Supa Quick Company Profile

Car wheels are divided into two main categories, steel wheels and alloy wheels. Alloy wheels are often fitted standard during the manufacturing of modern vehicles.

Steel Wheels

All steel wheels consist of two pressed components, the Rim and the Wheel Disc, which are welded together. The Rim is the part on which the tyre is mounted. Its dimensions, shape and condition must be suitable to satisfactorily accommodate the particular tyre required for the vehicle. The Wheel Disc is the supporting member between the vehicle hub and the rim. Its dimensions, shape and location in the rim, must be suited to the design of the wheel hub and the suspension geometry of the vehicle to which it has to be mounted.

The purpose of the rim is to provide a firm base on which to fit the tyre. Four vital dimensions are involved. They are the rim diameter (a precise fit between tyre and rim is of utmost importance), the rim width, the flange height( designed to give adequate support to the tyre beads without changing the flex area of the sidewall) and the rim-well ( to facilitate the easy mounting and demounting of the tyre).

Because the inside diameter of the tyre must fit precisely onto the rim, it would be impossible for the inside diameter of the tyre to pass over the larger diameter of the rim without causing damage to the beads. Forcing the tyre bead into the rim-well opposite to the fitting-head of the machine during the fitting or removal process, allows the tyre bead enough purchase to pass over the rim flange.

Alloy wheels

Alloy wheels are often incorrectly referred to as Magnesium or "Mag" wheels. Low pressure, die-casted aluminum alloy wheels are used and offer certain benefits over steel wheels. It is possible to design alloy wheels that allow for a better airflow over the brakes and that are also slightly lighter and visually more appealing than steel wheels. Because alloy is lighter than steel, wider rims can be used without sacrificing unsprung weight.

Off the shelf wheels

Steel dies are used in the casting of alloy wheels and cost thousands of rands to make. Often one might find that one mould is used to produce wheels for two or three different models. Several problems arise here and centre-bores that are too large will cause balancing problems. It is important to establish that the off-the-shelf rim is approved by the vehicle manufacturer. There several reputable and professional wheel suppliers in the market and it is advisable to deal with them.