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Aluminum Vs. Steel Wheels

colinnwn

By colinnwn,
in 96-2004 R50 Pathfinders

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colinnwn NPORA Old-Timer

colinnwn

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I've got the ugly 2001 OEM aluminum wheels on my Pathfinder like these

http://www.edmunds.com/nissan/pathfinder/2001/index.html

 

I've been wanting to replace them with something better looking, like maybe black steel wheels. Yesterday I managed to chip the bead of one of my wheels, so now it is time to look for replacements. I've heard that steel wheels are generally heavier and can negatively affect handling and fuel economy. Has anyone who has gone from aluminum to steel noticed this? Anyone have thoughts on the best looking and most affordable option for black steelies?

 

I've also thought about some other aluminum options. A guy near me is selling the 4 spoke Xterra aluminum wheels, top right pic.

http://dallas.craigslist.org/mdf/pts/1617788995.html Has anyone put these on a Pathfinder, and how did you think they look? I also have manual hubs, so I was going to ask the guy to measure the center hole to be sure the hub would fit through it.

 

Thanks.

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colinnwn
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colinnwn

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The OEM wheels are 16 x 7 with 4" backspacing, yes? Unfortunately it is cold and rainy here, so I can't take a wheel off to check the backspacing.

 

"the second pic will look good on your truck."

Summit has the Cragar Soft 8s with the round cutouts for $62, and US Wheel series 84 with D cutouts for $66. I was kinda leaning towards the D cutouts, but I can't picture it in my head good. You think the round cutouts would look better?

 

"Steel wheels are much stronger than aluminum ones, and are alot cheaper."

I knew they are stronger and flexible, compared to aluminum being brittle. Since I unfortunately live in the city, and 99% of my driving is onroad, if I was giving up handling and fuel economy for the rare instance of damage, I was thinking of sticking with aluminum. I bet I could get a good deal on OEM wheels from someone on Craigslist. How many people really want an entire set of OEM wheels? Usually they are going the other way.

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silverton NPORA Old-Timer

silverton

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If most of your driving is in the city, I would suggest aluminum wheels as they weigh less. less rotational mass means more mpg's! always important when dealing with city driven vehicles.

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180sx NPORA Old-Timer

180sx

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Yea, aluminum is best for 99% street. Lots of people use it off roading too so don't get too worried about it. And X wheels should fit fine. At least the 5 spoke SC version does.

 

Jose

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laxman0324 NPORA Old-Timer

laxman0324

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Yea, aluminum is best for 99% street. Lots of people use it off roading too so don't get too worried about it. And X wheels should fit fine. At least the 5 spoke SC version does.

 

Jose

The 5 spoke SC wheels look very nice indeed...

 

formalweekend073.jpg

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colinnwn
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colinnwn

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The 5 spoke SC wheels look very nice indeed...

 

That does look good. And it looks like there are manual hubs tucked up in the front. Does anyone know if that requires machining, or is it like the Pathfinder plastic hub cover, and the center is just cut out?

 

I went ahead and bought a replacement wheel from a "junkyard" Friday, actually from LKQ which seems to be trying to move up in the world to a reconditioning shop. I was quoted $75 two different times on the phone, which I thought was reasonable given it is a shop and not a private person trying to get rid of their old wheels.

 

When I got there, the guy asked me where my old wheel was. I said, ummm... on my car. He laughed and said I'll have to charge you $35 refundable core. I told him $35 isn't worth a trip back to Hutchins TX, that I could have repaired my old wheel for almost the same cost, and neither person on the phone mentioned this. I scowled and looked around for a little while trying to decide whether to leave on principle or get it, and he whispered that he'd waive it. I said thanks and went on about my way. But who in the heck has ever heard of a core charge at a junkyard!

 

I'm gonna keep an eye out for those SC wheels on Craigslist. They are 16" so any new tires I get will fit those wheels also right? They look like 16".

Edited by colinnwn
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laxman0324 NPORA Old-Timer

laxman0324

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That does look good. And it looks like there are manual hubs tucked up in the front. Does anyone know if that requires machining, or is it like the Pathfinder plastic hub cover, and the center is just cut out?

