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      09-12-2016, 12:25 AM   #1
TxBeem
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Replica wheels

Anyone bought replicas of OEM wheels? And what is your experience with them?
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      09-12-2016, 03:15 AM   #2
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Not as robust as OEM. Cheaper, but you get what you pay for.

And then there are the really expensive ones, they can fold up as easily as the cheap ones.
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      09-12-2016, 08:00 AM   #3
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I've thought about but my wife and kid ride in the X5 daily. Just won't risk it. OEM or bust.
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      09-12-2016, 11:11 AM   #4
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Not worth the risk. I am a big believer in "you get what you pay for." Sometimes you can get lucky , but not worth the gamble.
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      09-12-2016, 11:16 AM   #5
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Fake parts break hearts...
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      09-12-2016, 12:38 PM   #6
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I have replica 375 22s and have them for 2.5 years so far and they have been awesome so far nothing wrong with them and have held up fine. Even in these Boston roads.
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      09-12-2016, 02:01 PM   #7
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don't buy replicas. You are basically putting your vehicle and everyone in it in jeopardy. I have seen replica wheels shatter into pieces so bad to cause fatal accidents. Spend to buy OEM wheels.
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      09-12-2016, 03:00 PM   #8
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I have owned 6 sets of replica wheels on Porsche's and Audi's and never had 1 issue. For those that say you get what you pay for please provide the op your personal experience on this.

Here is a good article on this:
http://www.automoblog.net/2016/04/05...a-wheels-safe/

This is obviously paid for by USA Rim which sells wheels but they are correct in the fact that there have not been a bunch of lawsuits resulting from non oem wheels crashes or fatalities. If they truly were death waiting to happen you can bet that there would be class action lawsuits.

OEM manufacturers will say their wheels are better and non oem are unsafe but they never provide statistics on this.
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      09-12-2016, 03:20 PM   #9
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There was a piece that BBC did on replica wheels to test their breaking points vs the OEM's. I am sure anyone can look it up on You Tube. They did a series of tests and of course the replicas failed horribly especially over pot holes.
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      09-12-2016, 05:23 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by thaddh View Post
OEM manufacturers will say their wheels are better and non oem are unsafe but they never provide statistics on this.
If they have TUV approval they are tested and approved. Certain quality control standards have to be met. Typically a forged replica will perform better over majority of the junk that comes out of China and is found on ebay however sometimes the pricing on those is similar to the OEM product so why bother?
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      09-14-2016, 12:14 AM   #11
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on my old 550, i had way better luck with replicas (aftermarket), than with the original wheels that kept cracking.
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      09-14-2016, 09:41 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by turboawd View Post
on my old 550, i had way better luck with replicas (aftermarket), than with the original wheels that kept cracking.
There are aftermarkets.. and then there are replicas.
Aftermarkets have high quality wheels and sometimes higher quality than OEM such as HRE, Velos, Avant, BBS etc. These companies also make OEM wheels that auto makers contract.
Replicas are typically from small vendors and shops with questionable quality.
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      09-14-2016, 09:54 AM   #13
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I'm running Hartmann RS4 reps on my Audi A4, never had an issue with them. I agree with the above, you get what you pay for.
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      10-08-2016, 12:04 AM   #14
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i have run replicas on my Porsche Cayennes and now my X5 with no issues. IMO youre kidding yourslef if you thnk lots of wheels on cars these days are not made in China. they have good plants that know how to make the wheels. With 20" wheels or less not a problem. I had 22" porsche knock off wheels and they were 100% ok too. Dont know anyone has had one break in such a way to be a unsafe issue
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      10-08-2016, 08:12 AM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by stewy604 View Post
I'm running Hartmann RS4 reps on my Audi A4, never had an issue with them. I agree with the above, you get what you pay for.
if things have not changed hartmann sells italian made tuv approved replicas and guarantees them to balance properly. they are also the most expensive replica wheel re-seller.
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      10-08-2016, 10:07 AM   #16
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To correct these.
Replicas: it just a copy on the design from original. Most of the time it has different size than the original. Quality wise, it is hit and miss, since there are so many replica manufacturer out there. But in general, for street use, replica wheels are perfectly fine.
Some of the replica manufacturer are even signing contract with auto makers.

