In that case, you may have to leave a request and wait patiently. Very unusual sizes and popular, scarce used items can be impossible to predict in terms of availability. One method becoming more common is to buy new wheels and pair them with used tires. Prices for used tires do not vary greatly by grade—perhaps only around 1,000 yen—so you can use high-grip tires at an affordable price. More smart, serious drivers are choosing this approach.