If you are considering buying chromed alloy wheels for your car there are a couple things you should be aware of. If a set of alloy wheels are really cheap to buy its possible that short cuts have been taken in the manufacturing process resulting in a product of poor quality and finish.

Some chrome alloy wheel manufacturers do not copper plate the alloy wheels before the chroming process takes place. If the wheels are not copper plated first the alloy underneath the chrome finish can start corroding, which results in the chrome finish peeling away from the wheel. This peeling can start with in a few months of buying the wheels and you may need to replace the whole set with in a year.

In some cases the clear coat finish over the top of the chrome plating is not sufficiently thick or of a good enough quality, again due to short cuts by the manufacturers and may start lifting off the wheel. If this does happen to your chrome wheels it means that water will be able to seep underneath and start damaging the chrome finish. As soon as this starts happens the chrome finish will start to pit and corrode where the lifting is occurring. Eventually the wheels will need replacing, or re chroming as they look so bad. Unfortunately low quality chrome wheels are prone to this happening.

Occasionally the manufacturers of Chrome alloys will not offer a refund when damage to the chrome effect has been caused rather than happened naturally; e.g damage caused by kerbing the wheels. This is because the damage has been caused by you accidently or not, however a set of good quality chrome alloys should not corrode as easily.

You should always do some research on the manufacturer of the wheels you are thinking of buying to make sure they offer the high quality chrome wheels that you are after. If you do not research the Wheel properly you may have to learn the hard way and end up having to buy a second brand new set of wheels. Forums are a good way of finding info about specific wheels and how they actually work in operation.

When purchasing a set of alloys find a reputable dealer, they will offer advice on treatment and care of the alloys as well as fitment specifications for your vehicle. Then decide whether you want to make the extra effort involved with chrome wheels, remember you get chromes to make a statement so keep the clean and scratch free because you not making much of a statement with expensive brake dust coated chrome wheels.

In conclusion Chrome Wheels look great but can be prone to corroding and flaking, if you want to go Chrome its worth while spending that little bit extra and go for a quality set. Remember you need to take good care of the chrome if you want it to last but it is definitely worth the extra effort involved.

Over the last few years there has been a massive increase in the numbers of both car manufacturers and car dealers offering alloy wheels as an option on new cars, so that the potential owner can customise their new vehicle at the point of purchase. It could be asked if this is in anyway affecting the manufacturers of the alloy wheels. Obviously some of them are going to be supplying the wheels directly to the car manufacturers, and those that are have said that production runs are getting shorter and shorter. Due to the number of dealers and manufacturers now offering more and more alloy wheel options to their customers, the amount of OEM designs has increased quite significantly over the last few years. There have been occasions when some wheel manufacturers have had as many as twenty-five alloy wheel designs in production in their factories at any one time. Being able to achieve this level of production means the companies have to be able to switch between the designs quickly and efficiently without losing too much production time, which calls for extremely strict time management patterns within the factories.

There are several major factors that car manufactures have to consider when deciding on which factory alloys to install. Firstly the cost of them, the more expensive the alloys are the more the price of the vehicle will. Secondly Image, the alloys have to match the car. The whole point of having alloy wheels is that the vehicle looks better with than without. Thirdly the availability and production time when producing the alloys. Combining the three factors usually restricts the amount of choice that vehicle manufactures have when deciding of the correct wheels for a specific vehicle.

However, although car manufactures are improving the designs of factory fitted alloy wheels the truth is they will always be behind the major manufactures. The production of vehicles are designed and scheduled years in advance. Choices on Image, design, Styling, Materials and features are all made months before the vehicle goes into production. For this reason the standard alloys will always be slightly behind the times in both styling and performance when compared to the aftermarket option. The priorities for the alloy wheel manufacturers who are not lucky enough to have a contract with one of the car manufacturers are somewhat different. They have to be able to monitor the trends in sales and designs, and by careful marketing and design keep ahead of consumer demands so that they are able to offer designs that appeal to those who want to add after market alloy wheels to their car.

You would not imagine that places like a machine shop and a metal foundry would be affected by fashion trends but that is exactly what is happening too many of the alloy manufacturers today. The fairly recent boom in alloy wheel sales, no longer the domain of prestige car owners or the motor sport racers has meant a change in the way the wheel manufacturers have to go about their business. In some respects this is good news for the manufacturers as the increase in turnover and profits will show in the company accounts, but on the other hand the manufacturers now have to be more and more innovative with their designs and also trying to keep production costs down so that the company profits.

