rx8daniel

We looked at 2005 Toyota Sienna's today. Got a "walk around" of an LE model that had no electrical (not even an interior light would turn on and was on a small 2/10/20amp charger, guessing it'll take a week to get it charged) and the 'new to car sales' sales lady was pointing out highlights of the van, like the rear seats that fold into the floor, crumple zones, clear fluid containers, etc. She said something interesting about the alloy wheels. First let me say I don't take anything a salesperson seriously if I know better. For example, she was getting information about our current 98 Sienna and asked if it had a V6 or a V8. The only way a minivan in America would have a V8 in it (for 21 years now) is if it came in small glass container and had vegetable juice in it. Anyway - to the question: she said the composition and the larger openings in the wheel design (compared to the standard steel wheels) would allow better brake cooling to keep the disc brakes (aka "rotors") from getting too hot. Not sure that's really a concern on for a typical van owner/driver, but - I thought most brake cooling, if not all, comes from air inside the wheels (and the 81-85 first gen RX-7s had slots in the lower grill to cool the brakes by directing air to that area). I'd think the amount of air coming through even a 5-spoke wheel (similar to the 8's OEM wheel design) would still let in minimal air through the wheel as airflow would mostly go around the tire/wheel. Anyone know differently (I know, most wouldn't care - I was just wondering if she might be right as I think she's full of hot air on that one).