Type
Model (original) – designed for a specific car model/models, selected by radius. Model caps have an impressive design. It is believed that such caps are more reliable than universal models.
At the same time, model caps are expensive and attract criminals who steal them for resale. Yes, and as practice shows, high-quality universal caps are no worse. Due to the limited model range, the car enthusiast is constrained in choosing a cap design.
Universal (non-original) - selected only by radius. Universal caps have a number of advantages over their model counterparts: they are cheaper and do not attract interest from thieves. In addition, a car enthusiast can purchase hubcaps of various designs and colors and change them at will. In practice, universal hubcaps do not always fit the wheels due to non-standard installation dimensions.
Important: the low price of universal products is a powerful argument when choosing, since for the same amount you can purchase one model cap or a set of non-original ones. However, high-quality universal caps are expensive.
Closed type hoods
Open type hoods
The best manufacturers of 14 radius hoods
ARGO produces all types of car hubcaps in different colors and mixed shades. Elegant produces quality products that look great.
The Baby Moon company produces products on wheels in a retro style. It provides a large selection of its products, mostly chrome plated, having different shapes and designs.
Wheel caps r14 for Renault made of high-quality plastic:
- beautiful to look at, of any shape and design;
- lightweight, do not affect the vehicle’s chassis system;
- fast and easy to attach thanks to the universal latching system;
- prices for Renault plastic hubcaps are affordable for everyone;
- frost-resistant and durable.
High-quality plastic caps from the well-known company SKS will help give the wheels a more modern look, consistent with the original Renault style.
Brand SKS (Türkiye)
Design
Open type - with large ventilation holes. Such caps cool the brakes well and look impressive, but do not protect the wheel rim well from dirt and dust. These models are more difficult to wash. Open type caps are suitable for drivers with an aggressive driving style (a characteristic feature of this style is frequent acceleration and braking).
Open caps for black rims, as numerous holes enhance their attractive appearance. Caps of this design are perfect for discs without flaws:
- for sports cars - “aggressive” design (sharp shapes);
- for sedans - a more “calm” design (right angles and smooth shapes).
Closed type - with or without small ventilation holes. Such caps significantly improve the aerodynamics of the car, protect the wheels and brakes well from contamination and are easy to clean. Closed caps extend the life of the wheels. These models are useful if you need to hide flaws in a wheel rim.
The disadvantage of closed type caps is poor cooling of the brake pads. As a result, when driving long distances, the brake system constantly overheats, which can lead to premature wear.
Important: to cool the brake system, it is recommended to purchase closed type caps with small holes.
Wheel caps R15
Lada Vesta Logbook 5. Installed 17th wheels
This original car accessory performs protective and decorative functions. These products (which include a nut) can significantly change the appearance of the vehicle. In addition, modern designs do not accumulate dirt. Now new car discs and brake pads have an attractive appearance.
Wheel caps R15
Today, manufacturers produce R15 hubcaps in various designs. The buyer can choose products based on their own taste preferences. We offer products for sale with both an aggressive design that is suitable for owners of sports cars, as well as more classic models with a presentable style. Plus, the caps for any R15 car are distinguished by smooth shapes.
Appearance and design are just the visual part of the product
When choosing an original accessory, you should pay attention to another important factor - the method of fastening. Today, there are two main methods of fastening that are used in practice:
Today there are two main methods of fastening that are used in practice:
- The main and most popular is when the hollow body has a metal rim. Wheel caps R15 with additional loops that allow you to “tighten” the diameter of the rim. This is done so that the product fits more tightly to the disk.
- The second fastening option is a bolt. This is the method when the caps on cars with a diameter of 15 inches are attached to the same mounting parts as the wheels themselves. Many manufacturers use additional metal fasteners - this is a clamp (nylon or plastic).
Note! A plastic cap costs much less than a steel cap.
Experts say that when choosing a new product, it is necessary to clarify what material was used in the production process of the accessory. The new element must have a high level of wear resistance to mechanical damage.
Material
Plastic is a cheap, lightweight, corrosion-resistant material that can be shaped into a variety of shapes. Plastic caps resist deformation and low temperatures well. Cons: short service life and insufficient strength - the cap may break upon impact. This applies primarily to products made of hard plastic.
Important: the stiffer the plastic, the higher the likelihood of it breaking. Choose a cap made from the softest plastic, which is more resistant to impacts.
