Wheel Gap.........FAIL

[FlatBlackCaddy]

I just can't wrap my head around this, why is it that so few automakers are capable of properly grasping this concept. Maybe it's just me, but wheel gap plays a HUGE role in how a car looks. Something as simple as the gap between the top of the wheel and the wheel arch can take define a cars entire character(when all else is created equal).

It seems that the germans are much better at this and have a firm grasp on the concept. GM seems to be by far the worst offender from what i can see. I stopped by my local GM/Cadi dealer to check out a red camaro they had sitting out front. It was a 2lt V6(msrp of 28K, 8K dealer markup  ). While a few others were gushing over the car i couldn't help but notice that I COULD STICK MY FUCKING HEAD between the tire and the rear wheel arch. This to me is absolutely unacceptable. Sure, you can always lower the car but why should i have to spend several hundred dollars in parts and a equal amount in labor just to correct something that the automaker should have done in the first place. Why is it that when i see a early 2000 325 sedan that it looks low and tight from the factory and a performance car like the camaro looks like a 4x4 pickup. Bullshit.
/end rant.

[565]

Well I actually hate how 2000 325 sedan's look because of that wheel gap.  The wheel has to go somewhere when the suspension moves, so in the case of BMW and all cars with small wheel gaps, the wheel goes into the fender, which means by definition the fender has to extend farther over the the wheels.  Which is why when you drive behind a BMW 325, it looks like the track is way way too narrow for the body.  That just drives me crazy. 

[Eye of the Tiger]

I like wheel gap.

[2o6]

I like wheel gap as well. Cars with virtually no wheel gap look unbalanced.

[ifcar]

With the Camaro, maybe it's to leave room for huge wheels in higher-end models.

[Eye of the Tiger]

Changed my mind. I no longer like wheel gap.

[S204STi]

I think it's funny when people spend $4k on coilovers just to get that perfect wheel gap.  Then they stick something in the trunk and now it's too small, so that the gap on the sides is disproportionately large.  Kinda like the car in Sportyaccordy's sig pic.

[r0tor]

Well I actually hate how 2000 325 sedan's look because of that wheel gap.  The wheel has to go somewhere when the suspension moves, so in the case of BMW and all cars with small wheel gaps, the wheel goes into the fender, which means by definition the fender has to extend farther over the the wheels.  Which is why when you drive behind a BMW 325, it looks like the track is way way too narrow for the body.  That just drives me crazy. 

by friends 06 325i has the sport package on which widens the rears to 255's... i love that damn car

[MX793]

Well I actually hate how 2000 325 sedan's look because of that wheel gap.  The wheel has to go somewhere when the suspension moves, so in the case of BMW and all cars with small wheel gaps, the wheel goes into the fender, which means by definition the fender has to extend farther over the the wheels.  Which is why when you drive behind a BMW 325, it looks like the track is way way too narrow for the body.  That just drives me crazy. 

Um, the fender is supposed to envelop the wheel and ideally should be wider than the wheels.

[Onslaught]

I'm not a fan of them myself. And the Germans do a  much better job of getting it right. The new trucks these days are worse. The gap between the tire and bed is 2-3 times bigger than what it needs to be. And then they don't even black it out and just keep it the same color as the rest of the truck so it makes it show up even more.

[565]

Um, the fender is supposed to envelop the wheel and ideally should be wider than the wheels.

I dunno I just don't like that look from the back.  Like for example my Z06 has a large amount of fender gap.  On the upside the tires completely push out to the edge of the car,  I mean like completely flush. 

[giant_mtb]

I'm not a fan of them myself. And the Germans do a  much better job of getting it right. The new trucks these days are worse. The gap between the tire and bed is 2-3 times bigger than what it needs to be. And then they don't even black it out and just keep it the same color as the rest of the truck so it makes it show up even more.

I think for trucks it's actually needed.  If you're putting thousands of pounds of weight on the back of your truck, whether it's in the bed or on a hitch, you're going to need some play in the suspension so that when the weight comes down on the truck, it isn't just going to bottom out.

[nickdrinkwater]

It's not just a GM thing.  Lots of cars have massive arches so that they look good in press photos with 19s.  However, the vast majority of people don't buy their car with 19s, so the car looks underwheeled in most cases.  Prime examples: Jaguar XF, Vauxhall Insignia.

[MX793]

I dunno I just don't like that look from the back.  Like for example my Z06 has a large amount of fender gap.  On the upside the tires completely push out to the edge of the car,  I mean like completely flush. 

My car is the same way (the lower half of the tire actually protrudes very slightly because the body narrows a bit as you approach the bottom of the car), and the result is that my tires fling road crap all over the sides of the car when the roads are wet.  Plus, the outside edge of the fender where the metal is rolled under gets all chipped from stones and then starts to rust.  I will admit that it does look pretty cool when the tires are pushed right out to the edges of the car and I wouldn't want the tires sunk in 3 inches, but I don't mind if the fender is an inch beyond the tire because it allows it to do its job.  I mean, do motorcycles have fenders that are narrower than the tires?  Do race cars (open-wheels excluded)?

