S3 Magazine Real vs Fake Wheel article

[KAR]

Blah... Some of these "fake" companies actually make the real ones for the "real" company..

If its round and I like it and I don't have to pay an arm and a leg, I'm in.. Now when I curb one, I dont worry about it, I'll just buy another

[RAYSSPL]

You know, the only thing these replica wheel companies really are knocking off is design. That's expected in any kind of industry, whether you're a candle stick maker, baker, interior designer, car designer, or whatever. Design will always get knocked off.

What can't really be knocked off easily is manufacturing processes and engineering.

When it boils down to it, you will always have people who do not mind getting replicas [fakes or however one wants to call it] and that should be fine. The market will keep readjusting against the noise that gets created by the wheel industry until an equilibrium is reached where the innovators can continually succeed, while copiers will get left behind.

If an inventor/innovator stayed discouraged by this, then there wouldn't be any new innovation. That has always been an innovator's dilemma, but one that should always be tacitly calculated well. Clearly, we do not see this as we have seen numerous of innovation not only in the automotive industry, but also in technology.

[LivingLegend]

Originally Posted by coyote

So why do they need to look EXACTLY like a stupid $2k set of wheels?

You can only make a wheel look so different. Theres companies that make wheels that look like or similar to other companies' wheels.

[coyote]

You're right, sometimes they look similar by accident and are not just imitations.

What do you reckon here, accident?

[RAYSSPL]

It's really simple when you think about it. The cheapos who do not mind buying an inferior wheel will continually do so up to a point if and when an inferior wheel fails, while the ones who actually do their due diligence in the matter, will buy a superior wheel.

It shouldn't really piss anyone off if people like to buy a cheap imitation with substandard quality. That's nothing new.

What's surprising is how people cheap out on fake/inferior wheels on a new car they just bought... that will always be mind boggling.

If there's a meme for that it would say--

Buys $28k FRS/BRZ
.
.
.
Puts on fake wheels

[RAYSSPL]

And to add -- budget is a poor excuse to buy inferior/fake wheels. People are spending about $28k+ for a new FRS/BRZ -- what budget are you talking about here??? That's a new fcking car you just bought. It's not like people are buying fake cars to begin with either.

'Fake wheels' only really make sense when people in first place buys a car second hand [used].

[deucethemoose]

Originally Posted by RAYSSPL

If there's a meme for that it would say--

Buys $28k FRS/BRZ
.
.
.
Puts on fake wheels

Welcome to NASIOC

[Godzilla35]

I wouldn't even put fake wheels on a beater 240... I'm sorry. Maybe that's why I don't have aftermarket wheels on any of my cars, but I would rather rock OEM / STOCK with better tires than rock COPIED designs of another person's work.

That's just my opinion from an artist's / designer's standpoint. YES, to a certain degree, engineering / physics / stress models lead to similar design points, but there are very clear and rampant copies of very popular wheels like the TE37, that just pass along as "good enough" and "way cheaper". Well of course it is, because some else designed and built it first!

Hell, if I had enough money, I could 3-D scan and build my own GT-R or LF-A and sell them for 30% of what Nissan or Lexus is charging if I could get away with it.

Innovators, not Imitators.

[Grishbok]

If they get you to the starting line, and across the finish line, the @#!% else matters?

[dori.]

I don't hate on people that buy knockoffs. But there are certain knockoffs I respect since sometimes they have the design you like but the real thing doesn't come in the bolt pattern/offset/width that you need. Or if they are copies a wheel that was discontinued.

There are certain wheels that I love too much to get fakes. Namely CR Kai/Kiwami (sorry but the Rota versions don't look anything like the real ones, imo) and CE28N. I'll just get those when I have cash.

Personally out of all the wheels I'm looking at for my car, I'm only thinking about one set that's a knockoff for the reasons listed above. Otherwise, I'll just go with original stuff (or whatever's cool/cheap on the secondhand market).

[Draco-REX]

Cheap, Reliable, Light. Pick two..

Ultimately, know what you're buying, don't make excuses, and don't try to pass off knock-offs as the real thing.

[JoeBoxer]

Originally Posted by Draco-REX

Cheap, Reliable, Light. Pick two..

Ultimately, know what you're buying, don't make excuses, and don't try to pass off knock-offs as the real thing.

I'll agree here please don't put BBS stickers in your LM replica's

[dsgerbc]

Just don't buy knock-offs used. They might be okay for a bit when new, but their longevity (and resale value) will suck.

[RAYSSPL]

It's ok fellas. We shouldn't mind people buying cheap low quality wheels. Their monies contribute for this crappy economy's total GDP someway somehow

We should make this thread a sticky