Dear Bree,

I want to dress up my car, but I have no idea where to start with wheels!  Seems like I remember a time when it was all about shine and sparkle–chrome wheels were the thing!  Now, I’m seeing so many different varieties that I’m overwhelmed, and honestly, a little paralyzed.  This is quite an investment for me, and I don’t want to mess it up.  Can you tell me where to begin?

Blinded by Bling
Dear Bling,

Where to begin? Sounds like you’ve been doing a bit of the first thing I’d suggest, which is to start looking around and paying attention to the wheels you see.  Make note of what you like and what you don’t.  Find other cars like yours and check out their wheels.  Do you like what someone else has done to “your” car?  What would you change?  Take a look at the Gallery on our website; see what appeals to you and what doesn’t.  You  may think you’re looking for bright and blingy, but after looking at more and more examples, you may change your mind.

You’re right about chrome wheels taking a back seat right now, as well.  There was a time not so long ago that shiny chrome was the way to go, but as fashions change in clothes, they change in wheels as well.  Right now, you’re probably seeing a lot of black, black and machined or silver wheels.  Black is big right now–and why not?  Black is always a classic (note: LOTS of other colors are available as well)!  “Machined” is what the wheel looks like after the last shaping, versus a polished look, which means that the wheel has gone through successive, finer polishing procedures to get a nice shiny, smooth surface.  A chrome finish involves more layers of metal treatment (at least for aluminum wheels), and gives you that super-shiny metal that you know so well.  Which one is more you?  A combination of silver and black?  Machined and polished?  Full-on polished?  The first thing people usually consider when choosing their new rims is style, so you need to decide what kind of look fits you and your personality, as well as what will look best on your vehicle.

Another popular look right now is the concave wheel.  These are pretty cool and give your car a new kind of depth without losing functionality.  They’re definitely something to take a look at.  They’ve really replaced the traditional lips on wheels, and I have to say, it’s pretty cool to see all of the varieties that keep springing up.  There are a lot of possibilities with wheels, Bling, so take your time.  Don’t rush the process and jump into an impulse buy.  Come into one of our RNR locations and spend time looking around our showroom with one of our associates who can show you lots of wheel and tire combinations, and who can take a look at your vehicle and make some recommendations.  Also, go to our website and check out our new Wheel Studio!  It’s a lot of fun to play around with, and we think it might help you narrow things down a bit.  We’ve a got a newly-designed website that will help you refine your ideas and get a real feel for how your car or truck will look with specific wheels (as well as lots of information about all of the wheels).

Hope this has helped to get you started, Bling.  I’ll be looking forward to seeing you roll off our lot with your new wheels.:)

Stay safe!

Bree