This year the Volk Racing TE37 wheel by Rays Engineering turns 30 years old. To celebrate the most iconic Japanese wheel of the modern age, the TE37 now has its own official holiday in Japan. Appropriately, that date falls on March 7, or 3/7. The TE37 became an instant success upon its release in 1996, but its actual origins go back a little further than that.
Founded in 1973, Rays Engineering was established to make the strongest, lightest wheels on the market. Three-piece wheels like the 1975 Volk Mesh built the brand, and in 1981 they established a racing division to pioneer technologies like forging — where the aluminum alloy is squeezed in a massive press that creates a grain-flow line for strength — in motorsports applications. Rays supplied the Nissan Electramotive team as they rose to IMSA dominance in the 80s and gained worldwide fame when the Mazda 787B, running Volk-branded Rays wheels, won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1991.
Rays would go on to supply wheels for the Japan and British touring car championships, Formula 1 and, in the US, IMSA enduros with prototype racers. It supplied the Acura Spice Engineering team in the early 90s as they competed in the IMSA GTP-Lights class. Look at the car closely and you’ll see a 6-spoke design that would form the basis of the TE37.
The Acura Spice team won the GTP-Lights championship three consecutive years, from 1991-93, winning the 24 Hours of Daytona in both 1991 and 1992 in the process. In 1993 the IMSA success led to the release of Volk Racing’s GTP wheel, advertised as having been developed in the crucible of endurance racing, with a two-piece rim and monoblock, both forged for unmatched strength, and available in the aftermarket to anyone with a credit card.
A one-piece variant, the GTP Daytona, was introduced for a lower cost in 1994. Meanwhile, Rays continued to develop the six-spoke concept for JTCC and BTCC competition, which led to the 1995 release of the Touring Evolution.
Everything changed in 1996 when Rays released the Volk Racing TE37, “TE” for “Touring Evolution” and “37” for the astonishing lightness of a 15-inch by 6.0J wheel, just 3.7 kilograms. Such a minuscule mass was unprecedented for a wheel of that size at the time, yet the TE37’s symmetrically arranged, linear design was strong as well, made possible by of Rays’ experience in forging technology. The price? ¥37,000, of course (approximately $340 in 1996 dollars).
Initially, only a 15-inch was offered. A 16-inch debuted in 1997 and obviously weighed more, but kept the seminal model name. Since then, there have been a seemingly endless variations of the TE37, including but not limited to:
- TE37 Mag (1998), made out of magnesium
- TE37 Gravel (1999), for off-road applications
- TE37 Large PCD (2001), for Porsche and 4WD cars
- LE37T (2002), with machined lip and limited colors
- TE37 Cup (2004), deep lip convex face for smaller cars like the NA Roadster
- Progressive TE (2005), for luxury sedans
- TE37 10th Anniversary Edition (2006)
- TE37 20-inch (2007)
- TE37 SL (2010), “Super Lap” with machining on reverse side of spoke and hub for a 400g weight reduction
- TE37V (2010), for vintage FR cars
- 37ESPCORT (2011), for maximum fuel efficiency
- TE37 TTA (2012), “Tokyo Time Attack” limited edition with diamond-cut lip inspired by the LE37T
- TE37RT (2013), “Rigid Tune” for off-road SUVs
- TE37 Ultra (2014), for 19/20-inch higher load rating applications, like R35 and Porsche
- TE37V SL (2015), lightweight model for vintage FR cars
- TE37 Sonic (2016), for 15/16-inch applications
- TE37 Saga (2017), for 17-inch and above applications
- TE037 Dura (2017), using super duralumin.
- TE37 Saga Time Attack Edition (2019), limited edition with red rim line
- TE37V SL 2021 Limited (2020), limited edition with neon yellow decals
- TE37 Saga S-Plus (2021), updated, stronger Saga
- TE37 Saga SL (2021), lightweight version of Saga S-Plus
- TE37KCR (2022), for kei cars
- TE37 Saga S-Plus Time Attack Edition (2023), limited edition with red rim line and red or aluminum strobe decal
- TE37V 10th Anniversary (2024)
- TE37 Saga S-Plus Centerlock (2024)
- TE37GC (2025), first 23-inch model
And that brings us to 2026 and the 30th anniversary of the everlasting TE37. To mark the occasion, Rays is releasing special editions of the TE37 Sonic (15/16-inch), TE37 Saga S-Plus (17/18-inch), and TE37 Ultra Large PCD.
To pay homage to the revolutionary wheel, all 30th anniversary TE37s will come in two classic colorways, a white finish with “Rays Blue” logos and a bronze finish with black logos. Both are throwbacks to the two color options on the 1996 original that started it all. Both are also available with machined logos, but we think the old school decals are the way to go with these. Each wheel also has “30th Anniversary” machined on the lip by the blue valve.
Last month at the Osaka Auto Messe, the Japan Anniversary Association officially recognized March 7 as TE37 Day. Rays Engineering president Shotaro Shiba, was presented with a certificate at the event. Now, this timeless and renowned wheel that originated in the golden era of tuning will forever be immortalized.
Images: Rays, Autobacs
