Ideas for smooth wheel cover on spoked alloy wheel

[Ecky]

Looking for some ideas on smooth wheel covers. The pics attached show the wheels I'd like to cover, and preferably not drill into or damage, as that would likely not pass an inspecton.

The rim of the wheel is at approximately flush with the hub in the center. The spokes are convex. Anything that sits flat on the lip at the edge, will likely sit flat on the hub center as well.

One idea I've had for an aesthetic attachment point, is to use "spike" lug nuts, and remove the spike, so I have something threaded to bolt onto.

I'm uncertain what material to use. I'd like the finished product to look as professional as possible. One idea I have is to use moon discs, and drill 4 holes in a lug pattern to attach them to spiked lug nuts. I could also (instead) get a flat aluminum disc, and possibly paint it or put a Honda logo on it. A third option is some kind of clear disc, polycabonate or similar. Ideally I'd keep weight to a minimum.

For edge-to-edge fitment with no air gap, I'd need something 14.5 inches or 370mm in diameter. If I wanted something that still allowed the brakes to breathe a bit, I could reasonably go as small as 330mm or 13.0 inches.

Ideas?

[freebeard]

I'd like the finished product to look as professional as possible.

I support your intention. Dzus fasteners.

Imgur ate my page of pictures, but DDG can still find the one I wanted, embedded on an Ecomodder page where I used it, so it still exists..



It laps over the rim, and has a removable center section. Everyone will say it wears on the tire, but thin aluminum will move and flex with the tire.

If you want brake cooling -- louvers. Make lefts and right, inny or outy.

[Gasoline Fumes]

I like the idea of using the spiked lug nuts! Moon discs will look better than flat. Clear would be interesting too, but they might always be dirty on the backside. You could probably leave the rear wheels bare if you go with clear, since the rears will be behind the skirts anyway.

[Ecky]

Originally Posted by freebeard

I support your intention. Dzus fasteners.

Imgur ate my page of pictures, but DDG can still find the one I wanted, embedded on an Ecomodder page where I used it, so it still exists..



It laps over the rim, and has a removable center section. Everyone will say it wears on the tire, but thin aluminum will move and flex with the tire.

If you want brake cooling -- louvers. Make lefts and right, inny or outy.

Any idea where to find those covers? I looked at Billet Specialties' website but could not find them. It's also unclear how they attach to the underlying wheel.

Originally Posted by Gasoline Fumes

I like the idea of using the spiked lug nuts! Moon discs will look better than flat. Clear would be interesting too, but they might always be dirty on the backside. You could probably leave the rear wheels bare if you go with clear, since the rears will be behind the skirts anyway.

Good point about the dirt. I think it's also reasonable to only cover the fronts, though the bottom 40% of the rear wheels is still exposed to the wind.

[freebeard]

No idea where.


blog.naver.com/PostView.nhn?blogId=soganjis&logNo=110140644711

How wide and thick are those spokes? Dzus fasteners are intended for sheet materials, but if you were to mill pockets in the spokes and invert the spring retainers then the only problem is how to rivet/epoxy them into each spoke pocket.

[Phase]

why not just get some cheap hubcaps from autozone that pop into place and then attach a flat cover to those hubcaps? thats what i plan on doing for my next car

[Ecky]

Originally Posted by freebeard

No idea where.


blog.naver.com/PostView.nhn?blogId=soganjis&logNo=110140644711

How wide and thick are those spokes? Dzus fasteners are intended for sheet materials, but if you were to mill pockets in the spokes and invert the spring retainers then the only problem is how to rivet/epoxy them into each spoke pocket.

Any hole in the wheel will be an instant inspection fail, unfortunately. I need to come up with something that secures in some other way.

For example, I believe the center bore is the same size as on a Tesla, and part of the way they secure their alloy hubcaps is via the center bore.

Originally Posted by Phase

why not just get some cheap hubcaps from autozone that pop into place and then attach a flat cover to those hubcaps? thats what i plan on doing for my next car

I still run into the issue of how to secure the hub cap to the wheel, but you bring up a good point in that I can attach some intermediate item before and beneath whatever smooth cover I decide to go with. I could, for example, attach some plastic piece to the hub somehow, and then secure the smooth cover to that.

Possibly I could start with an 8 spoke hub cap that vaguely resembles the wheel shape, secure it with zip ties or similar, then use some dzuz fasteners to secure a smooth cover to that.

[Ecky]

Going down this rabbit hole, either as a solution in and of itself, or as an attachment point:

[CigaR007]

Why go through all this trouble though ? The original insight wheels are the best compromise between aero, weight and reliability/durability.

[j-c-c]

K>I>S>S
that being said, use open long lug nuts, (forget the spike solution) they will leave unuse female threads you can crew into and decide whether to use 2 or 4 attaching bolts of same thread as the lug nuts, if say 12mm, center drill them to reduce weight, you will need something to back stop the cover so the cap fasteners can be tighten against something. Might want to safety wire say two opposite bolts to see if the other two tend to loosen in extended use. I feel leaving a 1/4"? gap between the outer rim and the cap would be best for longevity of the wheel system in OTR use or trapping water, etc without serious impact on your primary goal, vs no gap at all.