Caprice weight and aftermarket wheels

Discussion on wheel & tire issues
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lastcall190
Posts: 604
Joined: Mon Sep 11, 2017 5:17 am
Location: North Jersey

Caprice weight and aftermarket wheels

Post by lastcall190 »

I am kind of at a loss, and possibly overthinking this.

http://voxxwheel.com/shop/other/passenger/leggero/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Sizes are 18x8 et40 or 18x9.5 et43 (fairly confident the 8 would fit, not sure about 9.5 up front as I was looking for a square setup to be rotatable)

That wheel in question I had my eye on to replace my steel wheels. I have only ever bought one aftermarket wheel in my life, and it was on a car that was way lighter than the Caprice and worked just fine in the time that I had it before selling the car. Does anyone know if the tire or wheel makes more of an impact on load carrying capabilities?

I realize this is probably a real dumb question but I can't find anything even searching google that can help me understand. I figure someone far smarter with more knowledge could enlighten me as to what I'm either forgetting to think about or what I'm overthinking.

Thanks for your help.

-J
2012 Caprice
2008 CVPI

Both gone but not forgotten...
xcidmigs
Posts: 783
Joined: Fri Feb 13, 2015 8:12 pm
Location: SE PA

Re: Caprice weight and aftermarket wheels

Post by xcidmigs »

Well from all the classes I've had I would have to say that the tire is going to have the big effect on the load carrying since that is the only part that is actually "rated" in any manner. I'm sure that there is argument to be made for the wheel's material and construction type also but that has never been addresses by anything like NHTSA or other groups that I'm aware of and I would think given the litigious times we live in if there was some actual point to that it would have been addressed already? Forged ALum rims are always preferred by anyone racing otherwise and like anything else that's forged its just a case of cost vs. use.. Building your own AR? buy forged every time.... rims... maybe less of an argument until you tell us you have a trunk full of meth and want to go 150mph....
Navy Lifer
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Joined: Tue Mar 19, 2013 6:30 pm
Location: Canton GA

Re: Caprice weight and aftermarket wheels

Post by Navy Lifer »

Wheels CAN matter....but engineering standards used by OEM's and most wheel suppliers result in wheels that are load-rated well above what the typical maximum loading the vehicle's wheels & tires will experience in public road & highway use. Racing is a very different environment, so doing your homework is more critical.

OE wheels, many today being alloy, either cast or some other more sophisticated method of manufacturing, often will have markings relating to weight/load specifications, but finding any data that explains what the numbers mean is not common.

As far as getting load rating info for aftermarket wheels, I've not dug into this too much, but there is at least one manufacturer, TSW, that puts the information on their website - I selected a random wheel, inserted some limits for search purposes, and got data on some 18 x 8.5" wheels--various offsets, finishes, etc detailed:
http://www.tsw.com/wheels-rims-alloy-re ... 20&submit=" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
lastcall190
Posts: 604
Joined: Mon Sep 11, 2017 5:17 am
Location: North Jersey

Re: Caprice weight and aftermarket wheels

Post by lastcall190 »

Thank you both for your input and opinions, greatly appreciated. Got plenty of searching to do, and I will probably hem and haw on this for months anyhow.

Trunk full of meth and 150+... thanks for that made me laugh :lol:

-J
2012 Caprice
2008 CVPI

Both gone but not forgotten...
Navy Lifer
Administration Staff
Posts: 1724
Joined: Tue Mar 19, 2013 6:30 pm
Location: Canton GA

Re: Caprice weight and aftermarket wheels

Post by Navy Lifer »

new setup - 18x9, +47 offset, forged, 18# each

BBS RF521

Running 255/45-18 tires

BARELY clears Brembo front caliper, adding a 2.5mm front spacer/centering ring for a little insurance.

Pictures on car soon.
new wheel.JPG
new wheel.JPG (51.01 KiB) Viewed 10087 times
CrashTestDummy
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Joined: Sat Feb 07, 2015 2:31 pm
Location: Pearland, Texas

Re: Caprice weight and aftermarket wheels

Post by CrashTestDummy »

18 pounds wow! That's light!
Gene Beaird,
Pearland, Texas
2012 Caprice 9C1
1992 B4C 1LE Camaro
2018 Tahoe PPV (her car)
1995 DGGM Impala SS
1985 Firebird - 310 LS1 C Prepared autocross car.
1980 Bluebird Wanderlodge
And some others
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lastcall190
Posts: 604
Joined: Mon Sep 11, 2017 5:17 am
Location: North Jersey

Re: Caprice weight and aftermarket wheels

Post by lastcall190 »

Nice looking wheels 8-)
2012 Caprice
2008 CVPI

Both gone but not forgotten...
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