Which is correct, Wheel or Rim?

An age-old question that is debated quite often, is it called a wheel or a rim? Honestly the two terms are used interchangeably, even I've done it before, but they actually aren't the same. It’s a mistake that many people make and we’re here to help you better understand the parts of your vehicle.

Let's begin with The Rim.

Rims are an essential part of the wheel. The rim helps provide structure when mounting a tire onto the wheel and keeps it in place to prevent it from slipping off as well as sealing the tire to the wheel. Think of it as the frame or base structure. Without the rim, tires would lose air and end up damaging your car and the wheel itself or loosen off the wheel since it's what helps keep the tire intact.

Now that we've covered that, let’s move on to The Wheel.

The wheel is going to be the entire metal area that holds the tire and allows the car to move. A lot of the time when people say wheel, they include the tire in the equation. It includes the rim, tire, nuts and bolts to form a complete unit called the wheel. It couldn't function if any of these components were missing though.

With all of that said, any wheel shop will understand what you need whether you say wheel or rim, but it's always good to know the parts of your car especially when it comes to repairs to avoid any misunderstandings. In a nutshell, the rim is the outer edge of the wheel that keeps the tire in place and the wheel is made up of the rim, tire, nuts and bolts. Hope this all helped to better clarify and resolve the wheel vs rim debate.

-Heather Jarkow