Wheel and Tire Buyer's Guide Whats Hot in Wheels

What's Hot in Wheels?

Hey, if we had the answer to that question we'd be in the wheel business, not the magazine business. But when we asked some of the folks who are in the wheel business about trends, this is what we heard:

· Wheel diameters keep getting bigger. Wheels for SUVs in particular are going haywire, with diameters running as big as 28, even over 30 inches. The folks at Motegi and RO_JA wheels say they're getting lots of calls from Civic owners for 19s these days.

• As body kit shapes change, so will wheels. Widebody kits need extra-deep wheels to fill the fenders, and the wheel companies are stepping up to the challenge.

• There are new wheel finish options available. New paint and machining techniques are allowing manufacturers to offer different colors than before-gun-metal gray is real popular - and also the combination of painted and machined surfaces on the same wheel.

Because of the way they're produced, cast wheels are generally heavier than forged wheels, but not always. RO_JA is experimenting with new casting processes for its Neo LT 5 wheel to make it as light as a similar-sized forged rim. By reducing the rim's wall thickness and taking metal out of the cap tower (the wheel is designed to run without a cap), a 17-inch LT 5 weighs just 15 pounds.

But you know, by the time you read this, there may be new trends at work that will yet again change what wheels look like. Wheels are like fashion in that way-subject to changing tastes. Check out our wheel guide in this issue to see what we mean.