2024 Fifteen52 Wheels Review: Are They Good, Bad Or Reps?
Fifteen52 is a wheel company that has risen to fame in the last couple of years.
Seemingly coming out of nowhere, they were all of a sudden making wheels for Ken Block, Magnus Walker and more.
Who are Fifteen52, and just how good are their wheels?
Let’s find out.
The History of Fifteen52
Fifteen52 has actually been around since 1996 when it was a VW, Audi and Porsche tuning shop founded by Brad Beardow and Joe Hoppen.
Joe Hoppen was a big name particular in the Porsche motorsports world and was director of Porsche Motorsports North America.
The two teamed up and formed Volkswagen Sport and Audi Sport, where they tuned VWs and Audis.
In 2008, Joe Hoppen decided to retire and left the company to Brad, who decided to wanted to make wheels.
Since he was no longer tuning VWs and Audis, he had to change the name, and Fifteen52 was born.
Brad hired Matt Crook as the wheel designer, who was a prominent figure in the car community, and they set about making wheels.
Their priority with Fifteen52 was to make wheels and have fun, producing wheels that they wanted to produce rather than what was trendy.
The first wheel they made was the RML Snowflake – a remake of a wheel that originally came on the Volkswagen Golf GTI Mk1. They took the design but made it available in bigger and wider sizes, and even made the original center caps fit. Naturally, these wheels were extremely popular with the VW crowd, and Fifteen52 quickly grew in popularity.
For there they began to make a series of motorsport inspired wheel designs that have been very popular in many car enthusiast circles, particularly Euros and the American hot hatch scene.
Fifteen52 remains a small company with a focus on designing unique and special wheels that are simple and functional.
This had lead them to have many partnerships with big automotive personalities such as Magnus Walker and Ken Block, who they made wheels for for around 10 years.
Another interesting bit of history on Fifteen52 is that their wheels got so popular that Work Wheels (yes that Work Wheels) actually copied some Fifteen52 designs and released their own versions in their Seeker line up, for cheaper than Fifteen52’s.
Here is a comparison shot of Fifteen52’s wheels (top) and Work’s versions (bottom):
It’s not often that one of the best wheel brands on the planet blatantly copies another wheel brand, so this says a lot about the impact Fifteen52 made with their wheels.
How Fifteen52 Wheels Are Made
Fifteen52 currently only make monoblock wheels that are offered in two different wheel lines, a cast line and a flow formed line. They used to make monoblock and multi-piece forged wheels as well, but they currently do not offer any forged or multi-piece options options.
Unfortunately, Fifteen52 don’t release a lot of information on how exactly their wheels are made, other than the fact they are cast or flow formed.
Cast Wheels
The majority of Fifteen52’s current wheel line up are cast wheels.
Cast wheels tend to be the cheapest and are also the easiest to produce, but they are also the heaviest and weakest.
However, that doesn’t make them inherently bad, and Fifteen52 had a good reputation for making very durable wheels, which is one of the reasons Ken Block used them for so long.
Fifteen52’s offroad wheels are made using low-pressure casting with a secondary heat treatment to increase their strength.
Flow Formed
Fifteen52 currently offer a select range of flow formed wheels with their Holeshot RSR wheels.
Flow formed wheels are made using a cast center which is then placed on a spinning machine and spun at high speeds which heat is applied, and rollers apply pressure to form the barrel.
This process results in lighter and stronger wheels than normal casting, while still being relatively inexpensive to produce.
Flow formed wheels are durable, lightweight and affordable which makes them a good choice for track use.
If you want to know more about wheel manufacturing processes, check out my guide on how wheels are made here.
Where Are Fifteen52 Wheels Made?
Fifteen52’s cast wheels are made in Taiwan, and while I can’t confirm this for sure, I would imagine that includes the flow formed wheels also.
The forged wheels they used to make were manufactured in America, but they are not longer available.
Safety Certifications
Fifteen52 have TUV certificates available for many of their wheels for European customers.
TUV certification is one of the toughest to pass, which is a great testament to the quality of their wheels.
While I couldn’t find any reliable information of whether their wheels are JWL and VIA certified, if they are TUV certified then they will definitely meet the standards of JWL and VIA.
Fifteen52 Wheel Line Up
Fifteen52 currently have two wheel lines, the cast line and the flow formed line.
Cast Wheels
Fifteen52 offer a range of cast wheels including the following models:
Apex
Chicane
Comp
Integrale
Podium
Tarmac EVO
Tarmac
Turbomac
Flow Formed
Currently Fifteen52 offer one wheel model in the flow formed line:
Holeshot RSR
Off-Road
Fifteen52 also offer a range of cast off-road wheels for trucks and 4x4s. Models include:
Analog
Traverse HD
Traverse MX
Turbomac HD
Turbomac HD Classic
Metrix MX
Range HD
Patrol HD
Metrix HD
Other Popular Fifteen52 Rims (Discontinued)
Fifteen52 have made a number of popular wheels over the years that have since been discontinued. Notable models include:
RML Snowflakes
Outlaw Series (Magnus Walker Collaboration)
Tarmac R43
Formula TR
Conclusion – Are Fifteen52 Wheels Good?
According to everything I have seen, yes, Fifteen52 wheels are good.
Personally, I like the approach that Fifteen52 take, designing wheels they like based on motorsport designs rather than just making whatever is trendy.
Their wheels have also proven to be durable and good quality overall, with even their off-road range having a good reputation when put through a lot of abuse.
They also got many of their wheels TUV certified which is notoriously difficult, and that says a lot about the quality of the wheels as well as their dedication to making a quality product.
Overall I think Fifteen52 are doing a decent job of doing something out of the ordinary in the wheel game and produce good quality, affordable wheels which stand out from many of the other brands.
GET FIFTEEN52 WHEELS FOR THE BEST PRICE HERE
FAQ Regarding 1552 Wheels
Are Fifteen52 Wheels Good?
Yes, Fifteen52 make good quality cast and flow formed wheels which are affordable and durable.
Are Fifteen52 Wheels Reps?
Some Fifteen52 wheels are based on other wheel designs, but overall I would not call Fifteen52 a rep wheel company.
Where are Fifteen52 Wheels Made?
Fifteen52’s cast wheels are made in Taiwan. Their forged wheels which they no longer offer were made in America.
GET FIFTEEN52 WHEELS FOR THE BEST PRICE HERE
Cars owned: Mk2 Golf with 1.8T swap, BMW E28 with M30B35 swap, BMW E36 328I Mtech, BMW 750IL, Nissan 300ZX, Honda Civic EF
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