Carbon-Fiber Rims – High-Performance Auto Parts
As car enthusiasts, we are always looking for the best equipment for our automobiles. Technology is continuously advancing, allowing us to have all sorts of interesting high-performance auto parts added to our automobiles. These parts may either come as stock fittings or be fitted afterwards. There are a variety of reasons to consider high-performance parts such as improving power or efficiency. Carbon Fiber Rims are some of the hottest additions on the market today.
What Is Carbon Fiber?
Most of us are able to recognize the characteristic grey carbon fiber mold without being able to explain what it is, so what is carbon fiber? Carbon fiber is an immensely strong and light reinforced plastic that contains carbon fibers (which are fibers that are 5 to 10 micrometers in diameter and composed of mostly carbon atoms).
Why Use Carbon Fiber?
As mentioned above, carbon fiber is extremely light and extremely durable. Any car enthusiast will tell you that when it comes to high-end performance, shedding weight and durability are key components.
Why Carbon Fiber Rims Are High-Performance Auto Parts
Currently, Porsche is the only mainstream automotive company that develops one-piece carbon fiber wheels in-house and these rims are made by a single supplier, Carbon Revolution. The experts in carbon wheel technology also manufacture wheels for production cars such the epic Ford GT. This doesn’t mean that they are unattainable though as there are high-quality authorized Porsche performance parts dealers that supply them. Why are they considered to be such high-performance parts though?
The main advantage of carbon fiber wheels is that they are much lighter than conventional metal or aluminum wheels. Lightweight wheels are extremely beneficial when it comes to performance as they allow vehicles to handle better, accelerate quicker, decelerate quicker and also makes them more economical.
Furthermore, there are many other advantages to using carbon fiber rims. The wheels are better energy dampers than conventional wheels. In other words, they reduce the noise and vibration that is transmitted from the road through the suspension and into the car’s cabin. Using carbon fiber wheels therefore means that less sound insulation is needed which again means less weight and better performance.
Why Isn’t Everyone Using Them?
Clearly, carbon fiber wheels can substantially improve the performance of cars so why isn’t everyone using them? There are two main reasons. The first reason is the price. If you are purchasing a set of aftermarket Carbon Revolution wheels it will set you back about $12,000. This is a very competitive price for the technology (when compared to high-end alloy wheels) but is undoubtedly still quite pricey. This is because the technology is still quite advanced and new but the hope is that prices will decrease over the next decade as the wheels become cheaper to produce.
The second is that there are a lot of myths surrounding carbon fiber. For some reason, many people still believe that carbon fiber wheels are fragile or that they can’t be repaired which is simply not true. The myth was created by people that purchased aftermarket wheels which were not up to the standard of high-end producers such as Carbon Revolution. As with anything, if you buy the wrong or inferior product, it will not last. With regards to repair, it’s pretty much the same as metal wheels. As long as the damage is not too severe (limited to the epoxy layer and doesn’t disturb the carbon fiber layer), then the wheels can be polished and resurfaced. So, a bit of curb damage can be sorted out with relative ease.
To sum up, carbon wheels are truly high-end performance auto parts. They are lightweight and durable and have many benefits such as improved handling and efficiency. There are many myths surrounding carbon fiber which are simply not true and at the moment, they are quite pricey but will hopefully become cheaper in the future. Carbon rims are a brilliant addition to any car enthusiast’s automobile.