Featherweight plastic rims roll closer to production

Granted, there are options out there if you're looking to buy rims not constructed from some type of metallic matter, but for the tamer crowd, Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft's plastic alternatives are probably more your style. The firm's research team has reportedly developed fiber-reinforced plastics that enabled trial wheels to last some 250,000 kilometers without falling apart, and they are hoping that designers will soon have "more latitude in their choice of material." The next challenge, however, is convincing regulators that non-metal rims have what it takes to be a safe addition to your next vehicle, but barring any major catastrophes in future test scenarios, you won't find us complaining about wheels that weigh (and cost) less.

[Via Autoblog]

[Steve @ Jun 23rd 2007 12:37AM]

These will go great with my fart can (makes my car sound badass) and airplane wing (gives me more downward force). Damn, I'm gonna have the fastest Honda on the block, ya heard?

[Killian @ Jun 23rd 2007 12:42AM]

honda ftw

[Za @ Jun 23rd 2007 12:45AM]

How is that remotely a) productive, b) related to the article, and at all c) funny? Dude, if it were enough to make someone laugh, then I'd be all for it but that's just dumb. This is actually a worthwhile technology; reducing the inertia of unsprung weight affects performance greatly. One "rule of thumb" I hear is that reducing the weight of wheels/brake discs/etc by 1lb can be as effective or more so in terms of increasing performance as shaving 20lbs off elsewhere. A lighter wheel=faster acceleration, deceleration, handling, and fuel mileage. If it is cheaper than what we already have, wouldn't that just be another bonus? They are essentially saying it's conceivable to have carbon fiber wheel performance at less than an aluminum wheel's price. I think that's a good use of technology.

[paloooz @ Jun 23rd 2007 1:05AM]

You won't be going anywhere without a VTEC sticker. Just kinda stick a few here and there and you're good to go.

[StandardAI @ Jun 23rd 2007 12:43AM]

The fart sound is a new exhaust skipping the catalytic converter thus giving your engine a good percentage increase on the horses. As for these rims they might actually be useful for people who race light cars like hondas, I don't actually know how much rims wiegh though but 100 lbs can make a big difference in racing.

[ElvisLives @ Jun 23rd 2007 12:45AM]

Cost less? dream on.

[garver @ Jun 23rd 2007 1:43AM]

It may cost less for them to make but we have to pay a high price for a new tech.

[Frankenstein Black @ Jun 23rd 2007 2:00PM]

Um, THIS IS NOT NEW! My 1989 Shelby CSX-VNT (#199 of 500) had FiberRide wheels!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shelby_CSX

[Iamsars @ Jun 23rd 2007 1:43AM]

the only problem i forsee is that... if u have any enemies... they might wanna use a blow torch... and ADKLJFGDG ur rims say sayonara
or worst... they melt while ur driving out in the heat (say in arizona...)

[Gil @ Jun 23rd 2007 6:10AM]

A blowtorch? If someone attacks your car with a blowtorch you're going to have bigger problems than the rims melting

[jptech @ Jun 23rd 2007 1:48AM]

Awesome, but will those HOT Wheels come in a Type R model for my race car?

[Sheraz @ Jun 23rd 2007 1:58AM]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unsprung_weight

Actually, since these are supposedly going to be cheaper than the average 'upgrade wheels,' they are a great alternative to the ultra-expensive magnesium wheels that companies like Ferrari employ on their cars (so average folks can enjoy lightweight wheels). It's all about unsprung weight, the less weight your suspension has to control, the better your handling dynamics will be. I seriously doubt any guy with a fart-can on his rear end would be able to appreciate this, and neither (it seems) do the people above.

[Juaquin @ Jun 23rd 2007 4:07AM]

I know many people who would love to put these on their track cars. Lighter wheels mean less resistance to rotational acceleration - in other words, they allow the car to accelerate faster. It also helps with handling due to the suspension not having to deal with heavy wheels. Light wheels are a big deal for track cars - that's why you don't see spinners or chrome on the track.

[Googenheim @ Jun 23rd 2007 2:35PM]

Not to mention a nice boost in Gas mileage. Less rotational resistance = higher energy transfer efficiency = engine has to work less = Higher MPG

[Jumbie @ Jun 23rd 2007 7:15AM]

These would have to be very extensively tested for a very long time before I would feel that they were reliable enough to put on my car.

