Fast Wheels
By Ian Pavelko, photos courtesy of Fast HD Series
Canada’s own wheel manufacturer
There is likely no other modification one can make to a vehicle that describes the character and tastes of the owner quite like the choice of wheels mounted to the axles.
Few things so easily and radically change the look and attitude of a 4WD, and the choices run from the mundane to the ludicrous. Like most aftermarket products we see in the northern world, the vast majority of serious truck and buggy wheels have traditionally come from the U.S. That’s starting to change. Three years ago, a Canadian brand called Fast Wheels, already well known and respected for their performance car line, decided to throw their hat in the ring.
Fast Wheels had offered some truck options in the past but these were mostly of the urban bling and mild mall-crawler variety. A more rugged mudslinging contingent inside the company had a much more focused vision of what might be possible on this side of the border and was willing to bet that its customers did too. Fast H.D. Series was born.
Fast HD
At first, they chose to partner with established U.S. wheel makers to test the idea out. The Fast models however were anything but badge-engineered copies. Although the basic designs were shared, the exact specifications and Q.C. parameters of the H.D. versions were unique… and these are not your normal must-be-round-and-hold-air variety. This is because Fast is the only Canadian company that builds OEM-approved accessory wheels for multiple auto manufacturers and getting that kind of certification is no walk in the park. They have learned some valuable lessons in these high level programs, which goes right back into improving their aftermarket products. Beyond quality, another area the Fast team sweats is getting the right fit. Their technical department spends thousands of hours every year 3D mapping vehicles to get hub, brake, axle, suspension and body component data down to the fraction of a millimetre. This is then uploaded into their proprietary fitment software and compared to the CAD drawings for each wheel. The result is guaranteed fitments with unmatched levels of precision.
If there is one thing we really like about Fast, other than they are Canadian company that build wheels for Canadians, it’s that they are not just catering to the 20-in to 22-in wheel crowd. It’s very easy to focus on just this market, but Fast have themselves some trail cred by offering a 15-in and several 16-in wheels for those who need small wheels and big tires. If you are a big wheel lover, don’t fret; Fast have you covered on that spectrum as well. In total, they now offer fourteen different wheels, with more than 300 possible combinations of finish and specification in sizes ranging from 15x8 to 22x12. If they don’t have what you’re looking for, they also have their own in-house machine shop with Mazak 3-axis CNC vertical mills that can custom machine hundreds of different bolt pattern and center bore combinations from their extensive inventory of blanks to dial-in the specs that you need.
When it comes time to throw a new set of wheels on your rig, whether it's a daily hauler, show truck or trail rig, it’s worth noting that someone on our side of the border is now catering to our lifestyle.