cptsilver

they look different than the ones offered @ Hartmann.

SteveMondragon

I say that for a couple of reasons. The main thing I like about the Stratmosphere wheels is the shape of the wheel/spokes and how the middle part is more recessed into the hub, like the real RS4 wheel. Then the spokes flare outward more and curve into the lip of the rim. On the Hartmann wheels, the middle part of the rim is not recessed and is sticks out further so the spokes are too "flat" looking. You can see it in the pics (much more noticable in person when you have them side by side).

Also the color on the Stratmosphere wheels was a better color. This is just probably my own opinion. It was a darker silver and with more luster where the Hartmann wheels are a light silver with not as much luster in them. So the main thing is when the brake dust gets on the wheels, you don't notice it at all on the Stratmosphere wheels. All it does on the Stratmosphere wheels is make it look not as shiny but it doesn't stand out. With the Hartmann wheels, the brake dust makes the wheel look like a "dark chocolate" color and it is much more noticable looking on the car. Just a peave of mine but it does make a difference when you go from one wheel to the other.

On the plus side for the Hartmann wheels, they are offered in 19" (which look much more aggressive on the car IMO) and are offered in better offsets. Otherwise, if I can find a B7 RS4 rep wheel that has the shape/color of the Stratmosphere wheel and the size/offset of the Hartmann wheel, then it would be golden <img src="http://www.jdm****.com/Icons/emthup.gif">.

Here are some pics I had in the past. I tried to find the pics that showed similar angles so you can see how the spokes are on both wheels. Not the best views but in person it is pretty noticable.

BTW, I'm currently running on the 19" RS4 rep wheels since I sold my 18" wheels. I like the side profile with the 19" wheels on the car but I don't know how long I'll keep these on the car for.



<img src="http://www.jdm****.com/TEMP/B7reps/Hart_1.jpg">

<img src="http://www.jdm****.com/TEMP/B7reps/Strat_1.jpg">



<b>---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</b>



<img src="http://www.jdm****.com/TEMP/B7reps/Hart_2.jpg">

<img src="http://www.jdm****.com/TEMP/B7reps/Strat_2.jpg">



<b>---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</b>



<img src="http://www.jdm****.com/TEMP/B7reps/Hart_3.jpg">

<img src="http://www.jdm****.com/TEMP/B7reps/Strat_3.jpg">

<B>FYI, the pic of the Stratmosphere wheel pic here, I'm using 12mm H&amp;R spacers in the rear there.</B>



And here is a pic I found on another post in here. Neither Strat or Hart wheels are as aggressive lookiing, but you can see that the rim face looks more similar to the Stratmosphere wheel.

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/24218/daytona4.jpg">


<b>---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</b>



<img src="http://www.jdm****.com/TEMP/B7reps/Strat_4.jpg">

chaotic

sorry if you answered that elsewhere it's late and im lazy

T-Top

Dear SteveMondragon, I'm wondering what color is your nice a4? I think your color may be liquid blue but I am not sure. In Canada&amp;US the S-Line option is not available in this color. If you color is liquid blue, can I ask how you manage to have S-Line body styling on your car?

thank you

have a good day

The Chef.

1.5K for wheels or 4K.

cptsilver

that's exactly why I asked where you got the wheels, cos I noticed that yours looked more similar to the real ones. Do you happen to know if those wheels are similar in weight? Are both wheels pretty close in terms of the quality made? Also, do you have photos of your Stratmosphere's on the car before adding the spacers?

Thanks again for your write-up.

kvanwagoner

Looks Quartz Gray to me

SteveMondragon

<a href="http://www.audizine.com/forum/showthread.php?s=f33497322ddc3887bc417a6575918945& threadid=86699">An AZ member with the real B7 RS4 wheels on his B7 S4</a>

Well 2 reasons why I didn't go OEM. 1) Nobody was selling them yet, not up until about a few weeks ago and I've had my reps on since Oct/Nov of last year. And 2) They don't fit that well on the stock body B7. If you check out the pics, the wheels stick out too far. Even if you 'dump' the car, it's not going to tuck as much as you want (I already ran into this problem with other spacers I had when testing them out). So if you car is lowered, it's going to rub quite a bit. If you look at the RS4 body, the flares are huge so it allows for more room with the 29et RS4 wheels. Maybe it's just his choice in tires with 255 wide tires, but eitherway it really doesn't look good IMO.

SteveMondragon

but I kinda wish I had gotten dolphin gray now, or ocean blue if either of them were available when I bought my car =P

SteveMondragon

26 lbs -- 18" stock S-line wheel (RS6 style)

28 lbs -- 18" Stratmosphere B7 RS4 rep wheel

29 lbs -- 19" OEM RS4 wheels

Never weighed the Hartmann 19" rep wheels but I assume they are probably around the 31-34 lbs area.

Here are some pics of the 18" RS4 reps on my car w/out the rear spacers on. If your car is dumped 2" like mine, then you it looks better with spacers on the rear wheels. If your car is stock height or lowered maybe 1" then spacers may not be needed for any visual enhancements.


<img src="http://www.jdm****.com/TEMP/B7reps/temp1.jpg">

<img src="http://www.jdm****.com/TEMP/B7reps/temp2.jpg">