Many of our factory original rims-like the Lincoln Mark Series wheels or the Audi A6 rims -show an offset measurement and many of you might be wondering what exactly that is. Most people are unaware of the effect on performance that could occur with a wrong wheel offset. So, what is wheel offset? It’s simply the distance between the area where the lug nuts (hub mounting) connect your factory rim to your car or truck and the actual middle of the wheel. There are three types of wheel offsets which are measured in millimeters: zero offset, positive offset, and negative offset.
– Zero offset means that the hub mounting of the rim is lined up with the centerline of the rim.
– Positive Offset is when the hub mounting is toward the front of the wheel or closer to the side that faces the street.
– Negative offset refers to the hub mounting being closer to the back of the rim or towards the inside that faces the car.
Vehicles come with offsets to minimize the load on the wheel bearings. Incorrect offsets or offset alterations can cause many problems, so it’s very important to know what’s best for your car. If you have any questions, please feel free to call us at 1-800-896-7467 or visit our website at OriginalWheels.com.
Thanks for visiting
Luz
Hey guys,
In your wheel offset diagram, the drawings for Zero and Positive offsets look the same.
Cheers,
Phil.
It is a terrible image but the negative offset is correct and you can get an idea of what it’s supposed to mean. I’ll see if I can find or create something better.