 

I went ahead and bought a replacement wheel from a "junkyard" Friday, actually from LKQ which seems to be trying to move up in the world to a reconditioning shop. I was quoted $75 two different times on the phone, which I thought was reasonable given it is a shop and not a private person trying to get rid of their old wheels.

 

When I got there, the guy asked me where my old wheel was. I said, ummm... on my car. He laughed and said I'll have to charge you $35 refundable core. I told him $35 isn't worth a trip back to Hutchins TX, that I could have repaired my old wheel for almost the same cost, and neither person on the phone mentioned this. I scowled and looked around for a little while trying to decide whether to leave on principle or get it, and he whispered that he'd waive it. I said thanks and went on about my way. But who in the heck has ever heard of a core charge at a junkyard!

 

I'm gonna keep an eye out for those SC wheels on Craigslist. They are 16" so any new tires I get will fit those wheels also right? They look like 16".

 

Those are my wheels on my truck. The X has the same sized hubs because those wheels fit perfectly around my Warns. The reason they are set back so much is because I used 1.5" wheel adapters (glorified wheel spacers, you bolt them onto your existing bolts and the wheels bolt to them). I used them in order to fit larger tires and just because I wanted the wheels pushed out to the corners a bit more. The SC wheels are 17", the stock wheels are 16", so your tires will not interchange. I think the SC wheels look better on a Pathy then they do on an X, they should have just made an SC VQ35 Pathfinder...with a 5 speed...that might have been a little fun...

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KovemaN NPORA Old-Timer

KovemaN

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I had the X wheels on my D21 pickup and I didn't like the backspacing (too much). If you use spacers they will look better. The hub hole is big enough for manual hubs and they use plastic center caps just like the SC wheels pictured. Actually I think the center caps are identical.

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Vanganator NPORA Newbie

Vanganator

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I bought a set of the Cragar Soft 8's (Second picture in first post) from JEGS.com and s/h was free, with a handling charge of $13.99. I bought all 5 for $228. This is for the 15X8's though. Summit was charging 40 s/h or something like that. Something to look at.

 

Otherwise, I seen a little decrease in MPG on my 90 Pathy. I had Aluminums with 30.5 tires...now I have the steelies with 31's.

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nismothunder NPORA Old-Timer

nismothunder

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OK,this will stand for all time what I'm going to say...If you live in a area that put salt on there roads in winter dont get a wheel that is clear coated(painted is fine,I'm talking about clear coated alumium and steels wheels) the coat flakes off and the wheels look really bad.

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laxman0324 NPORA Old-Timer

laxman0324

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I bought a set of the Cragar Soft 8's (Second picture in first post) from JEGS.com and s/h was free, with a handling charge of $13.99. I bought all 5 for $228. This is for the 15X8's though. Summit was charging 40 s/h or something like that. Something to look at.

 

Otherwise, I seen a little decrease in MPG on my 90 Pathy. I had Aluminums with 30.5 tires...now I have the steelies with 31's.

That is a great deal!

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BowTied NPORA Old-Timer

BowTied

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FWIW, here are the "X" wheels from an Xterra - note the stock Xterra tire size so the tires look too big. There was no rubbing here, but not at full flex either.

 

th_PathywXrims011.jpg

 

th_PathywXrims015.jpg

 

 

Here are the same rims, but with the proper size tires. No spacers, bolt on. This is otherwise a bone stock truck.

 

th_random09dec_024.jpg

 

th_random09dec_023.jpg

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180sx NPORA Old-Timer

180sx

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It's tomorrow...Im waiting...

Wait no more my friend. These pics are at night (didn't get home till 1am) but so yo don't have to wait much longer. I'll have better pics in the morning. They are 15x10 with 3.75" BS. At the moment they have 31x10.50 tires with about 1/4 tread left. I have no lift so I can't put bigger tires. They rub like hell at full lock. In fact, they rub like hell just before full lock. I'll have to do some trimming. Enjoy.

PICT0031.jpg

PICT0030.jpg

PICT0028.jpg

PICT0033.jpg

 

Jose

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