Beauty more than rim deep

Chad Bryan, Sunday Gleaner Writer

Rims tend to add glamour to a motor vehicle, coming in an assortment of styles, colours and designs that turn heads once they are installed and the ride is seen on the road. However, having the right type of rims - with the correct weight and fit - seem to be more important than whether it can spiral when the car is in motion and how wide it is.

Corporate sales manager of Tyres-R-Us, Ruel White, pointed out that there are three things people should consider when purchasing rims.

"When changing
rims, people need to consider the size, the offset, and the style. Most
people, when changing their rims, more often than anything else they
like the look of it. So predominantly, it's the style. But some of the
key things to remember are the size and the offset," White
said.

The offset is the distance from the mounting
surface of the wheel to the true centreline of the rim. According to the
Canadian Tire website, having a positive offset means the surface of
the wheel is positioned in front of the true centreline of the rim,
which in effect brings the tyre more into the wheel well. A negative
offset will cause the tyre to stick out away from the
wheel.

As White puts it, "Offset tells you how far
under the body of the car the rim goes. If you have a car, say for
example a Toyota, the Toyota uses a 40-42 offset, so if you get a rim
less than the 40, say 35, unless it is a rear wheel drive what you will
have is the tyre rubbing against the body of the
vehicle".

He also said that when people are selecting
rims, they often neglect size.

"Most people look for
the style of the rim and do not consider the size. More often than not,
people will oversize the vehicle and, because of its look, they will
undersize it as well," he said.

"They should look at
the stock size of the tyre. For instance, if the vehicle comes with a
particular size, any size that you are replacing the rim or tyre with
must be that of equal height and offset," White
said.

Some of the most popular rims are the League and
Hijoin models, White said. He also said that the TSW and Konig are
among the top-end brands. Rims made of titanium alloy are also better,
as these are not as heavy as stock rims, which are made of forged
steel.

Kyle Gregg of B.D. Gregg and Brothers Ltd,
distributors of custom automobile rims, tyres and Tein suspensions,
believes that the quality of the rim is important. "If one buys a cheap
wheel, the rim won't last long when you hit a pothole," Gregg
said.

He pointed out that TSW, Vossen, Konig, Maxxim,
Ultra and Black Rhino are the most popular types of rims. Gregg also
said that alloy-based rims are better, due to their
strength.