Metal is much stronger than plastic, but this advantage comes with a number of disadvantages: high cost, heavy weight, susceptibility to corrosion and deformation upon strong impact. In addition, the properties of metal do not allow the creation of caps of complex and spectacular shapes.
Rubber – does not collapse from impacts, visually reduces the profile of the rubber and increases the radius of the discs. Rubber caps are rare.
Why use hubcaps
Installing alloy car wheels on wheels is expensive for car enthusiasts. Due to the high cost of light alloy kits, stamped copies do not lose their relevance. Decorative covers for cars are used to protect disks and hubs from aggressive environments. The plastic element perfectly removes dirt from the paint, repels sand and pebbles that are found on the road. The product, made by manufacturers from durable material, helps prevent corrosion on the metal due to the ingress of reagents or salt in winter.
Liners for stamped wheels are needed to make the car easier to operate. Decorative elements made of wear-resistant material adhere firmly to the wheel and protect the bolts from oxidation. This helps prevent them from burning and simplifies further installation.
Mounting type
With a fastener (latches) - allows you to quickly and easily install/remove the cap, but is inferior in reliability to bolt-on mounting. This mounting method is used in most hoods.
Important: the more fasteners, the more secure the fastening. The minimum required number of fasteners is 6 (preferably 10-12 pieces).
Bolted - more reliable than the previous option, but more difficult to install/dismantle.
To increase the reliability of fastening the cap, in addition to fasteners and bolts, steel brackets, nylon or plastic clamps are additionally used. The bolt-on bracket will make it difficult for thieves to steal the hubcap and wheel, but is difficult to install. The nylon clamp is easy to install and cheap, but is designed for one-time use (cut off when removing the cap).
Installation of car hubcaps
Do you want to know how to install hubcaps on the rims of your car so that they do not fly off and remain intact during installation - read the clear step-by-step instructions with pictures and videos
Before installing the wheel covers, make sure that their size matches the size of the rim (Figure 1). Information about the rim size can be obtained from the markings on the tire.
Point 1. First you need to thoroughly clean the inner surface of the disk from dust and dirt. If there are significant deformations of the wheel rim, they must be eliminated by straightening.
Step 2. Align the valve notches on the cap and spacer ring (Figure 2). The bend on the spacer ring should be facing towards the wheel cover (as shown in Figure 3a). Carefully fix the spacer ring into the specially designed grooves located on the inside of the wheel cover latches.
Point 3. It is necessary to adjust the diameter of the spacer ring by compressing it at the valve location if the cap fits tightly (Figure 4 a), or by stretching it when the cap fits loosely (Figure 4 c). Correct adjustment of the diameter of the spacer ring is the main secret of reliable fastening. The small diameter is the main reason for the loss of the cap (after all, it does not sit tightly in the disk). An excessively large diameter becomes one of the reasons for clip failure due to the inability to insert it into the disc.
When adjusting the size, do not try to change it too much; 2-3 mm along the circumference can greatly affect the reliability of fastening
Step 4. Attach the wheel cap to the bottom of the rim so that the hole coincides with the air valve (thanks to this, the cap will be installed correctly the first time), hold it with your knee, and carefully insert the remaining fasteners into the wheel rim. Press the two upper latches with your fingers towards the axis of the disk (Fig. 5) and at the same time press them inside the disk, pressing the wheel cap all the way around the disk. It is convenient to hold the lower part of the cap with your knee (Fig. 6).
The trick is that if the upper latches are not directed inside the disk with your fingers , and the spacer ring is in a tense state and tries to push them out, then you risk breaking one of the fastening clips . Clips break much more easily in the cold, so in winter, we recommend installing them in a warm garage. If there is no “warm installation” option, simply warm the hoods to room temperature in the room before installation.
Point 5. Make sure that the wheel cover is seated around the entire perimeter (Fig. 7)
How to install wheel covers - 7 cards in one picture
It's better to see it once!
Removing hubcaps from wheels
To dismantle the wheel covers, you need to insert your fingers into the holes on the wheel cover and remove them from the disk with a sharp movement. If the wheel cap sits firmly enough through the holes, you can pass a piece of rope or cloth and also remove the wheel cap with a sharp movement.
Now that you are an installation expert, it's time to choose the right wheel trim model.
