For the first time in a very long time, Mugen authorized and delivered on a re-release of its classic Mugen M7 wheel, but fans are still upset for a specific reason.
Earlier last year King Motorsports confirmed they’re re-releasing the iconic Mugen M7 wheel and now it’s here. Earlier this week Mugen announced on social media and their official website the availability of the Mugen M7 V2, a wheel that’s been in development for its own comeback for the past two years.
Check out their announcement below.
“After two years of planning and development, we are very pleased to announce the release of the new Mugen M7v2 wheel. The specs on this exclusive King Motorsports release is an aggressive 16×8 +42 with 5×114.3 bolt pattern. Constructed from a 1 piece forged aluminum billet, this wheel passes all current Japanese road and safety standards. The finish is a brilliant diamond cut with a durable clear coat giving it a unique glow. Each wheel weighs in at 17.5 lbs.
Made and designed in Japan using original Mugen M7 design team members from the 90’s gives this wheel a historic link to the original M7. Each wheel comes complete with stainless hardware, center cap and valve stems. This is a limited production wheel and will only be available while supplies last. “
According to their limited production run guidelines, there’s only one size you can get, a 16×8 +42 with a 5×114.3 bolt pattern.
For car enthusiasts, especially Honda aficionados, this is an ideal wheel size, width, offset, and bolt pattern for many golden era Honda builds these wheels will most likely go on.
Each wheel weighs just 17.5 pounds.
Pricing before shipping is $875 per wheel.
Fans of this blog might’ve caught on to the one condition of this wheel’s re-release that could cause a small problem and it looks like it is….sort of.
Last year, King Motorsport’s owner said that
It is important to keep in mind the evolution of wheel standards and safety regulations that have progressed since 1992. The original M7 would not, sadly, stand up to today’s standards and regulations.
The last time Mugen made those iconic OG wheels was in the mid-90’s.
You have to understand that the original Mugen M7 wheels are true multi-piece wheels. Those bolts you see on the original M7’s are real deal bolts and are not decorative at all, they hold the Mugen M7’s billet aluminum face.
This new Mugen M7 V2 is NOT a multi-piece wheel, it’s a one piece forged aluminum wheel. Functionally, this wheel is lighter, stronger, and a modern take on a classic design but the bolts on these wheels are purely decorative. That fact is leaving a bad taste in some enthusiast’s mouth.
Arguably, this is not the first time this has been done before as replica wheel makers with their own Mugen M7 copies are also one-piece.
Here are a couple of quotes from @StickyDilJoe’s post on this heated topic.
“The OGs will not agree. But some will be happy about the wheels they could never have is possible. Can’t make everyone happy .“
“They need to remove the bolts. 1 piece wheels don’t need them. These are simply a replica m7 wheel.”
“I think the reasons they stated for going one piece are valid, but I feel doing fake bolts is kinda lame. They could have just left the bolts off and had an “inspired” wheel as a throwback. “
And here’s the view JDM wheel purists don’t want to see.
View post on imgur.com
Personally, yes, this one-piece drama does leave a sour taste in my mouth but honestly this somewhat medium-sized difference won’t matter.
From five inches away, you probably can’t tell the difference between V1 and V2 versions, only those that bought the wheels would know.
And, it’s an official Mugen wheel made in limited amounts. This wheel will hold its value, no problem. The fact that it’s a functionally better wheel just might tip the scale in favor of just buying these new wheels rather than trying to source older M7’s to stay true to its original multi-piece design.
We should be so lucky that these blasts from the past are even being made.
One-piece? No big deal.
By the time you finish reading this blog post, they’re probably all sold out anyway.
