Body:
Mag wheels come at a significant premium to standard steel wheels. One would therefore expect them to provide some pretty serious advantages to justify their extra expense. They even have a few disadvantages over traditional car wheels, like being more attractive to thieves. If one does opt for mag wheels, make sure they are covered by your car insurance.

Appearance
The most obvious initial attraction of mag wheels, or magnesium alloy wheels, are their appearance. Some have quite intricate designs, and as long as hub caps aren’t put over the top of them, can really catch the eye. They usually look pretty sporty, and as such are often found attached to a sporty looking car, or a souped up vehicle.

Weight Benefits
If alloy wheels are lighter than regular steel wheels, which they often are, better handling can be expected. Lighter wheels help suspension keep wheels more in line with the contours of the road, which in turn improves tyre grip. More lightweight wheels should also be of a nominal benefit to fuel consumption.

Corrosion
With mag wheels often being bought for appearance’s sake, it is a major shame that after a few years corrosion can start to eat away at mag wheels. Paint and wheel covers can protect mag wheels from this corrosion, but this defeats part of the reason for buying mag wheels – appearance – by hiding the beautiful intricate designs of some mag wheels. Mag wheels can be refurbished after a few years, to bring them back to a pristine state, but these additional expenses sway the argument firmly against mag wheels, on a cost basis.

Also Attractive To Thieves
The nicer one’s car, the more desirable it’s also likely to be in the eyes of many others. Unfortunately this may also include thieves. The high value of mag wheels means a car owner needs to be a little more concerned about protecting his or her car (or car parts!) from such dangers.

Larger Size
Some mag wheels are larger than standard sized wheels. This may send out a message of exclusivity and luxury to other admiring car watchers, but other benefits of these wheels may be hard to identify. One study actually suggested that larger wheels had a negative impact on fuel economy, noise and comfort.

New or Used Car
The compulsion to buy wheels for a car that already has a decent (but possibly less sexy) set of wheels usually comes down to aesthetic desires, as there is no need for wheel replacement. Selecting appealing mag wheels as an option at time of purchase has more merit. Many new cars come with the option of mag wheels (for a fee), so one doesn’t need to throw away a good set of standard wheels.

On a pure cost / benefit analysis, it’s hard to rationalise the extra expense of mag wheels. Those buying mag wheels will often not follow this approach though. Mag wheels add appeal to a car’s appearance, and make a statement about the driver, meaning people will continue to buy them on this basis. When calling around for car insurance quotes, make sure that you notify your potential insurer if your car has mag wheels.