Editing Hubcap (section)

==Characteristics and design==
Often a hubcap will bear the [[trademark]] or [[symbol]] of the maker of the automobile or the maker of the hubcap. Early hubcaps were often chrome-plated, and many had decorative, non-functional [[spoke]]s. Hubcaps were immortalized in the [[Art Deco]] styling near the top of one rung of setbacks (ornamental [[frieze]]) incorporates a band of hubcaps on the [[Chrysler Building]] in midtown [[Manhattan]].<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.thecityreview.com/chryslerb.html |title=The Midtown Book |publisher=The City Review |first=Carter B. |last=Horsley |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230406235612/http://www.thecityreview.com/chryslerb.html |archive-date=6 April 2023 |access-date=25 April 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url= http://picturingamerica.neh.gov/downloads/pdfs/Resource_Guide_Chapters/PictAmer_Resource_Book_Chapter_15B.pdf |page=68 |chapter=The Chrysler Building, 1926–1930 |title=Picturing America - Artwork, Essays, and Activities |publisher=National Endowment for the Humanities |year=2008 |isbn=9780615207933 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140115004049/http://picturingamerica.neh.gov/downloads/pdfs/Resource_Guide_Chapters/PictAmer_Resource_Book_Chapter_15B.pdf |archive-date=15 January 2014 |access-date=25 April 2023}}</ref>

Part of the lore of hubcaps is that on bad roads they have a tendency of falling off due to hitting a bump.<ref>{{cite book |page=31 |title=On This Day in Chicago History |first=John R. |last=Schmidt |publisher=The History Press |year=2014 |isbn=9781626192539}}</ref> [[Center cap]]s, however, fall off less frequently than older full wheel covers, which were often quite heavy. In some parts of the U.S. and in Mexico there are automotive garages whose walls were decorated with various hubcaps that had fallen off in the vicinity; they were often for sale.

This problem persists even with different retention systems that have been engineered.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.hubcaphaven.com/hubcaps_101.htm |title=Hubcaps 101 |website=Hubcaphaven.com |access-date=13 January 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080310153332/http://www.hubcaphaven.com/hubcaps_101.htm |archive-date=10 March 2008}}</ref> Hubcaps generally use either clip-on retention, where some type of spring steel clip (or plastic clip in the case of plastic hubcaps) engages a groove in the wheel, or bolt-on retention, where a threaded fastener retains the hubcap, or a plastic washer attached to the lugnut itself holds the hubcap on. Clip-on hubcaps tend to pop off suddenly when the wheel impacts a pothole or curbstone, while bolt-on hubcaps are more likely to vibrate loose over time, and tend to rattle and squeak.

To prevent the loss, owners attach plastic wheel trims to the wheel itself using an electrical [[Cable tie|zip tie]], which are sold in silver color for this purpose. A kit consisting of spare zip ties, a pair of cutting pliers, and [[latex gloves]] allow a trim thus secured to be removed easily in the event of a tire puncture.

In the U.S., during the age of [[custom car]]s (the 1950s–early 1960s), decorating one's car with the wheel covers from another was common. Two very desirable wheel covers were those of the 1950 [[Cadillac]]<ref>{{cite web|url= https://hubcapmike.com/history-hubcaps-wheel-covers/ |title=The History of Hubcaps and Wheel Covers - American Wheelcovers |website=Hubcapmike.com |access-date=25 April 2023}}</ref> (called the "[[Sombrero]]") and that of the 1953 to 1955 [[Oldsmobile]], which resembled a huge, three-tined spinner. [[Aftermarket (automotive)|Aftermarket]] suppliers included the "Mooneyes" brand (named after the firm's founder [[Dean Moon]]) hubcaps and wheel covers that were some of the first independently offered for hot rods and custom cars.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Fetherston |first1=David |title=Moon equipped |date=1995 |publisher=Featherston Publishers |isbn=9780964617506}}</ref>

<gallery mode="packed">

File:HUB CAP CENTER IN HOUSTON, TEXAS. THIS IS ONE OF A SERIES OF 21 BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPHS. THEY DOCUMENT THE... - NARA - 557644.jpg|"Hub Cap Center" in Texas
File:Lancer Hubcap.jpg|Plastic hubcap covering a steel wheel bears the automaker's logo
File:Losthubcap.jpg|A lost plastic wheel cover next to a road
File:Wheelcover with cable tie - detail.jpg|Cable tie to help prevent accidental detachment
</gallery>

=== Motorsport use ===
[[File:Porsche 956 962 (935?) tires and wheels (7526211220).jpg|thumb|right|1980s BBS racing wheel shroud]]