[MX793]

It's not just a GM thing.  Lots of cars have massive arches so that they look good in press photos with 19s.  However, the vast majority of people don't buy their car with 19s, so the car looks underwheeled in most cases.  Prime examples: Jaguar XF, Vauxhall Insignia.

Typically, when a manufacturer offers multiple wheel sizes for a vehicle, the overall diameter of the tire is the same (give or take maybe a millimeter) for all wheel sizes so that they don't have multiple speedometer calibrations depending on wheel size ordered.  If a car offers wheels ranging from 17" to 19" and the 17s have a lot of wheel gap, so will the the 19s.

[nickdrinkwater]

Typically, when a manufacturer offers multiple wheel sizes for a vehicle, the overall diameter of the tire is the same (give or take maybe a millimeter) for all wheel sizes so that they don't have multiple speedometer calibrations depending on wheel size ordered.  If a car offers wheels ranging from 17" to 19" and the 17s have a lot of wheel gap, so will the the 19s.

I guess I'm thinking more of the effect caused by rim diameter/tyre profile, which has the same illusion.

E.g.


and


VS

and

[Onslaught]

I think for trucks it's actually needed.  If you're putting thousands of pounds of weight on the back of your truck, whether it's in the bed or on a hitch, you're going to need some play in the suspension so that when the weight comes down on the truck, it isn't just going to bottom out.

It has to have more than a car for sure. But the last few trucks by all brands have way more than they could ever need. The trucks from the 70's, 80's and most of the 90's didn't have enough room to put a cow in between the tire and the bed side. The ones now do and it looks like shit.

[MX793]

It has to have more than a car for sure. But the last few trucks by all brands have way more than they could ever need. The trucks from the 70's, 80's and most of the 90's didn't have enough room to put a cow in between the tire and the bed side. The ones now do and it looks like shit.

Especially the latest GM trucks.  Fords don't see to be quite as bad.

[Onslaught]

Especially the latest GM trucks.  Fords don't see to be quite as bad.

If they would just black out the inside of the bed so you didn't see paint making the gap look ever bigger it would help some. But in the end they still look like ass.

When I put a bed side on at work these days I undercoat all those gaps to make them look better. So far all the people have liked what it looks like more. I'll be fucked if someone isn't a fan one day.

[Gotta-Qik-C7]

I stopped by my local GM/Cadi dealer to check out a red camaro they had sitting out front. It was a 2lt V6(msrp of 28K, 8K dealer markup  ). .
/end rant.

WTF! 36k for the V6! How much of a mark up will the SS have! BTW I hate too much wheel gap also.

[r0tor]

hey, when 3/4 of your product line is ubershit and everyone is avoiding them because of bankruptcy - GM dealers need to make a profit somehow... -shrug-

[Speed_Racer]

It has to have more than a car for sure. But the last few trucks by all brands have way more than they could ever need. The trucks from the 70's, 80's and most of the 90's didn't have enough room to put a cow in between the tire and the bed side. The ones now do and it looks like shit.

Worst offender:



In person it looks even more ridiculous.

[Gotta-Qik-C7]

Worst offender:



In person it looks even more ridiculous.

That front bumper looks Huge!

[SVT666]

That front bumper looks Huge!

That's because it is.  It's the biggest bumper ever fitted to a production pickup truck.

[giant_mtb]

It has to have more than a car for sure. But the last few trucks by all brands have way more than they could ever need. The trucks from the 70's, 80's and most of the 90's didn't have enough room to put a cow in between the tire and the bed side. The ones now do and it looks like shit.

I definitely agree with you on that one...it seems to be much in excess these days.

[ChrisV]

On some cars, like the Camaro, the designers designed the car lower and tighter gapped, but bumper regulations make it so it has to sit taller, factory. They KNOW that many end users will lower it, and they give them room to do so. If they didn't have room to lower it, the gap would be proportional, but it woudl have 4x4 underbody clearance.

Personally, i can't wait to install my $200 worth of H&R lowering springs to get rid of some of the unacceptable gap on my BMW. I wish I could afford coilovers and go this low:

[Onslaught]

I don't think BMW's have "unacceptable" gaps. They look better than just about any cars in stock form. Too bad most of the new ones are so ugly.

[Gotta-Qik-C7]

Reminds me of one of my favorite movies as a kid! 

[ChrisV]

I don't think BMW's have "unacceptable" gaps. They look better than just about any cars in stock form. Too bad most of the new ones are so ugly.

Look at the 4x4 gap up front on mine:





I'm dropping the front 2" and the rear 1.3"

[SVT666]

I think the gap on your car is pretty near perfect.  There is a reason why lowering springs are the #1 mod on Mustangs.  This is a 4x4 gap: