I was wondering, if there was a difference at all from buying replica AMG style wheels vs authentic Amg wheels?...

 

The real ones say AMG and the fake ones don't. Wheels do vary in quality so check the fakes out well. An out of round or a wheel with an internal air leak can be a nightmare that outweighs the money saved. But on the otherhand many people get them and they work fine.

 

I believe that the real AMG wheels are forged aluminium, which is definitely much stronger than cast aluminium. I would suspect that the fakes may be cast...you should check this with the vendor.

Considering that some AMG wheels are very skimpy in the materials department (e.g. C 32 AMG wheel - there's lots of air and little material connecting the wheel centre to the rim), I think the strength of forging may be required to make such designs safe.

 

AMG wheels are not forged, but cast. They are very strong and use high strength alloys, however, they are NOT forged.

 

I think some AMG rims are cast, and some are forged aren't they. I thought the 2/3-piece ones have to be forged?

 

You pretty much pay for what you get...if you are gonna thrash the crap out of the car then you proably wouldn't want to get the fakes. Another minor point is that the lugs are often different and are not as strong as the MB lugs.

 

The real AMG splitspokes are 300 new at TireRack. Why buy replicas when the real McCoys are so reasonable?

These rims are pretty nice and quite strong.

BTW with AMG's, if you ever sell them (or your car) you will get most of the cost difference back.

 

How much should replicas cost? Let's say a Lorinser LM5 replica for example.

 

I've checked around and most tuner wheels are made by a company in Germany, Ronal. They make the Carlsson, Lorinser, Brabus as well as all the MB factory wheels. There's another company that's also well regarded in Germany, Rondell, they make quality wheels that look very similar to the tuner wheels. For example you can get a Ronal wheel that looks remarkably similar to the Lorinser LM5 wheel for less (same wheel, don't you think?). Also Rondell makes a wheel that looks remarkably similar to the Lorinser LM5 (both 2 piece wheels). As far as pricing, the Lorinser LM5 (18") is about $900 each, the Rondell LM5 is about $350 each and I've seen cheaper 1 piece knockoffs for $238 each. Check E-Bay. From what I've heard the Rondell wheels are lighter than the equivalent Ronal wheels. Just make sure you are not getting some junk made in China. Personally I would get the quality German wheels without the tuner name on it and put the extra money towards the performance mods you'll need to drive these huge wheels.


http://www.ronal.de

http://www.rondell.de

 

i agree w/ you rrf. for a little more money you can have the thing. i think they should make sure they are the real thing tho, cuz sometimes things can sound to good to be true.

 

In addition to what Buellwinkel has posted, ATS is a major supplier of Mercedes, Porsche and VAG alloy wheels including the AMG Style III.



Most of the cars in the DTM use ATS cast aluminum wheels.

http://www.ats-wheels.com/index_gb.html

 

The OZ Wheels site: http://www.ozwheels.com/OZ_enterFrame.html

 

Those are the nicest looking wheels for on a C-Class, IMHO. I like that design a LOT better than the C7's, which are already a pretty nice wheel :p