Stock Emira Wheels and Tires

[Time2Fly]

Can I ask why you bought 6 wheels. With the state of my wife’s alloys I would need several sets if she had agreed to go on my insurance.

One spare front and one rear.

 

[Speedy Emira]

One spare front and one rear.

I did think that although I’ve never damaged a wheel so bad it needs to be replaced. Could go the whole hog and get 2 more for a spare set with Winter tyres on.

 

[JonFuller]

One spare front and one rear.

Exactly that.
I figure that the manufacturing plant looks huge, probably make wheels for plenty of brands ‘considered’ hi end etc, so will likely be around a while, but, the import/export office I dealt thru, who sorted my slightly modded wheel design, who were only founded in 2023, could easily disappear in 6 months, and if I were to damage one (no plans for that) i could end up ditching 3 perfectly good wheels because I was unable to replace one, and, may not be able to find another design I like.
So, @ $217 each, 1 spare of each size felt like a cheap insurance policy.

I don’t know who the actual manufacturer are, and have had no contact with them.

Maybe I’ll get Sunny to sort another spare of each size as suggested, so it’s a complete set.

 

[Speedy Emira]

Exactly that.
I figure that the manufacturing plant looks huge, probably make wheels for plenty of brands ‘considered’ hi end etc, so will likely be around a while, but, the import/export office I dealt thru, who sorted my slightly modded wheel design, who were only founded in 2023, could easily disappear in 6 months, and if I were to damage one (no plans for that) i could end up ditching 3 perfectly good wheels because I was unable to replace one, and, may not be able to find another design I like.
So, @ $217 each, 1 spare of each size felt like a cheap insurance policy.

I don’t know who the actual manufacturer are, and have had no contact with them.

Maybe I’ll get Sunny to sort another spare of each size as suggested, so it’s a complete set.

Wow that is really cheap per wheel. Do you know what they weigh?

 

[AndyVX]

There are a lot of other factors involved in that which we don't know. How long were the studs in use, what torque setting was used, did your friend re-torque the lugs each time after coming in hot off the track, what wheels were being used, weights of the wheels and car, what grade level of titanium were the studs, etc. A lot of different things can be involved.

My set is on order, and I'm not in the least worried about it.

The studs were relatively new, maybe first or second trackday. I don’t have all the info but I know enough that I’ll not be swapping my steel nuts for titanium soon

 

[Eagle7]

The studs were relatively new, maybe first or second trackday. I don’t have all the info but I know enough that I’ll not be swapping my steel nuts for titanium soon

That doesn't make any sense. Unless they were an inferior grade of Titanium, or they were torqued too high, I don't see how they're going to crack like that. I've known guys who've used them for years on their Alfas and they drive hard; not a single one reported any problems.

 

[VL3X]

That doesn't make any sense. Unless they were an inferior grade of Titanium, or they were torqued too high, I don't see how they're going to crack like that. I've known guys who've used them for years on their Alfas and they drive hard; not a single one reported any problems.

Steel studs/bolts can break too. Improper installation, mating incorrect threads, rust, wheel spacers, etc.. can all cause studs or lug bolts to break. It's rare, but it can happen to both titanium and steel.

 

[JonFuller]

That doesn't make any sense. Unless they were an inferior grade of Titanium, or they were torqued too high, I don't see how they're going to crack like that. I've known guys who've used them for years on their Alfas and they drive hard; not a single one reported any problems.

I would say a failure happening that quickly is more likely under-torqued or incorrectly fitted bolts/nuts, and it came loose.
If its all tight, there should be no movement anywhere, with wheel centre and hub locked super tight together as a very solid lump. And the loadings, even on track shouldn't be anywhere near high enough to bust 5 x 12mm fasteners or force them to stretch, or whatever. I don't buy it.

Loose fasteners, with everything moving about and loading individual studs, at angles and loads that it shouldn't, then maybe... I could see that issue bringing the whole thing crashing down in just a few corners!

Potentially, an incorrect taper angle, bad contact pattern, paint on the female tapered socket in the wheel, or similar, could cause an early loosening and fast decline, and failure of this type.
I just don't buy metal fatigue / failure of Titanium in that situation / use - ie, two very solid lumps, bolted together with 5 large fasteners, where no flexing or movement of these parts should exist at all to trigger any form of fatigue.

Concorde was held together with almost exclusively titanium fasteners, I have a couple in my draw from my days at British Aerospace.

