March 13 2014
I decided to buy a set of new wheels for my car. I did not want a set of bling alloys or super expensive lightweight sports alloys, my requirement was a set of reliable, good for bad roads, and correctly fitting alloy wheels. Where else to look for such a wheel other than OEM?
My mid variant (VXI) Swift comes with 14 inch steel wheels, the top variant comes with 15 inch alloy wheels. I did not want to upsize to 15 inch wheels because :-
Swift OEM alloy wheels are 15 inch, so that OEM option is ruled out, the next best option i saw was the alloy wheels of the Suzuki Ritz (aka Suzuki Splash in Europe and UK), these are 14 inchers and is a perfect size for my Swift! Perfect offset (50), perfect seating of center-bore on the hub spigot and 5.5" wheel width for the 185/70R14 Michelin XM2 tyres; and soon an order for a set of 4 was placed with the Suzuki dealer.
When the wheels arrived it was surprising to find ENKEI stamped on one of the spokes. Yes, these are made by Enkei for Suzuki! Enkei makes OEM wheels for many Japanese cars I'm glad that Maruti Suzuki India also sources their alloy wheels from Enkei. The paint finish on these wheels are top notch, the build seems robust and they're mostly function over form.
Enkei OEM Alloy Wheels
Update: March 20, 2014
I used to regret my decision to buy Michelin XM2 tyres for my Swift ever since because on these tyres the car didn't feel right during high speed driving. The car felt a little disconnected and the steering felt a little imprecise as speeds increased. My previous Suzuki had Bridgestone Potenza G3 and these were really really good (except for the very high road noise these tyres generated), and i used to kick myself for not buying Potenza G3 for my Swift. But all that changed after i upgraded my wheels.
The 185/70/14 Michelin XM2 were mounted on the stock 5" wide stock steelies, and I could see the sidewalls bulging a little as if the wheel width wasn't enough. The alloys wheels are 5.5" wide and on this the 185 section XM2 tyres fit better. Higher variant (ZXI) Swift comes with 185 section tyres from the factory and these are mounted on 5.5" wide wheels. No wonder.
I enjoyed my recent 700KM highway trip with these alloys installed, the Swift handled much better and there was no disconnected, imprecise or floating feeling. This is the first time that the car handled this good on Michelin XM2 and now I have started to like these tyres.
I decided to buy a set of new wheels for my car. I did not want a set of bling alloys or super expensive lightweight sports alloys, my requirement was a set of reliable, good for bad roads, and correctly fitting alloy wheels. Where else to look for such a wheel other than OEM?
My mid variant (VXI) Swift comes with 14 inch steel wheels, the top variant comes with 15 inch alloy wheels. I did not want to upsize to 15 inch wheels because :-
- My current set of 14" Michelin XM2 tyres have more than 50% life left in them.
- I prefer to have a bit of sidewall for tackling bad roads.
- 14 inch OEM wheel+tyre combo is lighter than 15" OEM wheel+tyre combo and lower the weight better it is for performance and economy.
Swift OEM alloy wheels are 15 inch, so that OEM option is ruled out, the next best option i saw was the alloy wheels of the Suzuki Ritz (aka Suzuki Splash in Europe and UK), these are 14 inchers and is a perfect size for my Swift! Perfect offset (50), perfect seating of center-bore on the hub spigot and 5.5" wheel width for the 185/70R14 Michelin XM2 tyres; and soon an order for a set of 4 was placed with the Suzuki dealer.
When the wheels arrived it was surprising to find ENKEI stamped on one of the spokes. Yes, these are made by Enkei for Suzuki! Enkei makes OEM wheels for many Japanese cars I'm glad that Maruti Suzuki India also sources their alloy wheels from Enkei. The paint finish on these wheels are top notch, the build seems robust and they're mostly function over form.
Enkei OEM Alloy Wheels
Update: March 20, 2014
I used to regret my decision to buy Michelin XM2 tyres for my Swift ever since because on these tyres the car didn't feel right during high speed driving. The car felt a little disconnected and the steering felt a little imprecise as speeds increased. My previous Suzuki had Bridgestone Potenza G3 and these were really really good (except for the very high road noise these tyres generated), and i used to kick myself for not buying Potenza G3 for my Swift. But all that changed after i upgraded my wheels.
The 185/70/14 Michelin XM2 were mounted on the stock 5" wide stock steelies, and I could see the sidewalls bulging a little as if the wheel width wasn't enough. The alloys wheels are 5.5" wide and on this the 185 section XM2 tyres fit better. Higher variant (ZXI) Swift comes with 185 section tyres from the factory and these are mounted on 5.5" wide wheels. No wonder.
I enjoyed my recent 700KM highway trip with these alloys installed, the Swift handled much better and there was no disconnected, imprecise or floating feeling. This is the first time that the car handled this good on Michelin XM2 and now I have started to like these tyres.
How much for this Alloys?
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