6" Ronals and Fuchs: wheel design

[Mark J. Besso]

I think we tend to associate a particular wheel design with the vehicle we 
first saw them on....or at least the vehicle we've seen them on most often. 
The Ronal wheel is something I always associate with the Type 43 Turbo since 
that's what I first saw them on.  I know that the 14" version came on nearly 
every 4KQ, but I still thought of them as 5Kt wheels.  The Fuchs 5-spoke 
wheels were something I first saw on a racing version of the UrQ. (Might's 
been an A2, but I'm not sure)  Although I like them on many Audi's, that's 
the vehicle I'll always associate them with.

In 1986 Audi decided to make "Special Edition" versions of the 4K & 5K for 
the US market.  Other than unique interior/exterior colors, the main 
difference was the wheels.  They used the Ronal on the 5K, and the 
oval-slotted, flat-disc wheel on the 4K.  Every time I saw one of those it 
seemed like they had the 'wrong' wheels on them.

When it comes to aesthetics there's something unique to the Fuchs 5-spoke. 
It's got a squared design with rounded spokes.  That lets it blend well with 
almost any body style.  There's even a person in this area with a set on 
their Vanagon Syncro.

I used to run a set of 14" Porsche 924 7-spoke wheels on my 4KQ.  They were 
angular, just like that body style, but offered a significant increase in 
track width.  Still, they never looked like they belonged on that car.  When 
I raced that same car it was on 15" SAAB 9000 wheels. (Required the use of 
SAAB lug bolts)

~Mark


----- Original Message ----- 
From: Louis-Alain_Richard
Subject: Fw: 6" Ronals and Fuchs: wheel design


> Trivia: (and I don't know the answer)
>
> We all know that wheel design is directly linked to the body design.
> Usually, OEM choose carefully which wheels will be available on a specific
> car. To the opposite, think how ugly is a car with the "wrong" wheels
> (mid-nineties soft-contoured 5-spokes on a squarish car like the 79-83
> Mustang or a Jetta 4 GLI wheel on an A2 Golf).
>
> Knowing that, I can understand why Audi put the Typ43 wheels on the
> urQuattro and the 4000; they share some sheetmetal design similarities and
> this way one can see the link between the model lines. IMO, the Ronal 6"
> are at their best on the Typ43.
>
> But...
> The urQ is one _very_ angulous body design (could have been a Giugiaro
> design, just like the DeLorean, the Esprit and the Scirocco... three cars
> that are often confused with our urQs...See the pattern?) and the Typ44 is
> a very smooth design, to the very opposite of the crisp lines of the UrQ.
>
> So the question is:
> Was the Fuchs designed for the Typ 85 or the Typ 44 ?
> And why it is able to compliment so gracefully these two automobiles?
> Maybe it's an "universally perfect shape" (typical of an era), like the
> Cragar SS, the Porsche's own Fuchs or the BBS of the eighties?
>
> Comments welcome.
>
> Louis-Alain
> PS: In my basement, I store 5 sets of wheels+tires: Fuchs, Ronals, 90-91
> CQ 15"x7" Speedlines (wide lip), Volvo 850 Turbo 5-spokes and a set of
> 15x6, 4 bolts OEM VW silver steelies (Corrado winter wheels, ET35, the
> rare one with the 12 large D-shaped windows). Honey went in my "tire
> stocking room" yesterday, and said that, among all the precious alloy
> there, her steelies were the prettiest!!! Go figure...
>
>
> steven j <michellepfeiffersx at yahoo.com>
> Sent by: urq-bounces at audifans.com
> 2004-11-25 13:00
>
> To
> Ingo Rautenberg
> cc
>
> Subject
> 6" ronals: [urq] Fuchs are all the rage
>
>
> The 6" ronals might have a comeback - at least for
> those with 83's.  If your 83 is being judged in a show
> you could loose points for having the 8".
> BTW - I once saw a 6" 5x112 ronal R8 that was for a
> 5000 but it looked flatter - the center hub didn't
> bump out so I figured they may not clear the calipers
> - especially because i have the G60s.  Would those fit
> a urq?  The part# was not the same of my own 6" r8s.
> steve murray
>
>
> --- Ingo Rautenberg  wrote:
>
>> Todd,
>>
>> Did I miss something?  The '83 Urq's didn't come
>> with 8" Ronals - just the
>> 6" ones...
>>