740 - Old Car, New Tricks (Rim Upgrade Pic)

petershen1984 · Post by **petershen1984** » 21 Jun 2005, 21:00

Before and After: (taken at June 2003 and June 2005)

Rims Close Up

Goodyear ARRIVA (Thailand) 195/60R/15
Rims: CK 15" 5x108 ET25- it actually came with the VOLVO center cap!!

Tires are Nitrogen-Filled.

Thanks, Enjoy

That's me in the above photo

Post by **matthew1** » 22 Jun 2005, 00:05

NICE rims! Thanks for posting.

yeagermeister · Post by **yeagermeister** » 22 Jun 2005, 06:35

i really like the way the 5-spokes look.

my only question- what is the advantage (if any) is of inflating your tires with pure nitrogen???

petershen1984 · Post by **petershen1984** » 22 Jun 2005, 07:51

Thanks Yeagermeister, now allow me to explain why you would inflate with Nitrogen.

Why Nitrogen?

Your tires heat up at high speeds due to friction, and oxygen expands with this heat, increasing tire pressure. Thus, the size of the contact patch increases as well, thereby increasing tire friction with the road. That's why overinflated tires are at risk for blowing out at higher speeds.

Further, when oxygen condenses, it generates moisture, which over time corrodes with your rims and the metal wires inside the rubber tires.

Granted, compressed air is already 78% Nitrogen and 21% Oxygen, so we're only concerned about the 21% of the 30 psi that will expand with heat. However, Nitrogen is more stable, it doesn't expand or compress that much, so tire pressure is maintained longer.

All tires will gradually lose pressure as air escapes through the sidewalls, but Nitrogen-filled tires does so at one-thirds the rate of a tire with compressed air. Nitrogen has been used in airplanes (imagine the friction and rubber burning on a dangling landing gear suddenly turning at touchdown speeds of 220 km/h!), and on NASCAR race cars. It's now popular amongst the auto industry as well.

Post by **matthew1** » 22 Jun 2005, 23:49

Those rims look like 15" rims on V70s or maybe the "platinum" 850s. I can't place it exaclty, but I've seen them, or very similar rims, from the factory on '97-'00 850/70s.

Either way, big improvement over the old rims

.

petershen1984 · Post by **petershen1984** » 30 Jun 2005, 12:13

How's the rim/tire market in America - how much would a job like this cost? (195/60R15) / Good Year Arriva

yeagermeister · Post by **yeagermeister** » 30 Jun 2005, 13:58

thanks for the physics/chem lesson!!! i hadn't ever thought about it.... i just remember guys i used to race BMX with who said they had their tires inflated with Helium because it was "lighter"... which i knew was a load of crap. at least you've got a justifiable reason!!!

Guest · Post by **Guest** » 01 Jul 2005, 02:00

yeagermeister wrote:thanks for the physics/chem lesson!!! i hadn't ever thought about it.... i just remember guys i used to race BMX with who said they had their tires inflated with Helium because it was "lighter"... which i knew was a load of crap. at least you've got a justifiable reason!!!

Nope, helium makes its escape even faster than air. It's used in cycling sports, but bikers usually need to repump after every race.

petershen1984 · Post by **petershen1984** » 12 Jul 2005, 09:33

Brake dust is quick to find their way on my new front rims. Almost no dust from rear wheels - is this normal?

Glad to know the brakes are working though.

adrianpike · Post by **adrianpike** » 12 Jul 2005, 11:23

petershen1984 wrote:Brake dust is quick to find their way on my new front rims. Almost no dust from rear wheels - is this normal? Glad to know the brakes are working though.

Yes, it is normal. The front brakes are proportioned signifigantly more than the rears.