Wheels ??

2008 Tacoma Steel Wheels - New Jersey - Salt on roads - Wheels rusty - I need tires so I was thinking might be a good time to change out wheels - Looking at Aluminum wheels on Ebay and web sights like below. Is there any down side to Aluminum in stead of steel ? Any experience - recommendations - links appreciated. Thanks for any reply.

https://www.getallparts.com/Toyota-...9GlEkSU-cz47cnIQq1JfVbrPTpjEXeOwaAshREALw_wcB

 

You can get better TRD rims for a few
More dollars
I live in New England, and as long as you take care of the rims you will be fine

 

Yep, they will look nasty like your steel wheels ( no rust ) but all oxidized and corroded unless you take care of them. I have steel wheels with snows mounted I run in the winter and aluminum with all seasons in the summer months

 

I have a Access Cab Tacoma - will TRD rims work ? Any link ?

 

Any hints on care ?

 

The wheels you have linked to above are stock alloys that are painted silver and came on many Tacomas and they do have paint flaking issues after 5-10 years probably sooner if in heavy road salt areas. Mine all had that problem so did a quick sand repaint and a few years later still happening - really needs a full sand blast but rock fields scar them up anyway. If you buy tires at place like Discount they sell wheels too and will do a package deal for you. Your TPMS sensors may be different too so that's another cost going steel to alloys.

 

The salt works on aluminum same as it does steel, just a different type of oxidation. Clean and wax frequently but the easiest is have two sets of wheels.

 

Check the for sale thread and CL i live in jersey and I look just to see what people are selling and i see rims all the time. Aluminum wheels will usually be lighter and save on mpg’s

 

There are no benefits to run steel wheels. They rust, weighs more, and bend easily during impact resulting in balancing issues.

 

There is one benefit to steel wheels over aluminum... cost.

 

Initial cost=yes
Long term = No for reasons stated above.

 

A lot of it comes down to variables. Where you live, how you use your vehicle, how seriously you take maintenance, how long you own the vehicle. If your vehicle doesn't live a very difficult life, and if you take care of it, it's very possible to get many years out of a steel wheel without any issues. Plus, depending on exactly what wheels you are talking about, you can likely get multiple sets of steel wheels for the price of one set of aluminum wheels, depending on the makes of each.

 

I bought a set of Gen3 Tacoma takeoffs from an eBay store in Salt Lake City, many sourced from tire shops when people trade for larger wheels and tires. The 16x7J charcoal wheels (centers included) to replace the 16x7J steel wheels have the same bolt pattern, however alloy wheels have a different TPMS sensor angle than the stock steel wheels so I ordered new TPMS sensors and lug nuts (flat seating surface vs. cone nut for steel). Wheels were just over $600 for four, and with the addition of Toyota lug nuts and TPMS valves/sensors, I'm a bit under $200/wheel. Compared to $89 for one replacement center for my steel wheel, I'm quite happy. I wax the new alloy wheels before having the tires mounted, so I was looking for advice on that topic. Found it!
This 2009 Access Cab looks better all the time!