One of the wheel lines we carry needs your help to determine whether they’re going to release this new wheel. We’d like to see how much interested there is, and what you think about the wheel finish. The pictures that we have show the wheel in the black/machined finish. They are also considering a silver/machined finish, and even a brushed aluminum finish like you find on a lot of forged multipiece wheel. This wheel will have a 2 1/2″ lip in the front and a 5″ lip in the rear.
TSW Logo
We are proud to offer our customers the full line of TSW wheels.
Here’s a little info on TSW.
TSW makes the largest range of staggered one piece alloy wheels in the world.We are obsessed about quality and passionate about design. We strive to offer the perfect wheel fit for your vehicle. No matter how beautiful our alloy wheels may be, we feel it is imperative that they fit correctly on your vehicle. To add to our large range of staggered applications we offer a broad range of styles and finishes, including black wheels, hyper silver wheels, machine cut wheels and chrome wheels. Our sizes range from fifteen inch wheels through staggered twenty two inch wheel applications.
Our obsession with quality permeates every aspect of our product. For a smooth ride we have developed centering rings to ensure hub centricity. We machine our wheels to tolerances that far exceed the industry norm. Even our emblems and packaging are scrutinized and obsessed over to ensure that every aspect of every TSW product represents the highest possible quality.
2009 has been an incredibly rough year for the wheel industry, and as a result wheel companies are having to come up with innovative styles to set themselves apart. Tenzo R has consistently done this year after year with their cutting edge designs. This year Tenzo was awarded 3 SEMA Awards for their wheel designs. Here’s a look at what to expect spring 2010.
Concave Wheels
Everything in fashion goes through cycles, and that includes auto fashion!! Custom wheels are very similar to fashionable clothing. They can transform your look from boring to hot! Having a nice set of custom wheels can completely change the look of a car, and help you to stand out from the crowd. They can give you a feeling of confidence, independence, and style just like a pair of expensive shoes, or wrist watch.
Just like clothing fashion, its interesting to watch the evolution of wheel styles. Originally, all the wheels were either polished, chrome, or silver. People where looking for something different. Something that would really contrast with their car, so black wheels with a polished lip came out. Also around the same time, there was a huge infatuation with the deepest lip possible. More recently lots of wheel companies came out with wheels that had spoke inserts which could be custom painted to whatever color the customer liked.
The newest trend are rims with a concave spoke design and we are the Authority on concave wheels. Although its not for everyone, it really does give your car a more aggressive look. Most concave wheels have no lip to accomplish as much of the effect as possible, but there are a few out there that still have a lip. The key to getting more of the concave look depends on the wheel width and offset. The wider the wheel, and the lower the offset, the more concave a wheel design can get. In order to really pull off the concave wheel look, you should really plan on lowering the car with either lowering springs, or a full coilover kit. Here’s some examples of whats available right now. I’m sure with the huge following of this new trend, there are sure to be a lot more options in the coming months.
Here’s a quick look at some of the concave wheel options available now at www.elementwheels.com
Forgestar F14 Matte Black Wheels
Axis Angle Wheels Black
Axis Angle Wheels Black w/Machined Face
Axis Elite Wheels Black w/Machined Face
MRR HR2 Wheels Chrome
MRR HR8 Wheels Black w/Machined Face
Vertini Savari
Vertini Hennessey
Heres a look at the MHT Wheels machine shop located in Southern California. This is where they build all the centers for the Super Exotic MHT Wheel Line. These machines are running 24/7 to keep up with the overwhelming demand for their custom wheels. For more information on MHT Wheels, please visit us at www.elementwheels.com
Elementwheels.com is proud to announce we now carry Forgestar Wheels!! These wheels feature lightweight 1 piece modular forged construction that bring to the table increased strength and an extremely durable lightweight wheel. Forgestar wheels are manufactured using a process called flow forming. This specialized process begins with a low pressure type of casting and uses a special machine that spins the initial casting, heats the outer portion of the casting and then uses steel rollers pressed against the rim area to pull the rim to its final width and shape. The combination of the heat, pressure and spinning create a rim area with the strength similar to a forged wheel.
Here is a video showing a quick glimpse into the flow forming process…
Forgestar currently has 2 models called the F05 and F14. The F05 is a 5 spoke design with polished lip and is available in 3 popular colors, Gunmetal, Machined Black and Piano Black. The F14 is a mesh style wheel and is offered in 4 colors, Gunmetal, Machined Black, Matte Black & Piano Black. Both offer big brake clearance and a wide range of offsets and widths to fit just about any luxury/sports car. For now, they are offered in the most popular size 19″ staggered or non-staggered. Best of all, elementwheels.com is selling these for only $1460 shipped per set!!!!!! So whether you own a 370z, BMW, Mercedes, Audi or Porsche, Forgestar definately has something for you.
-Chris @ Element
Here are some pics from the Forgestar Wheel Gallery (click for larger images):
Here is a brief little write up showing the effect of hubcentric wheel spacers and how they can improve the look and stance of your vehicle. By pushing your wheels out a small amount, anywhere from 5mm to 25mm can make a big difference in the appearance of your car. A lot of people don’t like the “sunken in” look of most wheels once they install them on their car and the way around this is spacers. A lot of manufacturers make their wheels in only a couple different offsets that will fit more of a general range of vehicles. For them, it is cost effective to do this, for example, making a 5×114.3 +35mm offset wheel will fit a LOT of different cars. By adding spacers you are not changing the width of the wheel but the OFFSET. The lower the offset is, the further away from your vehicle’s hub the wheel will sit, making it more flush with the fender. The higher the offset, the further in the wheel sits and tucks inside the fender well more.