While the desire to have alloy wheels for the average car on the street has led to a big boom in sales and profits for the alloy wheel manufacturers, their marketing departments have to be constantly thinking one step ahead of the competition if they want to be a market leader, rather than a follower of fashion. They have to constantly keep abreast of the consumer’s tastes and try to come up with awe inspiring new designs, which the customers will want to buy for their cars. Once the designs have been approved as a part of the companies range, the manufacturing plants need to be highly flexible, and able to implement the new designs quickly and efficiently, or they risk lagging behind the competition in a highly competitive and constantly changing market.

A prime example of the competition between the manufactures is the Kei Racing and the Kato racing ranges released this year, although both ranges are from the same manufacturer the competition between both ranges is evident. Both have produced an attractive range of alloy wheels at competitive prices and are pushing the boundaries visually and in performance. However this alone isn’t enough to succeed in a harsh and competitive market.

Alloy manufacturers have realised that to be competitive in today’s market, the alloys they produce must be

A) Better than other competitors in price, desirability and performance

 B) Better than the standard factory fit alloy (or steel) wheel supplied with the vehicle

C) Wheel Ranges MUST be advertised and promoted in a manner different to others ranges. The advertising must be unique and attractive to the target audience (this is obviously expensive)

This competition is driving up the quality, performance and value for money of alloy wheels and this is obviously good for the end consumer as competition within the manufacturers community brings down the prices for retailers and ultimately reduces the price of alloy wheels for the customers, this being the main reason why many more people are purchasing new alloys now more that ever before, lets face it you can now buy alloys with tyres for approximately the same price as purchasing new tyres for standard wheels. THIS can only be positive for the consumer in the long run, but what effect will it have on the manufacturers?

If you really want your car to stand out from the crowd have you looked into getting a set of custom designed alloy wheels made for it. You can pretty much guarantee that if you go the custom route no one in your area will have the same wheels, as you and your car will be unique. There are a few firms out there who can design an alloy wheel to your specifications and produce wheels that are absolutely stunning to look at.

Performance Alloys, for example, offer a custom alloy design service that includes the following options; various offsets and different paint finishes including having the wheels painted to match your car. You can choose from various build types, including one or three piece wheels. They can supply a range of wheels from 18” to 26” diameter and from 7” wide up to 13” for cars such as the Ferrari F50, and they also supply all the fitments to exactly match your car as well. If you decide to give them a try they do charge £30 for the custom design service, due to the amount of time involved in the design process, but this is refunded off the full price if you decide to go ahead and have the wheels made for you.

Going the custom alloy route will cost more obviously, probably in the region of double the price of a set of alloys bought off the shelf, but you will definitely have a unique car at the end of it. Its also worth bearing in mind that if you go the custom route these wheels are being made just for you and you will not be able to return them.

Performance Wheels also provide an excellent range of off the shelf alloy wheels, including Kato Racing, Kia Racing and Finichi. All offering fantastic designs and competitive prices

If you have found a set of alloys you like the look of make sure you read up on user reviews and reports before buying them, so you get an idea of the handling and performance from other owners
Big wheels can look brilliant but will not necessarily improve the handling of the car. If you really want the big wheel look try to go for an ultra low profile tyre on a larger alloy wheel. And remember the handling of your car will differ depending on which wheels you choose. It is worth remembering that low profile tyres will improve the handling of your car, but the tyres are more expensive and the ride will be harder.

Be careful when choosing your alloy wheels, remember what they will look like if you have the misfortune of curbing your wheels. Some designs will curb better than others so try to go for a design that does not protrude too much, and also have a look at the split rim designs. Also remember that some designs have been known to crack when hitting a curb or pothole at high speed.

Remember to make sure the pattern of the wheel nuts (PCD) matches your car before buying and also check the bore and offset measurements. If the measurements are not correct the wheel may not fit properly over your brake discs and you may find the wheels grinding into your arches when you either go over a bump or turn a corner. If this does happen you may need to get your wheel arches cut or rolled to make them fit.

Try to make sure the overall rotational diameter of the car wheels and tyres is the same as originally specified for your car or you will need to get your Speedo recalibrated as well as having your tracking and suspension realigned so that you don’t have uneven tyre wear under acceleration.

One last thing to consider is to choose wheels that will be easy to clean.