Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Should one buy alloy wheels

Alloy wheels are considered to be a purely visual accessory that is only bought to modify the appearance of the vehicle. What you may not understand, is that there are a numerous technical reasons why you might want to fit alloy wheels to your vehicle.

Mainly new vehicles come fitted with steel wheels as standard since they are cheaper, even though many manufacturers are recognizing the demand for alloy wheels and fit new vehicles with them, or at least offer them as an optional upgrade.

Alloy is an excellent conductor of heat, improving heat indulgence from the brakes, dropping down the risk of brakes failing when your vehicle is subjected to tough driving conditions. There are also performance benefits in the steering response and road holding, particularly around corners. It is significant to keep your alloy wheels clean and in good condition. You can do this using soap and water based solution. Supplementary products such as wheel wax are also available. Evade products with chemicals that can cause worsening in the finish of your alloy wheels.

Prior to choosing and purchasing a new set of alloys, make sure that they are the right type for your vehicle. Keep in mind that fitting a large set of alloys will give different handling uniqueness to that of the smaller set you may have on your vehicle at present,

Style and image are some of the most significant features we look for when buying a new vehicle or updating the image of the vehicle you have at present. The easiest way of doing this is to upgrade to your alloys, it’s astonishing how much difference a good set of wheels make to the outer shell of your vehicle. It goes with out saying that different styles of alloys will suit different vehicles & represent them differently for varying reasons, an example of this is putting an aggressive set of alloys on a Japanese performance vehicle would make them more sporty and performance ready where as to add stylish wheels would make the whole image more fashionable.

The other reason of upgrading your wheels is one that people don’t often realize; the performance. The technology after alloy wheels now is much more advanced than it was couple of years ago. Alloy wheels are now much lighter and stronger than the general steel cousins. This not only reduces the weight of the vehicle but they are also designed with more surface area touching the road increasing grip and performance of the wheels, therefore increasing speed, handling, wear of the tyres and can frequently reduce fuel expenditure noticeably. Occasionally when performance is increased the ride comfort is reduced so finding the right balance is the solution when purchasing new alloys.

After you buy a set of your desired alloy wheels, it is significant to keep them in good condition. Buying the most excellent quality alloy wheels for your vehicle and keep them clean and in good condition will offer a best value for your money.

However, because they are so expensive, alloy wheels can catch the eye of thieves very easily. Because of this, you as the driver and owner have to be even more careful when taking care of your vehicle and alloy wheels. You will have to be careful about parking in rougher areas, as these are often stolen. If you routinely park in difficult neighborhoods, you may not want to risk having your alloy wheels stolen. Or, you may want to look into insurance to protect them from theft.



Alloy wheels have a tendency towards Galvanic corrosion if you do not take the proper measures to prevent it. This corrosion can lead to air leakage from tires, which is certainly an undesirable effect and can be very dangerous for the driver. Also, when alloy wheels are damaged, they are not as easy to fix as steel wheels. Of course, when you have spent a large amount of money on your alloy wheels, it is generally cheaper to repair them than to replace them. This, of course, varies by situation and driver. But if your alloy wheels are damaged, you will generally find that they are highly expensive to replace.

Easy manoeuvring of the car is one of the benefits brought by alloy wheels to the drivers. Alloy wheels are lighter compared to the steel wheels resulting in easy manipulation of the car. When we speak of actual speed of the car we relate the weight as one of the important factors. When you use lightweight alloy wheels there is a great possibility of reaching a higher speed. Moreover, the decrease in weight can improve the braking and fuel economy. Though alloy wheels are more expensive than the typical steel wheel, it can give you significant savings in return granted by the fuel efficiency.










Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Flatland Freestyle how to flobots handlebars

Josh Marsele (aka Axlepeg) stopped riding flatland from 1990-2008. He's recently logged about 25 hours back in the saddle and got some footage which I edited together with his direction. He's 36 years old and riding a 1983 Skyway TA race frame. He says he still has a lot of ideas, so hopefully he'll keep riding and we can share some more of them with you in the future.