About Wheel Rims

Your car may have a powerful engine, great body and trim, but without wheel rims, all that would be of no use. Wheel rims are designed not only to fit a tire on so your car can roll down the road, but to withstand acceleration, braking and sudden turns while adding style and personality to the vehicle.

Identification

The wheel rim is the metal wheel upon which a tire is mounted. Rims designed for passenger vehicles come with a deep recess in the middle to make tire installation and removal easier. When the bead ring of a tire is installed into the wheel, it drops into the center and the opposite tire bead can be forced into the wheel. Then the tire is inflated using the wheel valve mounted on the side of the rim.

Features

A regular rim is formed around the outer edge of the wheel. The center piece, also called a spider, comes with lug bolt holes to mount the wheel over the vehicle hub. If you look closely, a line or strip raises around the rim or lip of the wheel. This ridge is a safety aid to hold the tire beads inside the wheel in case the tire blows out or develops a leak as the car rolls down the road.

Types

Wheel rims made of magnesium or cast aluminum are known as mag wheels or mags, and they are installed without covers. Many mags designed for sport vehicles feature wide openings to help cool the brake disc and pads mounted over the wheel assembly.

Considerations

However, wheel rims do not have to be boring or ugly; you can add to your car's look with the right set of wheel covers. These special covers come in different sizes to hide the center or the whole wheel. However, be careful as you remove and install them. Pry around and between the cover and the wheel carefully until the cover comes loose. To install a cover, just place and hold it firmly with your hand over the wheel rim, making sure the valve stem is sticking out through the cover. Strike lightly around the cover using a rubber hammer until it falls in place.

Warning

A common problem associated with wheel rims is tire vibration, which you can feel on the steering wheel or the center of the car, specially when driving at speeds between 20 and 70 mph. This vibration may be caused by excessive tire runout, but also by a bent rim-in which case it needs to be replaced-or a tire and wheel assembly out of balance. In this case, a tire shop can fix the problem by adding small lead weights to the rim to balance the wheel and tire assembly.