In the news; BBS goes bankrupt [again]

[Francois Dillinger]

i had a set of bbs rs's a little while back. always wanted a set as they are the top notch wheel. got ahold of some and they were 15x6.5 completely redone to brand new. now with this said i was SO happy I got them as they looked sick...... i sold them away in a month. the sizing stock is nothing special and to get a "dope" set you have to pay over a grand for the wheels, then another 600 for some lips, and then another 3-400 on ok tires. they are not worth it in the end to throw all that money to one set, when quite frankly im a wheel whore. wheels alone makes a whole new car and its the easiest change to be made

Anyone else see the self contradiction?

Anyway, in for future entertainment.

[Kielan]

I refuse to get involved further than this. I always say the same thing, and it always falls on deaf ears. Buying used, is not NEARLY as damaging as buying replicas, period.

[J.Wolfe]

i had a set of bbs rs's a little while back. always wanted a set as they are the top notch wheel. got ahold of some and they were 15x6.5 completely redone to brand new. now with this said i was SO happy I got them as they looked sick...... i sold them away in a month. the sizing stock is nothing special and to get a "dope" set you have to pay over a grand for the wheels, then another 600 for some lips, and then another 3-400 on ok tires. they are not worth it in the end to throw all that money to one set, when quite frankly im a wheel whore. wheels alone makes a whole new car and its the easiest change to be made

[northmiler89]

If anyone says that buying reps doesn't hurt the real companies after this, you need to hit yourself in the face. HARD.

problem is boss, those of us who on occasion buy reps either a. cant afford the real thing in the first place b. change our minds so often it will cost us 832u949823421$$$ c. change cars often, setups, the works...

I dont buy $3-5k sets of wheels because i dont usually keep my cars very long and have to deal with the hassle of trying to sell a set of wheels the cost of a lot of cheap cars.

Also, if you blame guys who buy reps, I blame guys who buy used wheels. If you dont buy them new from the manufacture then you arent aiding to their R&D. If they want to make $ bring the RS's back and allow custom everything for them like CCW so we dont all have to scavenge for 10-15yr old wheels.

This is no ones fault but their own. I know of very few guys on this board that have bought brand new BBS. Fuck, off the top of my head i cant think of anyone i know that has bought new BBS. Lots of used ones and lots of new rotas, VMRs, TR motorsports, etc.. I know a few guys who bought new works but thats about it

[Kielan]

If anyone says that buying reps doesn't hurt the real companies after this, you need to hit yourself in the face. HARD.

[01lexpl]

BBS is a staple. An icon. If you're into European cars and you're not aware of BBS wheels then you're not really into European cars. The German wheel manufacturer may not be the cheapest but it has represented high quality performance wheels for decades often with its signature mesh-style designs most iconically represented by the classic RS 2 (shown above). Alas though, it seems BBS could be one for the history books.

The Frankfurt Allgemeine's FAZ.net website is reporting this morning that the German wheel manufacturer filed for bankruptcy on December 30. Interestingly, this came as a surprise to employees and also apparently for corporate partner IG Metall whose CEO told FAZ just before Christmas that he planned a multi-million dollar investment in the firm.

Also potentially on hold apparently is the move to sell BBS' Herbolzheim factory employing 150 workers to Ronal AG, a move that was announced just last Thursday.

As you may recall, BBS filed for bankruptcy four years ago and has struggled ever since. Still, it survived that tumultuous period and, with luck, this much respected brand will survive another.

Thanks Hans for the tip.

Original link's fucked up. Its from some german site, but the above is a direct translation...

But what do you think? Is this the end of BBS? Are people going to have to settle for reps - ironically the ones putting them [BBS] out of business...