The bolt pattern represents an imaginary circle going through the center of the wheel lugs. The most common bolt patterns in the industry are 4, 5, 6 or 8 lug holes. As an example, a 5x114.3 bolt pattern represents a 5 lug pattern on a 114.3 mm diameter circle.

The offset is the measure of the distance between the center of the wheel to the hub mounting point on the wheel. There are 3 categories of offset :

A. ZERO OFFSET: When the hub mounting point on the wheel is aligned with the middle of the wheel. This kind of offset is mostly used for older rear wheel drive cars or for pickup trucks with large fenders

B. POSITIVE OFFSET: When the hub mounting point of the wheel is toward the outside or front of the wheel. This kind of offset is the norm for front wheel drive cars and most modern rear wheel drive cars.

C. NEGATIVE OFFSET: When the hub mounting point of the wheel is toward the inside or rear of the wheel. This kind of offset is mostly used for older rear wheel drive cars, lifted pickup trucks with fender extensions or sports cars with over fenders or fender flares.

It is important to select a wheel with the correct offset range for your vehicle. Choosing a wrong offset can affect the handling of the vehicle.

With the several different finishes now available on the market, you will have to decide if you want to install colorful wheels or a more classic finish like silver or black. On modern cars from the past decade, the black machined two tone finish is very popular and there is a great selection of after-market wheels with that specific finish. Selecting the correct wheel color will greatly depend on the vehicle’s color. You might be looking for a tone on tone look, for a classic silver finish or for a more subtle all black finish.