“Dangers” In Widening Car Wheels.

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31658, 19 April 1968, Page 10

“Dangers” In Widening Car Wheels.

The Transport Department was concerned at the growing practice of fitting excessively wide wheels to saloon cars, particularly earlier models, said the department’s chief vehicle Inspector in Christchurch (Mr N. G. Bell). The fitting of wide wheels to many cars could improve handling and braking, but the work must be done by a competent motor engineer if dangers were to be avoided, Mr Bell said. If a wheel was widened excessively, great strain was thrown on the wheel studs and the stub axle. In many older models the stub axles were not strong enough to stand the considerably Increased stresses, sometimes there had been serious accidents. The department recammetP ded that stub axles be tested for cracks before wide wheels were fitted, and the axles should be checked regularly afterwards.

The welding of widened standard wheels must be done by an, expert, and the material used for. the extension must be as strong as that of the original wheel, Mr Bell said. The finished wheel must run true and in balance and should be carefully designed for a specific tyre size. A method sometimes used to increase car track without fitting different tyres was to place a spacer between the hub and the wheel centre, the spacer fitting over the studs, Mr Bell said. This reduced the amount of stud available for securing the wheel nuts and also increased the leverage on the stub axle and the studs. Extending the studs by screw-on extensions was very dangerous, and another danger was that some wheels were designed to mate with a dowel on the hub. A danger both in fitting

wide wheels and fitting wheelspacers was that the tyres sometimes extended beyond the bodywork. Thus in an accident the turning wheel was more likely to, cause damage or injury. Organisations controlling motor-racing in New Zealand and other countries had strict rules regarding wheel-widen-ing and spacers, and with good reason, Mr Bell said. For this reason most car-club members were aware of the dangers of injudicious wheel widening, but many other motorists were not. The car-owner who wished to fit wide wheels should first consult a qualified engineer, and those who already had such wheels fitted would be well advised to check the stub axles, and seek professional advice if they had any doubts, Mr Bell said.