WHEEL TALK

When it comes to wheel spacers, you'll quickly discover the majority of people have already made up their mind and have strong opinions of them. On Google, YouTube, and car forums, you will find two groups: those that claim wheel spacers are entirely safe when installed correctly and those that urge others to avoid them like the plague.

Purpose

For most car enthusiasts, spacers are the easiest way to get perfect fitment from their wheels and tires. Wheels tend to be pushed slightly inwards (generally 5mm-30mm) for improved drag and fuel efficiency. This, however, doesn't create a sleek and flushed appearance. The purpose of wheel spacers is to increase the "space" between the wheel and the wheel hub. This pushes the wheels and tires slightly outward.

Wheel spacers are also used for trucks and off-road vehicles. This is also done to increase the clearance and room between the wheel and wheel hub. This is highly beneficial for off-road vehicles because larger off-road tires can be installed. This directly impacts and improves performance, traction, and off-roading capabilities.

Safety

Wheel spacers are safe to install on your vehicle, only if they are properly installed. This entails purchasing high-quality spacers from reputable companies. The wheel spacer should be of appropriate size and should be hub-centric. This means the wheel spacer will fit securely between the wheel and wheel hub. A torque wrench should be used to torque the lug bolts to appropriate tension.

When wheel spacers fail, most of the time it is due to the quality of the wheel spacers themselves. When installing or purchasing spacers, ask if they are cast aluminum, forged aluminum, billet aluminum, steel, or titanium. If you are going to install wheel spacers thicker than 1 inch, we highly recommend installing bolt-on type wheel spacers. They bolt on to the wheel hub, and the wheels bolt on to the wheel spacer.

Durability

If properly installed, then there should be no durability issues. Two common problems people have are the lug nuts becoming loose and ultimately leading to the entire wheel coming off or the wheel studs bending. The only explanation for this is the lug nuts were not torqued properly and the weight of the vehicle was put entirely on the loose wheel bolt(s) and/or wheel stud(s). A wheel stud cannot merely be bent by tightening down a wheel spacer between the wheel and wheel hub.

A common misconception about wheel spacers is the affect they will have on your wheel bearings. If properly installed, wheel spacers will not cause your wheel bearings to fail prematurely or suddenly. As long as high quality wheel spacers are used, and they are of appropriate size for your vehicle, there will be no problems. The hub bores on your wheel hub and wheel should match the hub bore on the spacer.

Precautions

The lug nuts need to be torqued to their required tension. We recommend you get wheel spacers installed at reputable wheel shop. If you are installing these at home, we highly recommend using a torque wrench. As a precaution, we recommend you do a torque check every 25,000 miles. This will catch any loose lug nuts or bolts.

If you are curious about learning more about wheels, please read our previous article on Lugs, Nuts, and Bolts.

Lug nuts, also known as wheel nuts, are used to hold a wheel in place. Your vehicle can have four, five, or six lug nuts. This is dependent on the type of car you have, such as a small economy sedan, SUV, truck, or sports car. As lug nuts are engineered to hold a certain amount of pressure, larger cars will have more lug nuts. Some vehicles come factory-equipped with loose wheel nut sensors. These allow you to know when a lug nut is loose. As the majority of cars are not equipped with such sensors, it is a good idea to check for loose lug nuts as a preemptive measure.

If any loose lug nuts are spotted, you should have them tightened to manufacturer specifications. Use the lug wrench that came with your car and tighten any loose lug nuts. It is highly recommended to use a torque wrench, if available. A torque wrench measures the amount of force applied; therefore, you can rest assured knowing your lug nuts are properly tightened.

If you have lost a lug nut, the pressure asserted from driving around will be distributed to the remaining lug nuts on the wheel. You can safely drive at legal speeds with a missing lug nut; however, you should head to your nearest tire shop as soon as possible. Over time, this excess pressure can wear down the other lug nuts. This can lead to adverse effects on the wheel bearings. Because the wheel bearings will be subjected to more stress, they can wear out prematurely.

A common problem with vehicles missing a lug nut is car wobble. Car wobble and the additional stresses placed on the vehicle as it turns, brakes, and accelerates can cause other issues: the remaining lug nuts can loose, and the wheel studs can break. Wheel studs placed over them and bolted in position using the lug nuts.

If you are driving with a loose lug nut, we recommend you have it tighten as soon as possible. If you are driving with a missing lug nut, it is highly important you have it replaced as soon as possible. It can be potentially dangerous to drive with a missing lug nut because of the extra pressure exerted on the remaining lug nuts. This pressure can damage the lug nuts, wheel studs, and could cause the other lug nuts to loosen.


If you are interested in reading more about how wheels are held in place, check out our article on Lugs, Nuts, and Bolts.

What Is TPMS?
Tire Pressure Monitoring System or TPMS for short refers to the system that monitors your vehicle's tire pressure. This system alerts you when any of 4 tire's pressure drops below the manufacturer's recommended acceptable level. TPMS was first introduced in the 1980s on ultra-luxurious European vehicles. TPMS was introduced to the US with the 1991 Chevy Corvette. Now, all cars sold in the US are required to have TPMS. 

