CF Wheels On The ME

[Shadow]

This development portents well for the ME at some point, though probably the 2021+ model year, having carbon fiber wheels as either an option, or maybe even standard on the 2022 ZORA, 1,000 HP, AWD version.

Carbon Revolution expands operations to supply 150,000 carbon fiber wheels annually
Viknesh Vijayenthiran
Sep 14, 2018

Ferrari 488 Pista fitted with carbon fiber wheels
Ferrari 488 Pista fitted with carbon fiber wheels
Ford GT’s carbon fiber wheels
Ford GT Competition Series
2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R’s carbon fiber wheels
2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R’s carbon fiber wheels
Carbon Revolution carbon fiber wheels

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Australian outfit Carbon Revolution plans a massive expansion of its operations due to strong demand for its innovative one-piece carbon fiber wheels.

The company announced Friday it will spend $72 million to expand its plant in the city of Geelong to increase capacity from a current 10,000 wheels per year to 150,000. The company will also triple its workforce by adding about 500 jobs.

Carbon Revolution was the first manufacturer in the world with a commercialized one-piece carbon fiber wheel, and its new facility will allow it to scale up production to meet global demand which has grown sharply in recent years due to supply contracts to automakers such as Ford and Ferrari.



Ferrari 488 Pista fitted with carbon fiber wheels

The 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R was the first car to offer the carbon fiber wheels. Since then we've seen them on a handful of other models, with the Ferrari 488 Pista unveiled earlier this year the most recent recipient.

The wheels don't only look cool but they are also sturdy and most important of all reduce unsprung and rotating masses. The 19-inch carbon fiber wheel on the Shelby GT350R weighs just 18 pounds versus 33 for the aluminum alternative. Reducing unsprung mass helps reduce the overall weight of the car, but also helps reduce inertia through the suspension system, beneficial for qualities like ride and grip. A reduction in rotating mass helps reduce gyroscopic forces that make a fast-spinning wheel harder to accelerate, brake and turn. In a nutshell, the lighter the spinning wheel and tire, the less resistance the car will have to turning, starting and stopping. But the wheels also reduce vibration and harshness, since carbon fiber has natural damping properties.

Cost has been issue, with a set typically ranging in price between $10,000 and $15,000. However, with the news that Carbon Revolution is significantly expanding production, we could see the cost of the wheels come down and thus they could potentially be offered on many more models.

https://www.motorauthority.com/news/...heels-annually

[JB]

Excellent information.. im a huge fan of reducing unsprung weight. Its really a fascinating way of improving the driving experience.

i would never spend ten grand on wheels because im too much a tight wad...but if there was ten grand option that included heavy duty cooling and suspension as well as heavy duty brakes (like a z51 five grand corvette option) with carbon fiber wheels for ten grand...that i would check off the option list.

i think thats what ford charges extra for the mustang gt350R over the gt350..

The corvette team would do well to consider these ideas to raise transaction prices on the standard version of the corvette c8.

special leather interior oackages id pass on...special stereos, infotainment centers?many of dont care for them...

but carbon fiber wheels in a ten grand z51 like package...id probably open up my wallet a little wider..

ford had a longer line for the gt350r than the gt350 when the cars released kind of shows the logic to this approach.

[Racer86]

Another fact about carbon fiber wheels is that they are stiffer than even forged aluminum wheels and that fact will allow less static negative camber to be used.

[cutnout]

I trust there will be exhausting testing before release for us buyers. Charlie aka cutnout

[JB]

GM would rosk nothing less.

[John]

GM does extensive testing before accepting a supplier component. For example, the dash material must be subjected to 100,000 hours of direct Arizona sunlight to insure it does not fade (in GM’s accelerated climate testing building). The Collector Edition Tension Blue dash material started to fade at 90,000+ hours. The supplier’s product was rejected, which was the reason why the Collector Editions were released three months after their scheduled initial release date, but only after a second, differently treated Tension Blue material passed the 100,000 hour test. (I did the math earlier and if my memory is correct, 100,000 hours would be 18 years of 15 hours/day direct Arizona sunlight).

Similarly when the first batch of 2006 C6 Z06 polished wheels were received by GM, they inspected and rejected 100% of the first batch for lack of supplier quality control.

Is GM’s methods fullproof? Nnoe of us are that naive, but at least we know that they do have rigorous supplier testing standards and try and catch 100% of defective supplier products before they are installed into our Corvetttes.

[JB]

Ford shoukd have a similiar oricess in place fir the gt350r carbon fiber wheels considering the importance of durability. Anything is possible althoughid inagine it would go on the top level c8 and not the z51 model as being discussed...

in hindsight,,,

wishful thinking on my part that the z51 model would get such a cool option..