In rec.autos.makers.vw.watercooled, ThaDriver wrote:

>
>>My theory is that it is like the roll bar evolving to a "light bar".
>***********
>Huh? How do you turn a rollbar in a car into a light bar? This is not a
>4x4 board...

It was the best example I could think of to illustrate a concept of
something that was originally a primarily functional thing having
evolved into a primarily appearance thing.

I consider aluminum wheels to be somewhat fragile compared to steel.
I think that squat tires are not so good on roads with potholes, and
that a pothole edge can damage that aluminum wheel. I wish that the
manufacturers would let one go with the more durable tire/wheel
combos on better performance cars.

Your point that aluminum alloy wheels usually go with wider,
squatter tires, making the wheel itself larger and heavier, is quite
valid.

I suspect a high-strength steel alloy would be as light as a typical
aluminum casting, even for the same tires. Yet I have no numbers.
For racing they probably use something beyond ordinary aluminum
casting.