Upgrade alloys and branding

[ReggieGasket]

Leaving aside issues of manufacturing quality, I'm interested in the effect of branding on wheel choice. I have a W204 Sport which has AMG wheels as standard. Clearly upgrading to other genuine AMG wheels will work perfectly. Upgrading to AMG copies would work style wise (from a distance), but there are issues there. But what about wheels like OZ or BBS? There's no issues with quality there, but would they cheapen the look of a Mercedes? If so, why? The F1 Mercedes cars us BBS wheels, so why wouldn't BBS wheels look cool on your Mercedes Sport? OZ have some really nice wheels, but I suspect many people would think they cheapen the look of the car. Is it because Mercedes is such a strong premium brand or is it we associate aftermarket alloys with teenage boys? And if you put OZ wheels on would you feel the need to put Mercedes badges on? Any views?

 

[renault12ts]

It's because we live in the UK...they have no problems with other makes of wheel in the US.

 

[sinewave]

OZ Wheels are top draw and I nearly bought some of their multispoke wheels for mine, which IMHO look even better than the stock AMG efforts.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

There's nothing wrong with OZ, BBS, and Co. In fact they are OEM suppliers to motor manufacturers, and premium wheel brands in their own right.

In the UK we don't really have a big appetite for visible modifications, and certainly many people prefer to upgrade to another OEM wheel rather than modify and go with something else entirely. It's just a bit more subtle.

That's true of other marques too, not just an MB thing, but some brands and forums are targeted differently - I would expect Subaru forums to be different to MBClub.

Go with what you like!

 

[pipmk]

It's because we live in the UK...they have no problems with other makes of wheel in the US.

That in itself should put you off.

 

[Red C220]

OZ still make some AMG wheels.

I ran a 560SEC with BBS RS 200's very similar to the wheels used on the period race cars.