The idea of driving around on plastic rims just doesn't sound too safe to me.

[Darwin @ Jun 23rd 2007 7:24AM]

This sounds like really wonderful stuff, though a different, more expensive version has been put to the test since 2001:
http://www.azom.com/details.asp?newsID=8875

Their website has been 'under construction' for some time now, but some of you may have caught a documentary-style thing on Discovery Channel or some such that showed them layering carbon fiber mats and producing a lightweight rim that could bounce off the floor like a beach ball.

http://www.bte-felgentechnik.de/index.html

[Big @ Jun 23rd 2007 7:56AM]

If they can make Plastic wheels which support a vehicle weighing 3 or four tons - for a period of 250,000 miles, then they should be able to make Plastic frames and ceramic engine blocks.

We just might end up with a 1-TON HUMMER H2 by the end of the decade.

[benjamin @ Jun 23rd 2007 9:34AM]

i wonder if they can be recycled or are made from any recycled material? & how well do they survive against the lug nuts being removed & refitted regularly?

i can imagine they will only be for specialized vehicles, like aston martins, Mseries bmw, etcetc, & then they will probably team up with a tyre manufacture like michelin & it will only be made in a metric size

[OddManOut @ Jun 23rd 2007 12:51PM]

Uh...didn't Carol Shelby call this 'Fiber ride' back when he used it on the ~1989 Dodge Shadows he er...Shelbified (CSX?)?

Doesn't really seem to have caught on in the mainstream in 18 successive years has it ?

[Frankenstein Black @ Jun 23rd 2007 2:09PM]

In case your curious to see what I speak of...
http://www.shelbycsx.com/gallery.shtml

[thomas_malkin @ Jun 23rd 2007 3:31PM]

Could be useful for in-wheel electric motors. The problem with such is the penalty in "sprung weight", the weight added to the wheel by slapping a motor in the rim. Now, this plastic rim could lower the weight, which could enable the addition of the motor with no net added weight compared to the steel or aluminum version.

[Jon Graft @ Jun 23rd 2007 4:40PM]

Why bother...look up the Twheel on Google Images. The Twheel is the future. Twheel is a tire and a wheel built together and you can never get a flat!

[imajoebob @ Jun 23rd 2007 7:55PM]

Another solution in search of a problem.

Metal wheels are superior, in part, because of its weight. These will screw up the balance of every vehicle on the road. God help the SUV driver with these. And let's see how well your 911 corners when you tires are pulling 1.2 g's and your 100 Grand car is now 200 pounds top-heavy.

Metal is also a better match for rubber tires, because it expands, contracts, is flexible, and can distort on impact. Rubber also distorts based on temperature, friction, and load. Plastic composites are incredibly stable, which means they can't adjust with the tires. They are also almost universally brittle - that doesn't mean they break easily; but when pushed past their limits it results in catastrophic failure. Not a great idea at 75mph.

[Arpad @ Jun 25th 2007 6:53AM]

Sorry but you are completely wrong... Metal wheels are not superior because of their weight, and having light-weight rims will not "screw up the balance". Light-weight wheels really don't have much of an impact on the COG... and 200lbs is a HUGE overstatement... That would imply that each wheel is 50lbs. Even the steel wheels don't weigh 50lbs. The lightest forged aluminum 17" wheels are ~15lbs each and performance 17" cast aluminum wheels average around 20-25lbs. Reducing the total wheel weight by even 40lbs will not make a significant contribution enough to make any car "top-heavy". This has been proven with the carbon-fiber/magnesium composite wheels that even Ferrari has now.

Sure, most plastics tend to be brittle; even those carbon-fiber/magnesium wheels break more easily than forged aluminum.
That's exactly what this company is developing... a plastic with properties that will allow it to withstand the forces enough so that it won't break.
This isn't any old type of plastic, either... it's GRP - Glass Reinforced Plastic which has different properties than regular plastics do, so please open your mind and do some research.

