Sometimes OEM is the only option.
When I bought the Accent, it came with its original wheels: a set of 13-inch steel wheels with plastic center caps. Since I intended to use this as my daily driver, even through the winter, I put some dedicated winter tires on them. These were life-changing in the snow, but when summer came around again I didn’t have another set of wheels and tires to switch to. On the plus side, I didn’t have to drive very often because we were having a pandemic that year and I got to work from home.
The following winter, I decided to go on the hunt for some wheels that would look good on the little Hyundai for summer, and not break the bank. It uses a slightly less common stud pattern: 4.5Jx13, or 4×114.3 in metric. This left me with few aftermarket options, but I found a set of white 15-inch wheels made by Drag, which were basically a copy of a Work Emotion CR. However, I had completely forgotten about the captive rotor design on the front; the bolt heads interfered with the wheels, which had been designed with a dual bolt pattern and meant for flush mounting. There was no recessed space in the mounting surface to account for the captive rotor’s protruding bolt heads.
After carefully repackaging and returning the wheels, I went back on the internet and started looking for used OEM wheels. I decided to look for a full set of the 14-inch alloy wheels that would have come on the higher trim level of my Accent so that I could at least be sure they would fit. Many searches and phone calls later, I had found two wheels from a salvage yard in one state, and two others from a yard in another state, all including the plastic center caps, which were even harder to find than the wheels. I had them all shipped to me.
When they arrived, it was clear they would need some work to look good again. Two of them were in fairly decent condition, but the other two were corroded and severely curb rashed. I also found that some of the plastic tabs on one of the center caps were broken off. These are extremely difficult to keep intact. Fortunately, the part number was stamped on the backside, so I headed to eBay and was able to find another pair that were still in good shape, which was probably nothing short of miraculous.
I took the wheels and five non-broken center caps to a place called Alloy Wheel Repair Specialists, who came highly recommended by a few other car enthusiasts I know. They somehow managed to remove all the corrosion and polish out all but the deepest scuffs and gouges, then repaint the wheels in a silver metallic very similar to the factory finish. They came out looking spectacular.
Since these OEM wheels were designed with the captive rotor’s bolts in mind, they did fit perfectly on the car. I ended up liking the design a lot more than I thought I would. These were designed for this car, and are a period-correct option, so I think they suit the car quite well.
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