New Wheels for Your Ride

Are you tired of the wheels that you currently have on your vehicle?  Are your current wheels damaged from hitting things like rocks, curbs, ditches, etc. and you need some new ones?  If you are, you need some different wheels for your ride.  Before running out the door to go buy some new ones, do a little research and decide what kind of wheels that you want to buy that will work best for both your vehicle, and your wallet.

One of the first things you should consider when buying new wheels for your vehicle is how much money you are willing to spend.  Wheels can be really expensive if you don’t know where to buy them, or if you want super-high quality wheels for your ride.  Depending on where you find replacement wheels for your vehicle, you can expect to spend anywhere from $25.00 – $250.00 per wheel.

The next best decision to make when it comes to purchasing wheels for you vehicle is to decide whether you are going to buy either new or used.  While new wheels are always nice to have, they can also be the most expensive.  I highly recommend to shop around to get the best deal before springing a bunch of cash on a set of wheels that you can get much cheaper somewhere else for the exact same wheels.

If you are in the market to buy new wheels, I think that Summit Racing in Sparks is a great place to start your search for some nice wheels at a great price.  Discount Tire is another place that I recommend for buying new wheels as well.

If you are not into buying brand-new wheels for your vehicle because you simply cannot afford it, then buying some used wheels for your vehicle is a perfect solution.  You would be surprised of how many nice sets of used wheels that you could find at local garage sales in your area that would fit your vehicle.  If you have the time, cruise around your neighborhood to check-out some garage sales for some killer deals on some used wheels.  Another great place to check-out online for some good used wheels in your area is Craigslist.  People often sale their lightly used wheels on Craigslist that they have recently removed from their new vehicle to put on aftermarket ones.  These wheels are often very inexpensive to buy, and can sometimes be a perfect fit for both your car, and your wallet.  If you are in the Carson City area, I highly recommend checking-out Carson Used Tire & Wheel.  These guys offer direct replacement wheels for your vehicle if you are looking for just one wheel to match your vehicle that you previously damaged or for all new good-used wheels for your vehicle.  All of which are usually at great prices.  They also offer both new and used tires for excellent prices as well.  If you are in the Reno area and are looking for some used wheels, you can check-out Mr. Hubcap & Wheel as well, and see what they have to offer.

Note:  When buying used wheels from someone, do yourself and your car a favor, and thoroughly check the wheels for any dents, cracks, and damage.  Some people out there will knowingly try to sell you defective wheels for you vehicle to make money, and get rid-of their junk.  Be careful in buying used wheels for your car.

Besides wheel material, color, and style, there are a few other things to consider when buying different wheels for your vehicle:

Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems:  New cars have tire pressure monitoring systems in each wheel that that actually measures individual tire pressure, and alert the driver when a tire has low air pressure on the vehicle, with both a sound and a warning light.  Be sure that these sensors will work with the replacement wheels that you want, and that they get installed onto the new wheels for both your safety, and to avoid annoying lights and sounds coming from your dashboard that has to do with your wheels and tires.

Wheel Size:  Be sure to purchase wheels that will physically fit under your vehicle in relation to height.  It is always a good idea to buy the same size of wheels that are currently on your vehicle to avoid any suspension of body modifications that can be really expensive.

Wheel Bolt Pattern:  Choose a replacement wheel for you vehicle that has the correct bolt pattern.  It is always a good idea to count how many lug nuts that are currently on your vehicle, and measure between the two farthest lug nuts that are from one another to determine what kind of lug nut pattern that you will need when buying different wheels.

Wheel Width & Offset:  These concepts can be tricky.  Try to buy replacement wheels for your vehicle that have the same offset and width as the wheels that you currently have.  To get the wheel width, you will have to measure how wide your wheels are from across the tire bead mounting area on the wheel.  To get the offset value of your wheel, you will have to measure from where the wheel bolts onto the hub from the center of the wheel itself, to the outer side of the wheels’ edge, on the side of the wheel that directly faces the vehicle.  Get that? Wheeew!  – This all can be difficult, so good luck!  Just know you are going to have to buy some wheels that are wide enough for the tires that you want, and wheels with an offset that will not make the wheels rub the inside of your vehicles’ wheel well, or ones that won’t stick out of the side of your vehicle too far – which is hard on your vehicle anyway.

Remember that there are many choices when it comes to buying either new or used wheels for you vehicle.  Educate yourself when making these choices, and make the right ones.  New wheels for your vehicle will make your wallet a little lighter, but they can also make your car both ride and look better.  Happy wheel hunting!