JONATHAN SAGE
Porsche’s historic competition cars rolled on wheels featuring fantastic designs, but few were carried over to the manufacturer’s range of road cars. Since establishing Group 4 Wheels thirteen years ago, I’ve made it my mission to reimagine and retail cla
Wheels. I’m always thinking about them. I started my business, Group 4 Wheels, in 2009. I wanted to bring new and exciting wheels to market for air-cooled Porsches and Volkswagens, taking influence from the designs of yesteryear by reimagining them as modern products using today’s methods of manufacture, as well as current coatings. I also wanted to ensure my wheels could be bought in a range of sizes and fitments far beyond the scope of what the original manufacturer offered in period.
Group 4 Wheels products are manufactured using Alsi7 primary alloy before being heat treated, a process improving each wheel’s mechanical properties, as is the norm in motorsport. Furthermore, the alloy undergoes a degassing pre-treatment limiting the presence of oxygen, which, in turn, minimises cavities in each casting. As you’d expect, all Group 4 Wheels products are subject to strict quality controls, including X-ray inspection and pressure testing to verify the quality of each casting.
Group 4 Wheels products are reimagined classics — it’s about understanding what worked in the past and then remastering the design to suit classic and contemporary vehicles in the present. Ferrari, Detomaso and Fiat styles form a large part of my company’s portfolio, but it’s a modern take on classic Porsche wheels which has forged Group 4 Wheels a reputation for providing a safe and stylish solution to equipping treasured classic sports cars with wheels evoking memories of the golden era of motorsport. Put it this way, it should come as no surprise to learn many of the air-cooled classics you’ll encounter at shows are rolling on Group 4 Wheels products.
Driven by a desire to re-imagine some of the world’s finest motorsportinspired wheels, but with exacting modern specification, Group 4 Wheels has supplied products to enthusiasts in charge of some of today’s finest historic road and race cars. My desire to succeed in providing high-quality wheels enhancing both the look and performance of the host vehicle sees me continually striving to develop products suitable for cars dating as far back as the 1960s and as recent as today, from an early short-wheelbase 911 to a modern Boxster. To this end, variations on an original design might include different widths, diameters, PCDS or offsets to suit present-day vehicles or bespoke chassis configuration.
As a case in point, recent to market is the Group 4 Wheels LMZ, an aluminium version of Porsche’s classic steel wheel, boasting all the looks of the original, but carrying a fraction of the weight. Offered in satin silver, satin black, bare aluminium or a combination of satin silver with a cut dish, LMZ can be ordered as a fifteen-inch wheel, but with widths ranging from five inches to seven inches, with offsets of ET23 through ET36. With the overall diameter of the wheel remaining the same throughout the range, the look doesn’t detract from Porsche’s stock offering, but the additional width affords drivers greater road-holding and, of course, the opportunity to experiment with staggered fitments. Incidentally, PCD is Porsche’s popular 5x130, with each wheel weighing as little as 6.5kg.
And I’m delighted to report a sixteen-inch LMZ is also now available to buy direct from the Group 4 Wheels website.
The process of bringing a wheel from my initial thought process to a retail proposition involves discussing my ideas with the trusted mechanical engineer I regularly work with. He’s got thirty years experience and knows a thing or two about custom wheel manufacture.
For example, when planning the LMZ, I explained how I wanted widths far beyond Porsche’s specification for the standard fifteen-inch steelie. Subsequently, he prepared drawings, which we swapped to and fro, ironing out the detail, such as ensuring the ‘window’ slots on the outer edge of the wheel didn’t look too thick. There are also considerations regarding available tyres, as well what control rubber is used in historic Porsche motorsport competitions, where the finished product might be put to use. Plus, we needed to consider how the behaviour of tyre blocks might be affected by the unique characteristics of the wheels we were developing.
There’s a huge amount of research and development invested in every Group 4 Wheels product, but you’ll be pleased to know, it’s a labour of love.
THE ADDITIONAL WIDTH AFFORDS DRIVERS GREATER ROAD-HOLDING AND STAGGERED FITMENTS