Whoopsies

[coolblue]

Does anyone know if the factory wheels are forged any more? I always hear they are but I wonder if anyone knows. If you look at the info etched on the inside of an OEM SRT wheel it says 'super alloy' not forged. My '09 SRT8 had the original Alcoa rims and they stated on the front of the wheel 'Alcoa forged'. I'm sure that even if they are not, the quality of the alloy is a constant and much higher than aftermarket. They have to be to a standard for financial liability purposes to the corp. even if manufactured by third party off shore. These aftermarket wheels are manufactured off shore by who knows who. You don't know who melted or smelted the metal, where they got it from, or what's in the mix.
Point of fact: this guy was running aftermarket Demon rims for 2yrs no problems. These are on for 4 outings and failure.
Only 'reliable' alternative is a set of 5 or 6k set of forged aftermarket rims, which on some cars is 10% or more of the cost of a car alone before mods. Seams to me, between an $800 to1K for a complete set of cheap sh&* aftermarket rims or 5 to 6K (or more) for a quality set , that there's wiggle room on pricing from the premium manufactures to get a set out the door to real people for less.

 

[DGatzby]

I use the OEM wheels with the standard size tires for rain and questionable days. I understand they will hold up fine, AND have been actually driven and tested by guys like @TrackDay on actual test vehicles before they are released. I can’t go out and look at my current set, but the ‘15’s were stamped “made in Taiwan”.

 

[EricG]

I believe that all wheels on SRT vehicles are forged. The only rims on SRT vehicles that were not forged were on those 2013-2014 Charger Super Bees, I think those may have been on Yellow Jacket Challengers too?

 

[TrackDay]

Agreed, SRT wheels on our cars are forged.
Castings are a roll of the dice. It's in the nature of how they are made. There can be porosity or air pockets that are very hard to detect. Sometimes those weaknesses will show themselves almost immediately. Sometimes they will take some time.
Think about the ever present debate about cast vs forged pistons.

 

[Xylander]

It's freaking simple physics people. Don't go cheap automatically. Do the math; do the science; don't watch youtube; don't blindly trust the retailer (these people can lie - it's like that stupidass form to enter the United States that has the question "Are you a terrorist?" (I paraphrase) - if they'll blow up women and children, they'll also lie! I know it's hard to believe, but there it is. The retailer can be greedy, or stupid, or just ignorant. There ass is also in a ringer now, potentially, because if they said "yes, use THIS wheel for XY and Z and lied about its construction, they're going to need a good lawyer).

Personally, I'm surprised we don't see more this ridiculousness. "but ... but ... this guy on youtube said..!!!!!"

Can't agree more. When folks ask me, "Hey, what should I do for this..." I ask them what they think the car needs. The owner and driver needs to understand the basic physics and reasons why they need a part before they start going online to see what JoeJoe76763 did to his car. Patterning a build after what you see on YouTube or some other social media outlet is a nutty thing, since most of them copied BillyBob5598675 who in turn copied JoeMana2345345. This is how you ended up with mostly stock cars coming into speed shops for roller rocker arms and carb/throttle body spacers back in the day... and why modern folks drop in big injectors or a throttle body on a stock tune for no reason other than they saw it on YouTube and why dumb ass kids put giant wings on FWD ricers. Know your car, research the build without using social media and corporate marketing. Then decide what you want and pull a Jen Psaki and circle back and get more info from the internet.


It's like this. I'm not a florist. Flowers don't interest me in the slightest, but my wife likes 'em. So, if I want a bouquet, I don't go ask people on YouTube or IG what to get because I might end up with a corsage or a funeral arrangement instead of a "Gee honey, I'm sorry I forgot our anniversary again" bouquet.

 

[coolblue]

I don't disagree with the YouTube analogy but I don't want to go off on a tangent either. IMO that's not what this is about. It's about cheap sh*! aftermarket; period. This guy was a club/circuit racer and prob has decent funds compared to most, not some lop eared kid building a clapped out ricer. He buys rims for his race car, they fail. Why. Because with aftermarket there's no accountability (in production or resale). Oh, BTW there's no engineering. They build what 'Looks cool' and sells. 99.9% of the manufactures are not here in USA. The venders are small nobodies (in comparison to GM, Ford, Dodge etc.). They close shop and open under new name tomorrow. Who you gonna grab? Who you gonna hold accountable?
So now your only option for strong rims that fit wider tires on your car are a reputable co. that builds in USA ,hopefully with legit metal stock made and certified in USA. But they're 6K+ for rims without rubber. Just sad for real people who want to modify a car with quality components.

 

[Magnified]

Cool points out very salient information. However, in this instance, there is absolutely someone to grab from a legal standpoint. If he says "I'm doing XY and Z and I need a wheel that will be safe for that usage" and the retailer says "Absolutely use this wheel" the retailer is potentially liable (as long as the guy was reasonable in his reliance on their expertise, even if they don't have any; and a few other things). The crux will be a phone recording or e-mail conversation where they puff themselves up and say use this wheel, and he relied on that. But that's only the start of it - you'd have to also show that the entire style of wheel was not suited for that usage and that the manufacturer and retailer should have known that, or did know it, or were negligent in not finding out. If 99% of that style would have been fine, and just this one wheel was incorrectly made, then it becomes a manufacturing defect case. There's a whole host of rabbit holes this case could go down. And even if you win, what does the company have to seize to pay damages? A web site, a few 100 square feet of rented storage and office space probably, and that's about it (if they set the company up right). It's very disheartening. And even names that have been around since before most of us were born are doing their manufacturing in China and QC there is just pure shit.

 

[Hickster]

I read the same thang on the port of crapper in the front yard.

 

[Stl376]

Atrticle says "I have not included the name of the wheel retailer, the company that produced the broken wheel or any of the companies that he is working with going forward because my goal isn’t to bash or promote any of the wheel companies or retailers in question. " right under the picture of the wheel with the manufacturer name printed on it...

 

[TrackDay]

Onur is not a racer. He's just a track day driver who has gotten the mod bug and is new to modifying cars and racing in general. He's learning some hard lessons about research and consequences of failure but he keeps on building it stronger next time. He's broken so many things it's incredible to think about sometimes.