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By Shahin Fard
Wheels can make a huge difference to how a car looks and equally how it performs. It’s one of the most common modifications and often one of the first steps down that slippery slope into vehicle customisation and modification.
There are thousands of wheel options for cars, and to the inexperienced, it can be a minefield to get your head around wheel offsets, PCD’s, wheel staggers, double staggers (yes it’s a thing).
OEMs used to produce ugly steel pressed wheels with plastic hubcaps which were made to imitate alloy wheels. Today the vast majority of car manufacturers now equip alloy wheels as standard for cars for both looks and performance.
Alloy wheels originally came from motorsport, due to their improved performance over steel wheels. As with a lot of motorsport parts, they made their way to the aftermarket industry, and then into OEM (Originally Equipped Manufacturer) cars. At the time of writing this article wheels can be bought as cheap as a few hundred pounds, to over fifteen thousand pounds for a set of carbon fibre wheels.
Alloy wheel technology has moved on greatly. Alloy wheels can be made as strong as steel wheels whilst weighing less. This reduction in rotating mass improves both performance and handling and increases the lifespan of other drive-train components. The other advantage of alloy wheels apart from the weight and strength is heat dissipation. If you have ever touched a set of alloy wheels after a car has been around a race track they will be extremely hot, this is heat transferred from the braking system. Alloy wheels act as a heat sink spreading heat away from the braking system.
Manufacturers do not openly publish the exact chemical composition of their alloy wheels as it’s a safeguarded secret. However according to BS 1490:1988 the most common materials used in wheels are aluminium, magnesium, manganese, copper, silicon, nickel, and titanium. This unique blend of materials creates a strong alloy wheel which is lightweight.
Exotic car manufacturer Pagani use carbon fibre, which is exceptionally light and strong, however, it is far from cheap. We found an aftermarket set of Carbon Fibre wheels for a Nissan GTR costing $15k!
Forged wheels are much more expensive than cast alloy wheels. The Nissan GT-R comes with forged wheels as standard, this is because the car is capable of such high lateral G’s (sideways movement) that anything but using forged wheels could break causing catastrophic failure.
Forged wheels start off as a solid piece of cast metal, or more commonly known as a billet block. This billet block undergoes extensive heat and pressure changing the molecular structure of the wheel making it stronger. After this it’s milled on a computer controlled CNC machine to get the final wheel design.
With a forged wheels increased strength less material is needed to create a wheel of similar strength to an equivalent cast wheel, saving in excess of 30% in weight. By saving weight, less rotational force is needed to both accelerate and decelerate the wheel and tyre.
Unlike forged wheels, casting is a cheaper manufacturing process. Basically, cast metal is heated until it is molten and then it is poured into a cast in the shape of an alloy wheel.
There are two main types of casting methods used in the production of alloy wheels.
Forging wheels creates super light wheels which can be easily produced in Monoblock (one-piece). However that process limits the range of width and offsets requiring new casts for each.
To give manufacturers the ability to produce wheels with different widths and offsets, the 3 piece wheel was introduced. For example the Work Equips are a 3 piece wheel, compromising of a Barrel (inner), Centre (spokes) and Outer Lip. Each of these can be changed enabling a wide variety of wheel offsets, widths and designs.
2-piece wheels are similar to 3-piece with the exception that the centre and barrel are made together with the outer lip being the part that can be changed. An example of this is the Weds Kranze LXZ.
Popular finishes include painting, powder coating, anodising or chroming. Painted wheels is the least expensive and will require several layers of protective clear lacquer. Powder Coating process is a lot tougher and common on aftermarket wheels. Anodising and Chroming is more exotic and comes with a premium price tag.
Powder coating wheels involves putting the wheels in an acid bath, or using a sandblaster to remove all the existing paint, dirt and grime. The wheels are then cleaned thoroughly ready for powder coating. The wheels are put in an oven and pre-heated. Once the wheels reach a set temperature a powdercoating gun is use, then the wheel is reheated.
Replacing your OEM wheels with aftermarket wheels is definitely on the list for most car enthusiasts. There are thousands of wheel options from mild to wild to suit everyones taste. Please check out our huge range of Alloy Wheels and Tyres!
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Shah is the founder of Compare.Parts, a pioneering marketplace dedicated to performance car parts. With a lifelong passion for automotive engineering and customisation, Shah's expertise spans decades, from hands-on builds to innovative solutions for enthusiasts and professionals. A recognised authority in the performance car community, he has built and owned some of the most iconic high-performance vehicles, including a 660bhp R35 GT-R, a 950bhp R33 Skyline GT-R, and a meticulously crafted HKS-inspired RB26-powered Altezza. Shah's deep technical knowledge and commitment to excellence drive Compare.Parts’ mission to empower car enthusiasts worldwide.