Aftermarket: it doesn't means better than original. Aftermarket wheel manufacturer have their own design and specs. Manufacturing process itself varies from cheap method of gravity cast (not naming any brand here) to full CNC Forged wheel like HRE. And some even got signed by auto makers, like BBS, Enkei, SSR, etc.

So, does replica wheels are bad quality? Not necessarily.
You are just gambling with it because of the brand or manufacturer's name is unknown / unpopular.
Will I use it? Yes, but for street driving and avoid pot holes.
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      10-08-2016, 10:33 AM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by r33_RGSport View Post
To correct these.
Replicas: it just a copy on the design from original. Most of the time it has different size than the original. Quality wise, it is hit and miss, since there are so many replica manufacturer out there. But in general, for street use, replica wheels are perfectly fine.
Some of the replica manufacturer are even signing contract with auto makers.

Aftermarket: it doesn't means better than original. Aftermarket wheel manufacturer have their own design and specs. Manufacturing process itself varies from cheap method of gravity cast (not naming any brand here) to full CNC Forged wheel like HRE. And some even got signed by auto makers, like BBS, Enkei, SSR, etc.

So, does replica wheels are bad quality? Not necessarily.
You are just gambling with it because of the brand or manufacturer's name is unknown / unpopular.
Will I use it? Yes, but for street driving and avoid pot holes.
I cannot gamble if the vehicle is used by my wife for driving my kid around.
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      10-08-2016, 10:47 AM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by P1et View Post
I cannot gamble if the vehicle is used by my wife for driving my kid around.
For sure.
I can't gamble $10k wheel on the vehicle that is used by my wife too.
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      10-09-2016, 06:35 AM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by r33_RGSport
Quote:
Originally Posted by P1et View Post
I cannot gamble if the vehicle is used by my wife for driving my kid around.
For sure.
I can't gamble $10k wheel on the vehicle that is used by my wife too.
I would generally agree but I just rubbed my wheel hard and the wife is saying "glad it's not me". If she was driving it would have been her.

Moral of the story, buy good quality wheels and it will cost you. Buy cheap eBay wheels from China and you are at risk.

The choice in my car for potholes: if I see it late my choices are 1) hit it and hope for the best or 2) swerve to avoid it and have my wife throw up and scream at me for days.

Glad I have good wheels to plough through.
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      10-09-2016, 08:24 AM   #20
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why do you say youre at risk? bs, what is your basis for this statement? hearsay? you present this as fact when there is no evidence to support your position. Is there a raft of broken wheels out there? Lawsuits? Even RG Sport is saying for normal street driving youll be fine on replicas. I have personal experience with multiple sets on multiple cars and lived in upstate NY and Chicago where we have crap roads. Never even a bent rim. They weigh the same as OEM wheels as well so theres the same amount of metal. Many oem wheels these days are made in China as well. So please stop with the "you're taking your life in your hands" stuff already. And if I do bend a wheel Im out $250 not $1000. Youre less safe on old tires than you are on replica wheels.
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      10-09-2016, 08:47 AM   #21
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I run replica wheels on winter and i've had no issue so far. Lets be real here, OEM wheels are overpriced. I've seen many X5's just like me running replicas as well.
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      10-09-2016, 01:40 PM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by XXX5 View Post
why do you say youre at risk? bs, what is your basis for this statement? hearsay? you present this as fact when there is no evidence to support your position. Is there a raft of broken wheels out there? Lawsuits? Even RG Sport is saying for normal street driving youll be fine on replicas. I have personal experience with multiple sets on multiple cars and lived in upstate NY and Chicago where we have crap roads. Never even a bent rim. They weigh the same as OEM wheels as well so theres the same amount of metal. Many oem wheels these days are made in China as well. So please stop with the "you're taking your life in your hands" stuff already. And if I do bend a wheel Im out $250 not $1000. Youre less safe on old tires than you are on replica wheels.
Replica wheels in general? No. However, eBay wheels off random sellers? A gamble.

My parents both have replicas on both their BMWs for winter tires. Zero issues. But these are TUV approved replicas, so I'm perfectly comfortable with that.

Not the case with random stuff on eBay. I am clueless if they are good quality or not.
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