[imajoebob @ Jun 27th 2007 11:12AM]

Actually, these are a form of ceramics, not what we normally consider plastics, which you confirm with the glass reinforcement. And this is my professional bailiwick. Steel belts were a great improvement because they mimic they better qualities of the rubber tires. Rigid glass makes rigid plastic more, uh, rigid. The benefit of using ceramics is the stability and rigidness of the material. Once it's fired (at temperatures exceeding 2,000 C) the molecules are locked in place. High performance brakes are made from (glass) ceramics, precisely because they won't warp at those extreme temperatures. But when they do fail, it's explosive, and the shards rip up the brake lines and engine compartment, often resulting in not-so-small fires. Multiply that by 10 or 20 times when the wheel fails. I don't want to be in the next lane when it happens to your car.

On a 3,000 pound car a change in weight of 60 to 100 pounds makes a great deal of difference in the balance of the vehicle. While few of us travel at speeds of 170mph, NASCAR drivers will move 10 and 20 pound weights inside their vehicles (I don't know if this applies to the new COT) as little as 10 inches to make a notable difference in handling. In the Northeast, everyday passenger vehicles toss one or two 25 pound bags of kitty litter in the trunk to improve handling in snow (we used to put in bricks, but the kitty litter also helps when you're stuck on the ice).

Now tear all the aerodynamics off the car (so it looks like your Impala or Avenger) and strip that 100 pounds away from around the shocks, strut, springs, and sway bars. At 70mph it makes a great difference. If you doubt the difference, run a quick lap around the back yard. Now, do it again holding a 15 or 20 pound weight on top of your head. To make it even more complete, replace your hightops with some wooden clogs. Your balance has completely changed, your ability to absorb and adjust to changes in the surface has disappeared, and you have to change the way you start. stop, and make turns.

There are places in vehicles where ceramics is a great idea, like brakes, valves, pulleys, pistons and more. Select early 2000 MBs had pistons as a "secret" pilot program. Not a single one failed and the wear was phenomenal. They're just too expensive to manufacture right now. But wheels is just not a good use.

[imajoebob @ Jun 27th 2007 11:17AM]

One quick caveat for you, Arpad. On a new vehicle, these could be used because the designers can adjust weight distribution for the change. But their rigid properties are still problematic. It would take an entirely new tire to compensate for that.

[Jorge @ Jun 23rd 2007 9:47PM]

just hope they make a version with faux metal finish.

[Don @ Jun 25th 2007 12:07PM]

Or at least all black or something. I really don't want to roll on marbelized rims. Hell, at that point I'll just spray them with Fleckstone!

But the idea of lighter wheels is a good one.

[gravey @ Jun 23rd 2007 10:05PM]

if boeing can build an entire plane out of composite materials, i dont see a reason why this would not be safe. the amount of force on a wing is probably greater than on my mazda. i would buy them tomorrow if they truly are affordable.

[J @ Jun 23rd 2007 11:51PM]

Plastic is nowhere near as strong as aluminum per weight so how does this make any sense? you will have to have more mass to have as strong as current aluminum wheels. I could see some carbon fiber wheels or something, but not just plastic.

[Don @ Jun 25th 2007 12:19PM]

You have ignored application in your analysis. "Stronger" is a non-specific term that changes when the material's application changes.

Aluminum may be stiffer, but is fairly brittle. It can quickly develop stress cracks and the like, especially in a highly dynamic environment like a wheel. A plastic could be constructed to more readily handle repeated stresses. If it could be made lighter as well, then it is simply a better choice, performance wise. Now as for looks, it's a different story :).

Years ago, BMX manufacturers had this same issue in reverse, because the plastics were not as advanced as today - They created a much stronger wheel (the Z-rim) out of fiberglass reinforced plastics that would withstand amazing punishments, but were heavy as hell and so eventually lost favor. However, if they could have made a version that had the strength of those rims with the weight of a spoked wheel, you wouldn't see a single spoked BMX wheel around today. That seems to be what these folks are doing.

It isn't about what your intuitive BELIEF is about the properties of the wheels. It's what the evidence shows after the testing is finished. If they test out as better performing wheels at lower cost, science doesn't CARE what you think.

[huh? @ Jun 25th 2007 1:46AM]

People complain about the iPhone, but what does this have to do with gadgetry? This isn't an auto blog!

[AG @ Jun 26th 2007 10:42AM]

Forget blowing a tire at speed. Imagine what it would be like if your RIM disintegrated at 100 Mph.