Another variant of the wheel cover, known also as ''wheel shrouds'', ''rim blanking'' or ''turbofans'', is associated with the German wheelmaking brand [[BBS Kraftfahrzeugtechnik|BBS]] since the 1970s. These are attached to the wheel first, then bolted on as if the driver or mechanic is bolting the wheel to his car in the manner of changing their wheel. Commonly made from aluminum, they are designed to distribute airflow to the brakes, thereby generating downforce depending on the shape. Thus, these wheel covers are functional rather than merely decorative.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Productions |first=Petrolicious |date=2016-07-07 |title=This Is How Turbofan Wheels Evolved From Racing To The Street |url=https://petrolicious.com/articles/this-is-how-turbofan-wheels-evolved-from-racing-to-the-street |access-date=2024-01-15 |website=Petrolicious |language=en}}</ref>

From [[2006 Formula One season|2006]], to get around FIA technical regulations that ''all wheels must be made from an homogeneous metallic material'', a [[carbon fiber]] variant found its way into [[Formula One]] when it was used by [[Scuderia Ferrari]] whom BBS supply its wheels to. At the [[2006 Turkish Grand Prix|Turkish Grand Prix]], the rear shrouds were also adopted by Toyota and Toro Rosso and thus their use became widespread for all teams. Prior to being banned from the [[1994 PPG Indy Car World Series]], wheel shrouds were popular on [[Oval track racing|superspeedways]] until [[Team Penske]] revealed that those covers could reduce drag by 2.5%.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.motorsportads.com/race-engine-technology/ret-formula-one-technology.htm#wheelshrouds |title=Race Engine Technology: Formula One Technology |website=motorsportads.com |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160617010215/http://www.motorsportads.com/race-engine-technology/ret-formula-one-technology.htm#wheelshrouds |archive-date=17 June 2016|url-status=dead |access-date=28 November 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.racecar-engineering.com/articles/f1/wind-cheaters-10-ways-f1-teams-increase-top-speed/ |title=Wind Cheaters - 11 ways F1 teams increase top speed (Updated) |last=Collins|first=Sam |date=9 June 2013 |work=Racecar Engineering |access-date=25 April 2023}}</ref>

Another type of wheel cover, the ''static wheel fairing'', was introduced by BBS for Ferrari at the [[2007 British Grand Prix|British Grand Prix]] to act as a brake cooling aid for front wheels while remaining stationary the wheel itself with one part being cut out at a 27° angle to enable hot air to escape and thus became adopted by every team. The wheel covers were banned from use in F1 from the [[2010 Formula One season|2010]] season after incidents where they broke loose in races. To get around the ban, Ferrari used a detachable integral aero device made from the same magnesium material as the wheel itself, which consisted of double concentric rings of different diameters. As parts of cars now have to be homologated, its rivals were unable to copy this device. Its use became eliminated when the FIA revised the regulations for [[2011 Formula One season|2011 season]] to prohibit wheel materials in certain exclusion zones.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.formula1-dictionary.net/wheel_shrouds.html |title=Wheel shrouds and Static wheel fairing |website=formula1-dictionary.net |access-date=28 November 2020}}</ref>

===Non-rotating hubcap===
A non-rotating hubcap retains the same orientation even when a vehicle is in motion. An example is the Rolls-Royce whose hubcap centers are weighted and mounted to revolve independently of the wheel rotation, thus the RR logo can be read while the vehicle is in motion.<ref>{{cite magazine|url= http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-reviews/first-drives/2004-rolls-royce-phantom |title=2004 Rolls-Royce Phantom - Not your (affluent) father's BMW |first=Dennis |last=Simanaitis |date=29 May 2003 |magazine=Road and Track |access-date=13 January 2014}}</ref>

This design also allows for messages or [[advertising]] to be placed on the hubcap and be read while the vehicle is moving.<ref>{{cite news|url= https://www.nytimes.com/2001/05/14/business/mediatalk-in-los-angeles-the-hubcap-as-billboard.html |title=MediaTalk; In Los Angeles, the Hubcap as Billboard |first=Andrew |last=Zipern |date=14 May 2001 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=13 January 2014}}</ref> Non-rotating hubcaps with advertisements may be found on race cars, [[Taxicab|taxi]]s, commercial vehicles, industrial machinery, [[buses]], and [[golf cart]]s.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.farmshow.com/a_article.php?aid=4757 |title=Non-Rotating Hubcap |website=farmshow.com |year=1992 |volume=16 |issue=5 |page=17 |access-date=23 April 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Nudd |first1=Tim |title=Are hub-cap ads the wheel deal? |url= https://www.adweek.com/creativity/are-hub-cap-ads-wheel-deal-19677/ |publisher=Adweek |date=12 January 2006 |access-date=23 April 2023}}</ref>