The wheel is mainly divided into steel wheels and light alloy wheels according to the material, and the light alloy wheel is mainly composed of aluminum alloy and magnesium alloy products. In today's automobile market, steel wheels are rare, and most models use aluminum alloy wheels, that is, light alloy wheels.

Choose and buy carefully

The characteristics of materials and the complexity of the manufacturing process easily lead to pinholes, cracks, and other defects in aluminum wheels. In addition, there are many brands of aluminum wheels on the market, and the quality is uneven. How to choose an aluminum wheel needs to be taken seriously.

1. Look at the paint surface and brightness. The aluminum wheel with good quality has a smooth and delicate paint surface and vivid and pure luster. On the contrary, the wheel hub with poor quality has a rough paint surface and dull color.

2. Check for pinholes or cracks. You can touch the surface of the wheel hub evenly with your fingers to feel whether the surface is smooth, which is a direct method to judge the quality of the wheel hub. Then observe whether there are pinholes and small cracks on the surface and inner circle of the hub. If there are any, it indicates that the hub has quality problems in the manufacturing process.

3. Look at the hub structure. The structure of the aluminum wheel has two designs: functional and aesthetic. The complex and changeable wheel hub is really beautiful and classy, but it is very difficult to clean and maintain.

4. Check the size. Increasing the wheel hub size can reduce the lateral swing of the vehicle, but it will also reduce the damping performance of the vehicle and damage the tires. Therefore, we cannot blindly increase the wheel hub size in pursuit of vehicle performance. Generally speaking, the size of the replaced wheel hub is one or two larger than the original size, and the hole spacing, eccentricity, and other parameters of the wheel hub should also be suitable for the vehicle model.

Maintain regularly

The wheel bears the heavy body and cargo load for a long time, plus the driving force, braking torque, and lateral load when turning, it is easy to fatigue deformation or cracks, which directly affects the control and safety of the whole vehicle. In addition, wheel hub surface rust is also very common, especially in the southern humid areas. The rusted hub not only affects the appearance but also affects the heat dissipation. Therefore, in addition to protecting the aluminum wheels during driving, they should also be cleaned and maintained regularly to give full play to their due performance.

1. Clean at room temperature. At high temperatures, the wheel hub surface will lose its luster due to a chemical reaction with the cleaner, affecting its appearance. In addition, do not use cold water to clean the wheel hub at high temperatures. The aluminum wheel will be damaged when encountering cold water at high temperatures, which will seriously deform the brake disc and affect the braking effect.

2. Clean regularly. Damp air and salt will accelerate the corrosion of aluminum wheel surfaces, especially in humid areas such as the southeast coast, which should be cleaned frequently. When cleaning, try to use acid-proof cleaner to clean the inside and outside of the hub comprehensively, and wax the hub every 2 months or so to make it shiny and durable.

3. Professional cleaning agent shall be selected. There is a metal protective film on the surface of the aluminum wheel. Do not use paint brighteners or other abrasive materials when cleaning. Tar stains often appear on the wheel hub surface and shall be cleaned with professional tar cleaner. This cleaning agent can gently remove stains and reduce damage to aluminum alloy surfaces. If the conditions are limited, it can be removed with a brush with moderate hardness, but not with a hard iron brush to avoid scratches.

4. Avoid 'hard injury'. Avoid 'hard injury' to the wheel caused by scratches and impacts during driving. If there are scratches, especially deformation, it is better to go to a professional repair shop for timely repair.