Is Bling Dead, Dying or Strong as Ever?

AKA Mr. Angry

I was speaking to some friends of mine the other day about a wheel choice for the new car that I’m building. Some of them asked about the level of "bling" I was going to go with. They asked if I was going to go with a 19" or 20" inch wheel. Would it be chrome, polished or powder coated, and what wheel manufacturer was I going to use? This got me thinking. As some of you know, I run some polished aluminum wheels on my ‘68 Charger, so when the question came up if I was going to do it again I immediately said no. My reasoning for this is that I feel as though the whole "bling thing" is coming to a close, at least for me anyway. Now we all know that there are hundreds of aftermarket wheel companies out there, offering everything from billet wheels to spinners to wheels that’ll show text that you type in from your computer.

This is all fine and dandy and has been going for quite some time, but I am wondering if the "bling" portion of the wheel industry is starting to die down. I mean, do we really need wheels that light up, spin when they’re stopped and allow you to give out your phone number to the car next to you? It seems that nowadays aftermarket wheels are more often being constructed for purpose-built machines, and not so much for pure aesthetics. Am I wrong here?

Permalink:

Posted at 8:11 am in Wheels

Comments

James
Apr 18, 2008 at 1:11 am

Oh finally people that agree with me!! I can’t stand it and i really hope it dies out.
I have noticed a small increase of blinged wheels. Most people where i live looks at them weird; like wtf is up with that?

eric
Mar 28, 2008 at 3:50 pm

“People Have to realize your car needs tires” LOL. People dont have to do anything you say. Ill ride on twenty” till I cant drive a car anymore. My car rides perfectly fine, You should realize we dont care!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FordRulesAll
Mar 28, 2008 at 2:17 am

I like the bling factor to a point. But some people just go way to far.people have to realize your car needs tires and having 1 to 2 inch thick tires is just stupid but for me the rims should be a reasonable size, with thick enough rubber cause it looks cool but ya still need some type of purpose.

Bobby
Mar 27, 2008 at 8:50 pm

if its not dead yet, it should be. I’m sick of seeing 300’s and Chargers ruined with ridiculous rims and horrid paint jobs. Donks, dont even get me started, they’ve been stupid since day one. I still dont mind seeing an SUV with a nice set of 24s or 26s, but even thats a bit too big for my taste.

Josh
Mar 27, 2008 at 8:06 pm

i know this will come as a huge surprise, but here in atlanta, it’s going stronger than ever. you see dubs on vans, metro bus’s, geos, hondas and everything else.

that first pic is actually kinda orginal and i do dig it, would you see me ridin durrrty in that thang? nope, but i can respect it.

a town YEAHH

eric
Mar 27, 2008 at 7:56 pm

Besides its all negative feedback. You can have tasteful looking dubs on your car. I get compliments from old guys all the time with my lexus. so I say its mixed opinions I dont think its dying at all. Maybe if DUB magazine goes under, but thier tour is bigger than ever.

eric
Mar 27, 2008 at 7:54 pm

You all have the same opinion, whats the fun of blogging anymore.

ALAKRANERA
Mar 27, 2008 at 6:44 pm

YEA I THINK ITS PRITTY PALYED OUT!! :/ AT LEAST THE LOW-PRO STYLE IS!! ITS HARD TO HAVE A UNIQUE RIDE, WHEN EVERYBODY HAS THE SAME “STYLE” OF WHEELS DONT GET ME WRONG I LIKE CHROME RIMS, BUT I AM THINKIN ABOUT BLACK ONES FOR MY DODGE!!

retroman
Mar 27, 2008 at 5:28 pm

I’m sure it’ll die out soon enough, and we’ll all laugh at this crazy fad a few years from now. Some things like lowriders can maintain a steady following, and we all know hotrods and muscle cars are forever cool like blue jeans. Before it does die out I wish I could just take a car like a Prius and jack it up with rims 8 feet in diameter just to show how ridiculous I think this fad really is. I’d even play “White n Nerdy” by Weird Al just for extra kicks.

Chris
Mar 27, 2008 at 3:14 pm

Looks ridiculous, has always looked ridiculous, man I hope it dies.

bewolverine2
Mar 27, 2008 at 1:15 pm

if bling is done tastefully (mosty its not) than sure it can look cool. it seems to be over done almost all the time, also in illinois its not very practical. we have alot of potholes, it only takes one to put a ding in the wheel and in a months time your tire will be showing the steelbelts making it unsafe.
i just want to push that cutluss on its side.

buddha1320
Mar 27, 2008 at 1:10 pm

down here in texas i still see th ebling action going on but more and more i am starting to see the black with chrome lip style wheels i know i get better gas mileage when i have the stockers on my wifes ride than when i put on her bling 22’s

GTwildfire
Mar 27, 2008 at 12:57 pm

Can someone tell me what the hell is on the grill of that car? Looks like he had roadkill chromed.

Jeremy
Mar 27, 2008 at 12:54 pm

I have noticed the whole bling trend starting to slow down, at least somewhat. Ever since the introduction of 30″ wheels that were so big it was impractical for anything other than a show car things started to die out.