17"wheels

in looking at available 17" wheels to be used with winter tires I noticed a big difference in price. Is there a significant difference between for example the "fox" wheels, the miglia,at italia, techno,etc. which were shown on the Tiretrack website? Thanks!

Like anything else, different brand wheels are made differently. Some are heavier, others are made with inferior materials. Sometimes you can get a very good wheel for cheap, but I think the rule of thumb is that you get what you pay for.

Now, does that mean you shouldn't buy a wheel for less than $200? $500? $1000? No. Just base your decision on what you want it for. For snow tire use, a cheaper wheel is probably fine. If you want to track the car, don't bother with the $150 Fox 5. (But then again... there'd be a cheap wheel you didn't need to worry about wrecking.)

Edit: BTW, have you considered some of the 16" wheel options? You'd save a little money on the wheel, and tires are cheaper too for the same tire. Got 16" AT Italia Type 5's on my car for the winter... see them on Tire Rack's website.