Anybody not run hubcentric rings with their aftermarket wheels?

[Young Roids]

Here is a quote from Gruppe-S when I inquired about whether they included hubcentric rings or not:


"We do not include hubcentric rings because the majority of our customers do not run them. I can however include them in a wheel order for you for $10 per ring."

Now as far as I know you need hubcentric rings for aftermarket wheels so that they will be centered properly. So any of you guys not run centering rings with your aftermarket wheels? And if so how does it work for you?

 

[JustROLLIN]

Of all the sets of aftermarket wheels I have had on my own vehicles and installed on other vehicles, none of them had the rings. At least not to my knowledge.

 

[AJ]

$10 a ring. Fuck that. I use them, and even have a few extra that DT tossed in for me the last time we swapped wheels. Hit up a local DT and see what they have for rings, or call.

 

[Young Roids]

I did not end up getting my rims from gruppe-s but I wasn't gonna pay $10 for the ring regardless. I posted this just to see what people are running with or without the rings. Since I thought it was required to run the ring.

I suppose it makes sense that it would work to not run them since the lugs are tapered so they should center correctly that way. Just looking for more opinion on this.

 

[JustROLLIN]

I suppose it makes sense that it would work to not run them since the lugs are tapered so they should center correctly that way. Just looking for more opinion on this.

Yep. I guess I dont see why they would ever be necessary with lugs that self-center. But, I know virtually nothing about wheels other than I like how they look.

 

[Z-licious]

I wouldn't run w/o em. I guess I wouldn't want more stress on the nuts.

 

[Young Roids]

I doubt it would stress the lugs more. I think it helps caenter the wheel better than the lugs alone. Because using just the lugs to center could give you a slight wobble.

 

[dmention7]

If the hub bore is larger than factory you would be well-advised to run the hubcentric rings. The fact that the wheel retailer wants to charge you $10/ring is bunk though--they should be included. Even my Rotas included rings and lugnuts at no additional charge. Maybe you can find them for a more reasonable price elsewhere... I mean, all they are is a thin ring of molded ABS.

You can probably get away without them, but I would double and triple-check the seating of your wheels each time you remove/replace a wheel and also make sure to check the torque on the nuts after a few miles of driving.

 

[Young Roids]

YEa I found the wheels at a different place for a better price with rings included.

 

[JustROLLIN]

If the hub bore is larger than factory you would be well-advised to run the hubcentric rings. The fact that the wheel retailer wants to charge you $10/ring is bunk though--they should be included. Even my Rotas included rings and lugnuts at no additional charge. Maybe you can find them for a more reasonable price elsewhere... I mean, all they are is a thin ring of molded ABS.

You can probably get away without them, but I would double and triple-check the seating of your wheels each time you remove/replace a wheel and also make sure to check the torque on the nuts after a few miles of driving.

I dont understand. I have honestly run 5-10 different sets of wheels and never run the rings. Now that you mention it though, I am quite careful when I tighten my wheels back up. I tend to hold the wheel in place and finger tighten the wheels first and I always use a torque wrench for the final sequence. Hmmmm......

 

[ZoomZoom Diva]

I wouldn't run w/o em. I guess I wouldn't want more stress on the nuts.

LOL!

Anyway, I agree there would be more stress on the bolts, but the one I lost had no ill effects other than the wheel was a bigger PITA to mount on the car because I had to hold the wheel up a bit to get the lug nuts to seat correctly for the first couple until they did the centering the ring would have done for me.

Jay, your rings were plastic? Mine have been metal.

 

[Young Roids]

yea the ones on my winter wheels appear to be plastic.

 

[dmention7]

I heard they often use plastic to reduce the possibility of the corrosion that can occur when you have two different metals in tight contact for extended periods. It really shouldn't matter what the material is since the main purpose is to ensure that the wheel is centered precisely on the hub, while the lug nuts/bolts support the actual load between the hub and the wheel.

The lugnuts should center the wheel on the hub, and if you are careful to use proper procedure when tightening the lugnuts you shouldn't have problems, but the rings are just an extra safety measure, and IMO they should be included with all aftermarket wheels.

 

[MN6]

I tried to install my SSR rims without rings as it was nearly impossible to find the right size rings for my car. After attempting to center them as best I could twice without success, I had a set of rings custom made and since then the ride has been perfect. They are aluminum rings, I have had no issues with corrosion since installation (of course they come off during the winter months when the stockers go back on). I would not run after market rims without rings, as I just would not want to go through the efforts of getting a perfect fit without them each time I remove a wheel from my car.

 

[YSOSLO]

I always try to avoid stress on my nuts, so I always used rings on my Subaru's aftermarkets and I'm pretty sure Tirerack included them for free with my wheel/tire package.

 

[Young Roids]

Tirerack does inclued rings with all their stuff.

 

[WhiteSpy9]

I have some plastic ones for my winter set up.