Here is one of our good customer’s 1998 Lexus GS400 which has 20×9.5 MRR HR3 wheels at all four corners. The 9.5′s all the way around where chosen instead of 8.5′s up front because the 9.5′s concave in more which looks much better. This GS400 can easily accomodate 9.5′s all the way around without spacers. This car actually has 25mm spacers in the back making this rim essentially a +13mm offset. He has 15mm spacers in the front making the fronts essentially a +23mm offset. This car is lowered quite a bit on Tein Flex coilovers. He is also running a good amount of negative camber so the wheels tuck in nicely. This customer is a perfect example of the type of person that will do whatever it takes to achieve a certain look. Thats how most of the employees here at Element Wheels feel about our own cars too. We like to push the limits of vehicle fitment.
Below are pics of the front of the GS400 before and after we installed Ichiba 15mm Hubcentric Bolt-on spacers.
-Chris @ Element
BEFORE:
15mm Ichiba Version 2 Bolt-On Spacer:
AFTER:
So you’ve just bought that new set of wheels for your ride from the “other guys”. You’re excited, and in anticipation of hitting the streets that very same night to show off your new rollers, you run outside and get your car up on jack stands. You pull the old wheels off, hold your new wheels up, and it hits you. Your stock lug nuts or bolts won’t work, and the wheels aren’t hub centric. You don’t have everything you need to install the wheels on your car. You realize now that you should have gone through Element Wheels.
With a wide range of products and accessories, and with the knowledge our sales reps have, you’ll be sure to get exactly what you need to get you out on the streets tonight. Let’s talk today about the three major accessories you may need to get the look you want.
Lug Nuts or Bolts
Most cars and trucks use lug nuts to hold the wheels in place. The lugs are threaded onto the stud and hold the wheel
in place. Most European cars, such as Audi, Mercedes, and Volkswagen, use bolts to hold the wheel onto the hub. This takes the place of the wheel studs that are on most other makes of cars. Because factory wheels are hub centric, they can use many different styles of lugs to hold the wheels securely to the hub. However, most aftermarket wheels will need to use a conical seat style lug, as displayed in the image to the right. This is used to help center the wheel on the hub, and is true of both lug nuts and lug bolts.
The second major different between lugs is whether a hex style is used or a spline is used. Generally, spline bolts will be much more narrow and are good for dual drilled wheels, as well as wheels that have narrow openings for the lugs. This is most common on “tuner” style wheels such as Tenzo and SportMax. A hex style is used on most single drilled wheels, as well as wheels with larger lug holes. If you’re ever in doubt about which lugs to use, we can help you out.
Hub Rings
Hub rings are another important item to consider when purchasing wheels. If your aftermarket wheels are not hub centric, you’ll be relying on the lugs to both center the wheel and keep it secured to the car. This is known as lug centric. While this is acceptable in most situations, it may cause slight vibrations on some cars. This is where the hub rings come into play. A hub ring is used to center the wheel on the hub, and distribute the weight more evenly across the hub. If you’ve recently installed aftermarket wheels, and you’re getting a vibration, hub rings may be the way to go.
Spacers and Adapters
Spacers and adapters are very similar to each other, and basically serve the same purpose. They space the wheel out from the hub, pushing it out farther and giving a more aggressive look. Spacers come in many different sizes, ranging from 3mm, 5mm, and 7mm, and they just slide over the stock studs and the wheel is bolted on after. These will work for most applications, but you will always need to make sure that you can still get at least six turns of the lugs before they tighten to ensure a proper fit. If they don’t, you may need to upgrade to longer studs or longer bolts.
Adapters serve the same purpose as the spacers, except they usually provide more space such as 20mm, 25mm, and 30mm. These are more popular with the 350z and G35. Adapters will also bolt onto your stock studs, and they have new studs pressed into them. Adapters should always be torqued onto your stock studs by hand to ensure a secure fit. If you do not have a torque wrench, you should contact a shop to install the adapters, or if you live in Arizona, we can install them at our shop here in Tempe, AZ.
There are many different wheel accessories available when you purchase aftermarket wheels, and many are available right here through Element Wheels, however this list just shows the most common accessories as well as how they work. If you are ever in doubt, or feel that you need an accessory to complete your wheel and tire package, feel free to talk to us about it. We’re always here to help.
I know I know. If you’ve been reading the blog, you’ll see that the post below mine makes a rather bold statement. Chris seems to think that the idea of deep lips and hard shine are going out of style. At least that’s what the forums are saying, right?
Well, Ti seems to prove this very wrong with the debut of their new titanium finish lips. This is a new concept in the automotive world, and let’s face it, everyone is looking for a little touch of originality. From the deep 5 spoke Ti5, to the sleek and contemporary TiRM, these wheels have a style for everyone. With a price tag under $300 per wheel, even the backyard racer can turn hopes and dreams into reality with a new set of titanium finish wheels.
With this eye catching style and fresh new look, you’ll have every jaw in the neighborhood hitting the pavement when you roll by.
Be sure to check out the newest wheel from Ti at www.elementwheels.com
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