Each owner tries to make his vehicle more individual and original in comparison with others. There are a lot of ways to add individuality to a vehicle, but the easiest way is to install wheel covers.
Finishing
Chrome plated (“silver”) – spectacular, but short-lived (lasts one season).
Colored – allows you to choose a cap to match the car body or purchase a model in a contrasting color. The most common are black, yellow, red, and blue caps. Colored models especially require careful operation and maintenance.
Decorative (designer) - made to order and allows the car enthusiast to determine the design of the cap (original drawings, patterns, signs). In addition, there are decorative caps that create a stroboscopic effect when driving (the illusion of the wheel being stationary or moving in the opposite direction). The disadvantage is the high price.
Market diversity or choice of caps
Despite the fact that the automotive market offers a huge range of all kinds of accessories for cars, choosing wheel covers is not so easy. It is important to choose not only the design and color, you also need to know the size of the product and take into account the material from which it is made.
The video shows an overview of wheel covers:
The following parameters can be identified that you should pay attention to when choosing auto hubcaps:
- Material
. Most often, car hubcaps are made of plastic. However, plastic comes in different qualities. One type of raw material has high elasticity and viscosity and is therefore resistant to frost, deformation and shock. And other plastic is quite durable, but is not intended for the production of such parts and therefore it can crack even from minor impacts. There are also metal products. They are, of course, durable and reliable, but due to the design features of the material, it is not possible to make caps of elegant, intricate shapes from metal. And corrosion quickly leaves its marks on such products, spoiling the appearance (with the exception of wheels made of aluminum and steel). That is why such caps are not in demand and, perhaps, will soon become a thing of the past.
There are also rubber wheel caps. They do not fly off on bumps, do not break, and visually create the illusion of a larger radius of the rims and make the rubber profile visually smaller. This option is quite rare.
- Form
. As for the shape, car hubcaps can be flat or inflated (convex). The flat version is more practical and reliable. But convex accessories look much more impressive, and if you rarely go out of town, hunting or fishing, you can buy them. There are also closed and open hoods. If you need to hide unpresentable-looking disks, then closed options are more suitable. They also better protect discs and brake pads from dirt. However, in addition to the advantages, closed parts have a significant drawback - they reduce air access and when driving over long distances, the brake system can overheat. The open version of the hubcaps has a more attractive and impressive appearance, and besides, there is no risk of overheating the brake system. - Mounting type
. There are two ways to attach car hubcaps - bolted connections and latches. The bolted method is much more reliable, but such an installation takes quite a lot of time. Latches are easier to install, but provided that there are at least 6 of them. for 1 cap, and if the fixing springs have optimal rigidity. Otherwise, it will be difficult to remove such accessories. - Cap size
. When choosing hubcaps for stamped wheels, you need to know the exact wheel size. Without information about the size, you cannot buy such accessories, because they may not fit and it will be a waste of money. - Appearance
. The modern look of car wheel covers can be completely different. You can purchase chrome products that will surely make passers-by pay attention to the car. Classic variations are usually made in silver. They give the car solidity and prestige. If you want to stand out, you can opt for colored parts or spinner caps, which consist of two parts that rotate independently of each other.
Adviсe
- Buy caps in specialized stores. Pay attention to products from well-known brands that value their reputation.
- Inspect the cap: there should be no damage to it (scratches, chips, deformations). Make sure that the paint on the cap does not smear or flake off.
- The fastening elements and technological holes of the cap must match the parts on the disk. Pay attention to the presence of a groove for the spool: if there is no such hole, then to inflate the wheels and check the air pressure in the tires, you will need to constantly remove the caps. The more installation/removal cycles the hood endures, the faster the latches will fail.
- Check the spring stiffness: the stiffer it is, the tighter the cap will hold. If models allow you to adjust the spring rate, set it to maximum. You should not buy hubcaps that are very easy to install and dismantle, as they will quickly bounce off when the car is moving.
- To avoid losing your hubcaps, drive carefully (especially off-road and when parking next to curbs).
How to install to disks
Wheel caps can be installed in several ways. Let's look at each method in more detail.
Using latches
If you purchase an accessory in a company store, then most likely it will be secured with latches. Fastening elements are placed on the inside in the amount of 6–8 pcs.
