Apex PS-7 18x8.5 Wheels BMW E46 ZHP

[stephenkirsh]

That makes sense since the car is 50/50 weight.

[stephenkirsh]

I showed up at Apex's HQ to buy two arc-8s after talking with one of their agents for 2 days. I arrived, and they only had one wheel. The rest are still on the water from china. This was nearly two weeks ago. Haven't received the last wheel yet (I bought both and took home the one they had and they'll ship me the other). Still waiting. Hope it arrived before my track day I've scheduled at end of the month. They weren't able to give me an ETA.

My other wheel showed up finally. 5 weeks after I ordered it. Missed a track day I had planned cuz of it.

[johnrando]

Glad you finally got it. SUX it took so long

[stephenkirsh]

Yea . Apparently their shipment from china got delayed 2 weeks. Still, bad planning on their part.

I'll do one more autox on my all season tires before switching to the apex wheels. Can't wait though.

[Vas]

Curious to how you been liking them since you had them installed.

No issues with rubbing?

[JeffSaysThings]

This is interesting... ECS tuning sells a VMR V710 knockoff called the Alzor Style 349 that look nearly identical to these but are really inexpensive. I initially thought these were the same wheels, but these appear to be much higher quality. I bought a set of the Alzors for my old R32 and they weighted about 27 lbs each (same size and offset as OP but with different bolt pattern). I would have loved them, but they were advertised as weighing quite a bit less than they really did. Oh well, I sold the car and the wheels.

Nice looking wheels OP!

[WOLFN8TR]

You get what you pay for applies here...

Alzors=Good- Gravity Casting
VMR's=Better- Low Pressure Casting
Apex=Best- Flow Forming

Apex-Flow-Forming manufacturing process. Flow-Forming, which has also been called “Roll Forging” or “Spin Forging”, produces a barrel with similar strength to that of a fully forged wheel. This significantly reduces weight in the most significant part of the wheel, as it has the greatest impact on rotational mass. Even with key strength improvements that add weight in select areas, static weights are reduced by 20% on average versus cast alternatives.
In a Wheel Manufacturing perspective:

Gravity casting is a method of manufacturing a cast wheel of an specific metal alloy, typically aluminum, although Magnesium is also used, which involves supplying molten metal to a mould cavity via a feeder through a running system where the molten metal entry point is located above the top of the mould cavity. In this manufacturing process all the metal entering the mould is subject to turbulence. This turbulence can cause severe defects such as oxide inclusions and entrapped gas porosity and in some cases mould erosion and hotspots.

Low-pressure casting in the other hand takes care of the disadvantages of Gravity casting by filling the mould through an in-gate just below the top of the mould cavity from a source under the mould through a method which allows complete filling of the mould. The force of gravity acts against the upward flow of the metal and eliminates the possible turbulence caused by the falling liquid metal. The molten metal is stored in a pressured container and by increasing the pressure metal is then forced into the mould.


Low Pressure Casting Compared to Gravity Casting

In low-pressure casting the method in which the metal is forced into the mould is the main difference/advantage over gravity casting and is absolutely controlled. As explained above it results in a low turbulence or turbulence-free mould filling with little to no corrosion.

The molten metal in the furnace is in a closed container under protected atmosphere. Because of this the metal absorbs less hydrogen and any other impurities as well as the oxide formation being greatly reduced. As opposed to gravity casting, the metal surface is not interrupted constantly since it is been forced from under the metal surface. What you get is a very clean quality metal.

Basically low-pressure casting uses positive pressure to move molten metal into the mold quickly thus resulting in a finished product with an Aluminum that is denser than Gravity cast. The cost involving the production of low-pressure cast are higher than gravity

As per Tirerack.com:

GRAVITY CASTING
Gravity casting is the most basic process of pouring molten aluminum into a mold utilizing the earth's gravity to fill the mold. Gravity casting offers a very reasonable production cost and is a good method for casting designs that are more visually oriented or when reducing weight is not a primary concern. Since the process relies on gravity to fill the mold, the aluminum is not as densely packed in the mold as some other casting processes. Often gravity cast wheels will have a higher weight to achieve the required strength.

LOW PRESSURE CASTING
Low pressure casting uses positive pressure to move the molten aluminum into the mold quicker and achieve a finished product that has improved mechanical properties (more dense) over a gravity cast wheel. Low-pressure casting has a slightly higher production cost over gravity casting. Low pressure is the most common process approved for aluminum wheels sold to the O.E.M. market. Low-pressure cast wheels offer a good value for the aftermarket as well. Some companies offer wheels that are produced under a higher pressure in special casting equipment to create a wheel that is lighter and stronger than a wheel produced in low pressure. Once again in the quest for lighter weight, there is a higher cost associated with the process.

In a Wheel Quality perspective

The advantages of low pressure die casting process are several :
- higher yield achievable
- reduction of machining costs
- excellent control of process parameters
- good metallurgical quality
- leads to an optimal use of the aluminum
- excellent mechanical and technological properties of the castings.

Disadvantages of gravity die-casting:
- High porosity rate
- High absorption of impurities
- Less dense material which results in a heavier wheel to be able to achieve the required load rating
- Very high process variations which leads to more defective units

Gravity casting does get the job done but with a higher rate of defective units as opposed to a stronger and lighter wheel made by low-pressure casting.

[johnrando]

Good info Gary!

[WOLFN8TR]

Good info Gary!

Thanks John...