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[ApexWheels]

Wheel weight and strength come up in a lot of discussions. Because forums often contain misinformation and anecdotal evidence, we're working on some technical articles to clear things up. We're polling the community so we can incorporate some of the results in our article, and so we can spot areas we may need to focus on more. It's a brief survey with just a few questions that graze the surface of what we want to cover.

NOTE: Our survey threads tend to turn into opinionated discussions with people posting their answers, so don't read any of the posts below until you've taken the survey yourself.

Click HERE to take the survey.

[kyippee]

Can you address camber compliance, as discussed here?
https://motoiq.com/tested-carbon-rev...iber-wheels/7/

[roastbeef]

i got a question for you guys. titan7 and bimmer world have came out with their forged track wheels for about $2k... are you guys working on something similar?
i'm not 100% sure, but it seems like the prices have gone up on the arc-8's. was there a slump in sales that prompted the two newer designs and 19's? seems like you're getting away from your original bread and butter.

[Eddy@ApexWheels]

Originally Posted by kpewpew

Can you address camber compliance, as discussed here?
https://motoiq.com/tested-carbon-rev...iber-wheels/7/

We'll see if there is an opportunity to work in a comment, but there's already so much to discuss. We're trying to decide how we split up our existing topics into multiple palatable portions.

Originally Posted by roastbeef

i got a question for you guys. titan7 and bimmer world have came out with their forged track wheels for about $2k... are you guys working on something similar?
i'm not 100% sure, but it seems like the prices have gone up on the arc-8's. was there a slump in sales that prompted the two newer designs and 19's? seems like you're getting away from your original bread and butter.

This thread isn't the place for us to comment on the future of our product pipeline as we'd like to keep this a technical post instead of a commercial one.

ARC-8 prices have never gone up a penny since the day they launched. What you may have seen is that SM-10 and FL-5 prices are higher than ARC-8 prices. Those two new designs cost a lot more to produce since they spend much more time in the CNC getting material removed from the sides of each spoke.

The recent 19" sizes are primarily part of a push to support our expansion into other markets where 18's are less ideal (Think newer Mustang, Camaro, Corvette).

Thanks for the questions.

[macdude357]

Originally Posted by kpewpew

Can you address camber compliance, as discussed here?
https://motoiq.com/tested-carbon-rev...iber-wheels/7/

That's an interesting post. Since most of us mortals can't afford those carbon wheels, the next question is how much "stiffer" is a heavier wheel and does the extra stiffness offset the added unsprung weight.

The one thing that really stood out was the statement that forged wheels are not stiffer than flow formed wheels. I thought it was accepted that forged wheels are "stronger" than flow formed wheels. So "stronger" doesn't mean "stiffer"?

[Richbot]

I always found it interesting that the BBS wheel BMW chose for the GT4 was as heavy as it was, and that was before the mandatory spacers, weighs about the same as the similarly sized and similar-looking EC7

I also realized I have no idea what the load rating on my wheels is. The back of my brain says 690kg but wtf do I know, lol

[kyippee]

+1 macdude357 - should I be happy that my EC-7 wheels weigh more than ARC-8? Potentially stiffer?

[macdude357]

Originally Posted by kpewpew

+1 macdude357 - should I be happy that my EC-7 wheels weigh more than ARC-8? Potentially stiffer?

I think APEX would agree with you there.

Regarding the Forged wheels not being stronger than flow formed wheels, they contradict that in earlier in the article. I then realized what they mean is that typically wheel makers use the forged process to make wheels lighter with the same or maybe a bit better strength vs. using it to make the wheels the same weight but stronger. So a forged wheel that's the same weight as a cast/flow formed wheel would be stronger.

[Solo_M_Tech]

I live in central florida with some bad roads here and there. I don't drive my M3 a lot, but Im perplexed. In 2 years of ownership I've already had my ARC8's repaired for bends twice. Today I discovered my passenger front wheel is bent again. Now ApexRaceParts wheels are known for their strength and resilience to bends but this is getting frustrating. I go out of my way to avoid pot holes or gaps in the the road surface, religiously. It just seems that these wheels bend with normal use. I was about to pull the trigger for some SM10's but I'm aprehensive about ordering another set and having the same issues.

[ApexWheels]

Originally Posted by Fubar_M3

I live in central florida with some bad roads here and there. I don't drive my M3 a lot, but Im perplexed. In 2 years of ownership I've already had my ARC8's repaired for bends twice. Today I discovered my passenger front wheel is bent again. Now ApexRaceParts wheels are known for their strength and resilience to bends but this is getting frustrating. I go out of my way to avoid pot holes or gaps in the the road surface, religiously. It just seems that these wheels bend with normal use. I was about to pull the trigger for some SM10's but I'm aprehensive about ordering another set and having the same issues.

Fubar_M3,

We're sorry to hear about the damage you have experienced. Wheels (of any quality or price point) can bend in result of curbs, potholes or any other treacherous street conditions, just as enthusiasts can experience damage by going off track or riding the rumble strips at the race track. In order to make sure our customers are well taken care of, we do offer a 50% replacement program for the rare cases where a bend may occur. We'll send you a PM with the details.

I hope this was helpful information.

Thanks!
- Max