Why Are TPMS Sensors Required?

In 2000, the TREAD (Transportation Recall Enhancement Accountability and Documentation) Act was passed. This Act requires all new cars sold in the US after September 2007 must be equipped with TPMS. The TREAD Act was pushed for approval mainly due to the Ford and Firestone Tire controversy. This was a three year period in which tire tread separation and failure was traced back to over 271 fatalities and over 800 injuries in The US. 

Where Are TPMS Sensors Located?

All new cars have the TPMS sensors located inside each wheel and assembly. The sensors are attached to the valve stem and held in place with a nut. Because they are inside the wheel and secured in place against the wheel barrel, damage is quite rare. External TPMS sensors are available; however, they are considered aftermarket. All external TPMS have the sensors located in the tire caps. These don't communicate directly with your car. Instead, an additional digital display is installed in your vehicle to give you real-time tire pressure readings. 

Different Types of TPMS

An Indirect TPMS will use the same technology that the anti-lock brake system uses. These sensors do not measure the actual tire pressure of each tire. Instead, the sensors measure the speed at which each wheel is turning and is used by an onboard computer to compare that speed with the rest of the wheels and the rate the car should be traveling at. If a wheel is spinning faster than the rest, the onboard computer determines that tire is under-inflated and alerts the driver.

A Direct TPMS uses air pressure monitoring sensors within each tire that reads the specific pressure levels. Cars equipped with direct TPMS will have an option to view the air pressure of each tire in real time. Due to the costs, these types of sensors are generally only seen on higher-end or luxurious vehicles. All this data is sent wirelessly. Because each sensor has a unique serial number, the system can distinguish between itself and other vehicles' TPMS.

It should come to no surprise that BMW does not produce their own wheels and rims. The auto brand subcontracts wheel manufacturers around the globe to provide their wheels.

BMW isn't the only company doing this. All major vehicle manufacturers subcontract wheel manufacturers to act as OEM suppliers. This is done because car brands do not generally have the expertise nor resources required to manufacture their own wheels. A wheel manufacturer can mass produce wheels more efficiently, cheaper, and faster than a car brand could in-house. BMW and the wheel manufacturer handle the design and specs of the wheel, while, the wheel manufacturer handles the production.

Below is a partial list of some of the different wheel manufacturers BMW has worked with in the past.

BBS Wheels

BBS is a world-renowned racing and aftermarket wheel manufacturer. They have produced numerous wheels for BMW including Style 42 seen on the 3 5-Series, Style 65 seen on the M5 (seen above), Style 71 seen on the 3 series, Style 162 seen on the 3-Series, Style 197 seen on the 3-Series, and Style 230 seen on the 3-Series.  

Borbet Wheels

Based in Germany, Borbet is one of the oldest wheel manufacturers in the world. Borbet manufactured Style 37 seen on the 5-Series, Style 95 seen on the 7-Series, Style 132 seen in the X5, and Style 179 seen on the 3-Series (seen above).

Cromodora Wheels

Cromodora is a major wheel manufacturer based in Italy. They produced Style 18 seen on the Z3, Style 69 seen on the X5, and Style 71 seen on the 3-Series (seen above).

Ronal Wheels

Based in Germany, Ronal is one of the largest wheel manufacturers in the world. They produced Style 132 seen on the X5, Style 199 seen on the 3-Series, and Style 214 seen on the X5 (seen above). 

What other style do you know are made by these brands? Comment below. 

There are two different types of wheels: Steel and Alloy. We will go over what differentiates them apart, as well as their advantages and disadvantages.

As the name implies, steel wheels are manufactured from steel. You will notice steel wheels are much simpler in appearance than alloy wheels. They generally come in minimal styles and are available in black, silver, and white finishes. Due to their simplicity, hubcaps tend to cover them for aesthetic purposes. Steel is heavier than aluminum alloy; therefore, steel wheels will have slower acceleration. They are rather inexpensive to purchase and replace; however, don't let the price fool you. If you live in a very sandy area or the desert, your car may be equipped with them. Steel wheels are great for off-roading. This is due to how durable steel is, and the extra weight from the wheels provides excellent traction. This also makes them great for driving on snow.  

On the other spectrum, we have alloy wheels. They are much more aesthetically attractive. They are available in unlimited styles, finishes, and colors. Just a simple online search will pull up hundreds, if not thousands of different choices. Because they tend to be lighter than steel wheels, they are better for handling and acceleration. This is the reason they are equipped on sportier cars. There are a few drawbacks though. In addition to being more expensive to maintain, they are prone to damage. Curb rashes and corrosion from acids and salts will hinder an alloy's wheel appearance and performance.

You should take into account the differences mentioned above when deciding which type of wheel to buy. If you are ready to purchase, our online store carries both steel and alloy wheels for all makes and models.