20" Mags Cracking on my VF

[VS 5.0]

he was worried about someone bringing his name into disrepute

Bet he regrets his decision now then.

 

[RevNev]

Back when larger rims were starting to come out on factory cars, ie 17"

I remember the first VN Group A I saw in the flesh on the showroom floor whishing I could afford one thinking how "huge" the 17" wheels looked! Looking at a 17" wheel today, the standout is how tiny a 17" wheel looks now we're used to 20's.

 

[wetwork65]

I remember the first VN Group A I saw in the flesh on the showroom floor whishing I could afford one thinking how "huge" the 17" wheels looked! Looking at a 17" wheel today, the standout is how tiny a 17" wheel looks now we're used to 20's.

Yeah - 17s look so naff now. But I remember further back when I was a boy and first saw a 15 inch alloy on a Laser S. (standard wheels were 13s)
It looked sooo low profile.

 

[Forg]

Yeah - 17s look so naff now. But I remember further back when I was a boy and first saw a 15 inch alloy on a Laser S. (standard wheels were 13s)
It looked sooo low profile.

Well the cars & the wheel-arches have gotten bigger, too. My Volvo was a full-sized family car when it came out, it’s no smaller than a VB, but if you delete the excessive 70’s-tech-safety-design crumple-zones front & rear it’s smaller than a Corolla or Impreza now. It’s got 17’s on it, but it takes 40-series tyres to keep the rolling-diameter near stock (actually 35’s would be better from memory, but a lot more exxy, and I tuned the speedo for the 40’s anyway ).

So yeah, while a VF on 17’s looks a little under-wheeled, that Laser S on 17’s would probably be running 20-series tyres (or none - black texta around the outside of the rim maybe?).

My recollection from a Wheels article back in the day was Tony Simmons retired (he was an old fella) and shut up shop in 2009. He didn't go broke. A bunch tried to negotiate for the patents, equipment and naming rights like Mag Wheels Australia and ROH but Starcorp flashed the right amount of cash and were given the go ahead by him. He was pretty unwilling because he was worried about someone bringing his name into disrepute

Ah, ta for that, I should really have said “shut up shop” rather than “went broke”; I didn’t really know why & assumed (obviously) wrongly.

 

[RWD4ever]

The problem is almost definitely the wheels, not the car ... you won't have this problem if the replacement wheels are decent.
A lot of aftermarket wheels are pretty sub-standard, this has been a Thing for decades now.

I remember buying a used car with aftermarket wheels once , and took it to Bob Janes to get new tyres and they told me 2 of the wheels had hairline cracks so were not fit for purpose. There was no sign of other damage, just a bit of kerb scratch like most with +2 rims.

 

[figjam]

Yeah - 17s look so naff now

So yeah, while a VF on 17’s looks a little under-wheeled,

VZs and earlier look so 'Hotwheels' with 19"s and 20"s and ultra low profile tyres.
Kingswoods with 14" and 60 series tyres may not be state of the art, but big diameter rims and rubber band tyres just .............. ummm.
Period correct sizes look so much better (to me, anyway).

 

[Forg]

Period correct sizes look so much better (to me, anyway).

That also works for other periods, too … was filling-up next to a bloke who was filling his RX3 that was running Simmons FR’s or F90’s. They’re 100% correct on an RX3 for the mid-90’s “period” …

Is there an equivalent for any era of Kingswood? I can’t visualise any particular larger-sized alloy which was on 2 out of every 3 modded Kingswoods, I guess those Globe wheels but they were only wider not more diameter’y.

 

[Pollushon]

Bet he regrets his decision now then.

Maybe, assuming he's still kicking. They're still a popular rim and the FR's I have are nothing short of impressive. As Skydrol would say, time will tell

 

[figjam]

^^^ ....... the trend was wider, and if the tyres fitted ......... great, and what matter was the increased track width and heavier steering?
None. Men were men, and could turn that non assisted steering wheel.
I don't think that 'offset' was even a word then.
Big news for Falcon GTHOs ........ 14x6 steelies changed for 15x7 mags.

It took me years to realise out why I blew so many SP41 radials on my 13x7.5 rims.
Life was so uncomplicated. Not a QR code, or app, for miles around.

 

[Pollushon]

^^^ ....... the trend was wider, and if the tyres fitted ......... great, and what matter was the increased track width and heavier steering?
None. Men were men, and could turn that non assisted steering wheel.
I don't think that 'offset' was even a word then.
Big news for Falcon GTHOs ........ 14x6 steelies changed for 15x7 mags.

It took me years to realise out why I blew so many SP41 radials on my 13x7.5 rims.
Life was so uncomplicated. Not a QR code, or app, for miles around.

Hahaha yep. I put 14x7.5 Splatts on my LX (with big rubber) which scraped, bulged my biceps on every turn, killed tyres and handled like a pig but dayum.... they looked the goods