First, a spacer ring is placed on the fasteners. Its diameter must coincide with the same parameter of the disk. The spacer ring has an expansion space. It should match the nipple.
The process of installing caps with latches comes down to installing a spacer ring between the inside of the product and the clamping fasteners. Next, the holes are aligned with the nipple. It then takes a little force to press the structure onto the wheel. If everything was done correctly, the expansion ring will take the desired position in the disc groove. As a result, the cap will be firmly fixed to the wheel.
Some car owners use plastic clamps to increase the reliability of this fastening method. How to install them will be described below. Also, special loops and rims can play the role of insurance.
This installation method is considered simple if the product is equipped with at least 6 latches. The stiffness of the locking springs is also important. If it is small, then the fastenings will become loose over time. If the rigidity is high, then the caps will be difficult to remove.
Bolted connection
Fastening with bolts is considered the most reliable. But it is the least convenient in terms of installation and removal of accessories. To install bolt-on hubcaps, you must completely remove the wheel from the car.
There are models that have special grooves on the reverse side. They correspond to the location of the wheel bolts. During installation, the grooves are aligned with the bolt heads and firmly fixed.
On clamps
If none of the above fastening methods are suitable, plastic clamps may be used. They are pulled through the holes in the wheel disk and the cap at the point of fixation. Then the clamps are simply tightened. Installation takes only a few minutes. If you need to remove the accessory, the clamps are simply cut. Therefore, they are considered disposable retainers.
Two types of wheel covers
Original wheel caps with the automaker's logo are car caps that do not need advertising. Many car owners want to have them because of their design that fits well with the car, and because of the original logo of the automaker.
As a rule, they are made of plastic, but it is very difficult to find them new on sale at an affordable price. Roughly speaking, only car manufacturers have the right to produce such caps. This is what prevents anyone from manufacturing them and importing them into our country.
The only acceptable option for purchasing them is to search for used ones (lost, unwanted, etc.). You understand that such car hubcaps will be in poor condition, and it is far from a fact that four of them will be on sale especially for you.
New original wheel caps without automaker logos . These are the caps that are produced in good factories, have high quality, have their own design, but differ only in the fact that they do not have emblems/logos of car manufacturers. And often, for most people this is not a problem, but on the contrary, it is an advantage, because such caps have an exclusive appearance.
They can be made from various materials (rubber, metal, plastic), among which plastic occupies the largest niche and is the most frequently chosen product by car owners.
Caps without brand logos have their own subtypes:
Chrome wheel caps . Degrees of chromium addition may vary. There are caps with different percentages of this metal content. There are those whose surface is made of more than 70% chrome. Such caps are somewhat similar to mirrors; they reflect everything that happens around them. Caps containing chrome are not cheap and are included in the premium segment. And chromium itself imparts hardness and corrosion resistance when added to alloys. This kind of car accessories look great on good cars, and are available on our website in a wide range.
Spinner wheel caps . These are caps that rotate. They are mounted like regular ones, but differ from them in the presence of a bearing with an additional rotating element. Typically appreciated by people who want to try something new and impress others. In addition to caps, you can also find spinner discs on sale.
Rubber wheel caps . Light weight and fastened with original wheel bolts. These caps can bend and increase the overall apparent radius of the wheel. But rest assured, it's easy to spot and doesn't look good. Therefore, we recommend that you refrain from purchasing them.
Metal wheel caps . Today you can find a lot of things on sale. Under metal caps, people often look for chrome caps, which we have already discussed above. Also, any caps have a metal fastening ring, thanks to which such caps can be considered partly metal.
Classic plastic car hubcaps . By the way, original wheel caps without logos of car brands made of plastic (Classic plastic car hubcaps) make up our assortment of online store, which includes more than 40 types of car hubcaps of various designs. Among them, black wheel covers (or dark ones) are in slightly greater demand than white ones.
What is the price for car hubcaps in Minsk?
If you want to know how much wheel covers cost , we will give an example of the average prices of our range. Namely, the cheapest and most expensive products. Thus, the price of the cheapest caps is 23 rubles 50 kopecks, and the price of the most expensive, chrome-plated, is 70 rubles.
Our online store invites you to familiarize yourself with the assortment and buy hubcaps at affordable prices for wheels of any radius (13-16). Choose, consult, and make profitable purchases with delivery throughout Belarus right now!
