Fake rims
A month ago, as I was driving along the stretch of road fronting Parkmall in the reclamation area, I suddenly hit a deep pothole, in the fast lane, going about 80kph. I hit it so hard that my corner lamps fell off the car. (The sad state of our road surfaces are another topic altogether) After hitting it, I was pretty sure my rims were either deformed or cracked. Miraculously though, the rims survived without even a scratch. I was sporting OEM (original equipment manufacturer) Subaru rims.
This got me thinking… would the rims have survived if I were using cheap copies of the original rims? What would have happened if it had broken off? Would the car have spun out of control or crashed into the center island? Would I have totaled the car? Only God would have known the outcome.
With the surge of sellers taking their trade online, knockoffs or bad quality products have been getting more and more rampant these days. Customers can now find and compare products for virtually anything, and one of those products that you can purchase online for a fraction of what an original costs are car rims or wheels.
We have heard time and time again that fake rims are less durable--they break more and are generally a hazard to use. Or are they? First of all, we have to understand that "fake" rims are not in the same category as REPLICAS. Fake wheels are just a copy of an OEM wheel while replicas adhere to stricter standard since they also have patents and trademarks. Replicas are usually ALMOST similar to the OEM wheels with a little variation as not to trample on any copyrights. However, the qualities of the rims still depend largely on how the rims are being manufactured. I have seen time and time again these replica rims standing up to more punishment than an OEM rim could take. Take for example ROTA, a Philippine made wheel manufacturer. Its designs are obviously copies of the well-known brands (how I wish they would make their own). But the built quality and the standards that they set are so high, they have managed to supply rims as OEM to the companies Ford, Isuzu and Mercedes-Benz.
And then there are the fake rims. These are the rims that look EXACTLY like the OEM rims and are branded also as the same. Now these rims are just downright dangerous because they don't adhere to any type of standard aside from them being illegal. You have to remember that we are not talking about aesthetic design infringement here, we are talking about poor built quality. These rims are made out of low grade metal. You can quickly spot these types of rims because of the shoddy workmanship and of course, the price tag.
Some would argue that OEM and replicas cost a lot and would rather buy fake ones for the same look at a lesser cost. But the real cost of these fake rims will overtake you later on once the rims break while you are driving. Hopefully it will break only while going over a speed bump and not over a pothole at highway speeds.
A car is the 2nd most expensive purchase an average Filipino will make, next to buying a house. Don't jeopardize that purchase (or your life for the matter) by putting on fake rims on your expensive car. If you can't afford that expensive replica or OEM rim that you really like, just continue to use the OEM ones that came with your car for the meantime then save up for later. In the end, crashing your car will be more expensive than buying quality rims.
There is a saying "Fake parts, break hearts." The same can be said for rims.
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