Learning About Tires And Rims
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Learning About Tires And Rims

Hi there, my name is Wesley. I created this site about tires and rims to help you properly equip your vehicle with the right combination. The tires and rims you install on your car directly influence its overall appearance and stance. Furthermore, drivability issues are usually caused by the wrong combination of tires and rims. I will talk about the methods you can use to make sure you are buying the right items for your car with every upgrade. I hope you will visit my site often to learn all you can about this fascinating and important auto subject. Thank you for coming by.

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Learning About Tires And Rims

Keep The Chrome Or Buy Black: Rim Color Considerations

Cindy Harvey

Choosing a color for your car has traditionally meant looking at exterior paint and interior fabric colors. In the past few years, though, it's grown to include looking at rim color as well. Black rims have been popular for the past few years, and they've become available for most cars and trucks. Choosing one definitely involves personal preference, but there are also practical considerations.

Extra Reflection

Typical chrome rims —not painted gunmetal-gray ones, but the regular shiny ones—allow for more reflection. This is handy at night when headlights can bounce off the rims of your car, increasing others' chances of seeing it in a poorly lit environment. Black rims are available with reflective (or at least silver) highlights and details, so you can still get a little reflection there. However, if you regularly drive at night in places where the streetlights are few and far between, shiny chrome may be a little bit better.

Weather Considerations

Chrome isn't as weather-resistant as it initially seems. You're still dealing with a coating on the basic rim itself. If you're in an area where road salt spray is a problem in winter, black rims might actually be better. The chrome ones can show corrosion from the salt pretty easily. If you live in a very hot and moist area, too, the black may stand up to that better than the metallic chrome.

Unobtrusiveness

Black is subtle and not very obvious -- unless you're used to seeing chrome. Then chrome rims can seem more unobtrusive. Another way to look at it is, if you're not looking to draw attention, basic chrome may work better than black. If you're not looking for shiny bling, black may be better. Just be sure to keep the black wheels clean; any dust on them can make them look like the wheel was simply left unfinished and is missing a hubcap.

Fads

Both chrome and black rims have been the subject of fads, with black being more recent. Try to separate the feeling of wanting the latest cool feature from your decision. While it's nice to have that latest feature and make your car look completely up to date, you don't want to shell out lots of money for something you're soon going to lose interest in. If you're attracted to a particular color of rim just because it seems like a fashion statement, step back for a while and reconsider. If you still want that color later on, go for it.

Of course, it's fairly easy to find rims for most cars and trucks, and there are always custom packages, too, so you can find both black and chrome and see how they would look on your car. Visit a custom car accessory dealer and look at the options available for your make and model.


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