When my wheels come back from being painted in a day or two, I will be trying the titanium bolts in the holes, more specifically, checking that the tapered seats match the machining of the wheels, if they aren't very obviously the same taper seat angle, they won't be going on until it's sorted.

 

[finny76]

For aftermarket wheels, does anyone know which are the correct BOLTS to use as OEM and Aftermarket are typically different.

 

[Porter]

For aftermarket wheels, does anyone know which are the correct BOLTS to use as OEM and Aftermarket are typically different.

View attachment 36905

The OEM bolts are cone seat. The appropriate type for an aftermarket wheel depends on the socket profile of the wheel. Most will be cone seat to match the factory type for this vehicle.

 

[JonFuller]

Emira deff has Cone bolt heads / seats. The only question I have is, what is the taper angle? I read that 60 degree is 'a standard', which I don't doubt, but my best effort at measuring the angle on my STD Emira bolts, suggests they are 61 degree.
Anyways, as I said, I shall try both my new Titanium bolts, and the stock bolts in the wheel sockets of my new wheels, and the stock wheels and see how it all feels / compares.

The sockets in the new wheels certainly look conical, not ball (I'm quite sure it's a cone), just that angle I need to confirm.

 

[Pugwash]

For those of us with knock on wheels and a mallet in the trunk this is a fascinating thread.

 

[Liquid Hot Magma]

Emira deff has Cone bolt heads / seats. The only question I have is, what is the taper angle? I read that 60 degree is 'a standard', which I don't doubt, but my best effort at measuring the angle on my STD Emira bolts, suggests they are 61 degree.
Anyways, as I said, I shall try both my new Titanium bolts, and the stock bolts in the wheel sockets of my new wheels, and the stock wheels and see how it all feels / compares.

The sockets in the new wheels certainly look conical, not ball (I'm quite sure it's a cone), just that angle I need to confirm.

I’ve only heard of 60 degrees while doing 3D modeling in CNC software. This is a common angle for metric fasteners and countersunk holes. The next angles up are 82 and 90. I’d have to presume the Emira lug bolts and aftermarket wheel manufacturers are also following this 60 degree standard.

With a set of callipers and a scientific calculator, you could break out the high school trigonometry and calculate the taper angle of the cone washer.

 

[Porter]

For those of us with knock on wheels and a mallet in the trunk this is a fascinating thread.

You runnin' Vogues?

Or you got the three blades?

 

[Pugwash]

Three eared like this. In the US at some point the ears were not allowed for safety reasons and Elans were shipped without the ears, just big ol’ nuts requiring a big spanner. I think they were referred to as Nader nuts.

 

[Time2Fly]

Looking good!

Today I collected 4 new TPMS units and retaining nuts from B&C to go in my new wheels. Also have 4 GoodYear F1 tyres sitting in my basket at Camskill ready to push the button, so I'll be keeping the originals complete as spares for now.

For anyone interested, these are the details of the units....

Any way to make the exposed parts black? These are going to stand out on black wheels.

 

[JonFuller]

Any way to make the exposed parts black? These are going to stand out on black wheels.

The 'nuts' are alloy, so you could anodise them black for sure.

The caps I'm using are already anodised black alloy.

 

[Time2Fly]

The 'nuts' are alloy, so you could anodise them black for sure.

The caps I'm using are already anodised black alloy.

Where did you get those caps?

 

[JonFuller]

Where did you get those caps?

Ebay.

Black Lotus Dustcaps Valvecaps Aluminium Alloy | eBay

Black Lotus Dustcaps Valvecaps Aluminium Alloy.

www.ebay.com

 

[09Cayman]

Emira deff has Cone bolt heads / seats. The only question I have is, what is the taper angle? I read that 60 degree is 'a standard', which I don't doubt, but my best effort at measuring the angle on my STD Emira bolts, suggests they are 61 degree.
Anyways, as I said, I shall try both my new Titanium bolts, and the stock bolts in the wheel sockets of my new wheels, and the stock wheels and see how it all feels / compares.

The sockets in the new wheels certainly look conical, not ball (I'm quite sure it's a cone), just that angle I need to confirm.

Did you request production with the same specifications as the 5-spoke wheels that I ordered from “KHR”?
The data I requested for production is...
・PCD: 5x114.3
・Bolt size: M12
・Bolt hole shape: Tapered shape with an angle of 60 degrees