[AlanHo]

The existing wheels are ugly alloys with plastic covers.





I didn't like them so today I have he some new Dezent TC Dark rims fitted.






I had the Michelin Energy Saver Tyres and the TPMS valves transferred to the new wheels.  It cost me £600 including the fitting. I could have bought the rims over the internet for £440 delivered - but then I would have had the faff of getting them fiited and I couldn't be arsed.

I have sold the existing 4 rims and plastic covers For £250 - so I am happy with the overall cost

[CraigB]

They look great Alan, much better than the original ones

[chris_i30gd]

very nice!!!

[Shambles]

They do look good.

What surprises me is the fact your originals had plastic covers, given what you paid for the Niro.

[eye30]

Brill

[AlanHo]

They do look good.

What surprises me is the fact your originals had plastic covers, given what you paid for the Niro.

When I bought the car - the brochure stated the car had alloy wheels. Which is true - they are ugly black ones with pretty plastic covers.  I didn't spot it until I first cleaned the car. A number of buyers - including me - complained they had been misled and the brochure now states alloy wheels with cover trims

I have seen claims that the wheels are aerodynamically designed to help economy. I am about to find out because, as you guys know, I keep accurate fuel economy records and I will be able to compare over several fills.  It may well be true - because the Toyota Prius has also had wheel covers on some versions - as has a Honda hybrid. 

Niros with 18" wheels do not have wheel covers but quite nice conventional alloys - and their economy is much worse than my car.


AS an aside I reported the change to my insurer today - they made a note for their records - but advised me that there will be no effect on my premium because I am changing one type of alloy for another of an approved manufacture.

[Dazzler]

Nice job Alan.

The name of your new wheels is a bit confusing though! I thought you were starting a new trend with the spelling of decent to start with! 

[AlanHo]

Nice job Alan.

The name of your new wheels is a bit confusing though! I thought you were starting a new trend with the spelling of decent to start with! 

I have ordered some Hub caps with KIA in silver on a gloss black backround.

Dezent wheels are made in Germany and are big there - making wheels for car manufacturers. Their own branded wheels comply with all the European regulations and auto specifications  - many wheels on sale here produced by foreign firms, do not.  I'm just being unduly cautious.

[Dazzler]

Nice job Alan.

The name of your new wheels is a bit confusing though! I thought you were starting a new trend with the spelling of decent to start with! 

I have ordered some Hub caps with KIA in silver on a gloss black backround.

Dezent wheels are made in Germany and are big there - making wheels for car manufacturers. Their own branded wheels comply with all the European regulations and auto specifications  - many wheels on sale here produced by foreign firms, do not.  I'm just being unduly cautious.

No flies on you Alan, can't even see where they have been!

[John B]

They look real spiffy Alan, big improvement from the others. Good move I reckon.

[Surferdude]

Very nice. Thy remind me a bit of th one I put on my i30.

[The Gonz]

Oh, Alan, they're so cool. Just look at how much space there is to show off your new Brembo brake caliper covers!

[Dazzler]

Oh, Alan, they're so cool. Just look at how much space there is to show off your new Brembo brake caliper covers!

Which are a must have for most 80 year olds... 

[CraigB]

Those Brembo's will come in handy when Alan's speeding around his community and a pensioner walks out in front of him

[AlanHo]

On a whim today I decided to check that I could undo the wheel nuts if I ever needed to change a wheel. I have a decent spider wheel brace but I found it impossible to undo any of the nuts. I took the car back to where I had the new wheels fitted and told them the tale, suggesting that their fitter must be superman.

The fitter came out and used a breaker bar to undo the nuts on one wheel and a torque wrench set to 12 kg m to do them back up again. He then asked my to have a go at undoing them with my spider.
I couldn't no matter how much I huffed, puffed and grunted. Even swearing did no good.

He then handed me his breaker bar and I was able to undo them, albeit not without a bit of a struggle. I'm getting weak in my old age.

I used to do a party trick people found impressive. I would bend a quarter inch steel bar over my erect penis. I can't do it any more - my wrists have gone.

I didn't have the Niro manual in the car so when I got home I looked up the recommended torque setting - it was 11 to 13 kg m - so the guy was bang in the middle.  Is there a universal standard for wheel nuts I wonder?

I have just ordered a 750 mm long breaker bar to keep in the car. it will fit nicely in the rear compartment of the boot floor support unit. Having bought a space-saver spare wheel to avoid having to use the gunk repair kit - it would be just my luck to be unable to undo the wheel nuts if I got a puncture.

[eye30]

I have used the wrench with the spare or a spider with a length of copper tube left by plumber.

[Shambles]

I have a pair of these - one is kept in each car.

17/19/21/23mm Extendable Telescopic Wheel Nut Wrench Brace Socket Car Van Truck | eBay

[AlanHo]

I have used the wrench with the spare or a spider with a length of copper tube left by plumber.

Ah - but when you get a puncture miles from anywhere - I bet that copper tube isn't handy.

Anyway - you guys are a lot younger than me - I need all the leverage I can get.

That's enough torque on this subject - I'll get me coat.

(I should have started a new thread for this post titled "Guys - Check Your Nuts". That would have attracted some attention).

[Surferdude]

I have never found a wheel nut ( Unless corrosion was involved) I couldn't undo with a cross brace (I guess thats what you call a spider).
It seems to me, there's something wrong when you can't undo the wheel nuts with whatever whel brace the vehicle manufacturer supplies.
Not that I'm suggesting you should use those dangerous bent angle things. 

All that aside,  you were smart to check them, Alan.

[AlanHo]

@Surferdude : I am gradually losing physical strength and have found that things I could do easily 20 years ago when I was 60, are now at best difficult and at worst impossible. Add angina to the mix and I am a poor old soul. As I said in my post my wrists have gone - which is not far from the truth. Arthur Righteous is creeping in.

The car does not come with a spare wheel or wheel wrench - instead it has one of those ghastly gunge inflation kits. This is why I bought a spare wheel, jack and 4 leg spider wrench which I find more effective. I am now adding a breaker bar for the reason given.

[eye30]

You can always take a packet of spinach and do a popeye.....

[Dazzler]

Due to my PD I am probably about on a par with you Alan, and I am only 60!  It's disappointing as I was always pretty strong for a pen pusher in my younger days. Anyway I try to keep my pecker up. (I can still hang a wet towel on it) 

I had trouble undoing the nuts on my Calais with a cross brace before I traded it. Even a Very cross brace wouldn't work!

I think I'll get a can of that gunk for if I get a puncture in the woop woop and rely on my road side assistance if closer to home (if I can't get my nuts loose.) 

[Surferdude]

As I am somewhere close to mid range between Alans and Dazzs ages, I'm grateful my shoulders still work well enough to paddle my surfboard.
I do get some twinges occasionally so I guess the time is coming.......
When I was in high school most of us surfed.
Over the last few years the last two of my school friends have given up surfing, one due to shoulder issues about 10 years ago, the other more recently with knee problems. He has taken to riding a S.U.P.  (Stand Up Paddle board).
So it would seem I'm the last of my breed, however there are still plenty around my age in the surf.

[AlanHo]

The KIA kit comprises a small compressor that plugs into the cigar lighter into which you screw the can of gunk for blowing up the tyre and injecting the gunk at the same time. It isn't an aerosol can that I see in some auto shops.

A guy on the KIA forum had a puncture in the tread and used the gunk which did the business. But the wheel was then badly out of balance and, as instructed in the KIA owners manual,  he went straight to a tyre shop for them to repair the tyre and remove the gunk. They flatly refused, claiming that if you use gunk you have to scrap the tyre.

Whether they were simply trying to take advantage I have no idea - but it was enough to put me off the gunk kit .

People who buy the PEHV version of the Niro cannot have a spare wheel unless they put it in luggage compartment. The wheel well under the boot floor is used for an extra battery or the 240 volt electrics- I'm not sure which. I do know the boot floor is fixed and you cannot gain access to what is underneath. Hence the owners of these cars have no choice - they have to use a gunk kit but where it is stored I have no idea.

[Dazzler]

Trevor put me off the gunk for the same reason, but I think I'll get a $17? can of the Supercheap gunk just for emergencies. Hopefully the odds of needing to use it or the space saver spare are slim.

[Surferdude]

Yeah. Unless they've developed something new the gunk does invade the rubber. And as the inner liner is similar to a tube, the results are the same.
I took a tube out of a 4WD once which had only been in there a week and I could literally tear the tube apart in my bear hands, like a piece of wet cardboard.
Luckily the owner was watching.
We tried to wash it out of a tubeless tyre one time. After half an hour we gave up.

[Surferdude]

I have no evidence for this but I suspect it wouldn't do an alloy rim much good either, over time.

[The Gonz]

It stands to reason your tyre won't survive the gunk long-term. The same solvents that act as catalysts for its effectiveness short-term then have a detrimental effect long term. It's not like they're working in a well ventilated area.

[mickd]

@Surferdude : I am gradually losing physical strength and have found that things I could do easily 20 years ago when I was 60, are now at best difficult and at worst impossible. Add angina to the mix and I am a poor old soul. As I said in my post my wrists have gone - which is not far from the truth. Arthur Righteous is creeping in.

The car does not come with a spare wheel or wheel wrench - instead it has one of those ghastly gunge inflation kits. This is why I bought a spare wheel, jack and 4 leg spider wrench which I find more effective. I am now adding a breaker bar for the reason given.

Al,
Try using the breaker bar, but, stand and use a leg - body weight will help.
I'm not 80 but I have 2 teded shoulders 😕

[Surferdude]

@Surferdude : I am gradually losing physical strength and have found that things I could do easily 20 years ago when I was 60, are now at best difficult and at worst impossible. Add angina to the mix and I am a poor old soul. As I said in my post my wrists have gone - which is not far from the truth. Arthur Righteous is creeping in.

The car does not come with a spare wheel or wheel wrench - instead it has one of those ghastly gunge inflation kits. This is why I bought a spare wheel, jack and 4 leg spider wrench which I find more effective. I am now adding a breaker bar for the reason given.

Al,
Try using the breaker bar, but, stand and use a leg - body weight will help.
I'm not 80 but I have 2 teded shoulders 😕

You need to be careful doing this. Sometimes the nut will let go suddenly, dumping you on the ground and with the risk of damaging your leg, hip or back.