In the middle of a hot Aussie summer, rattling sounds from your wheels can feel like something's ready to fall off. If you own a Holden VE, you might’ve noticed this happening more often when the roads are baking. It’s not your imagination. Heat can bring out sounds and movement that don’t happen under cooler conditions. When your Holden VE rims start rattling during a drive, it’s usually a sign that something’s expanding, shifting, or wearing in ways it shouldn’t.
Since our roads in Australia, especially in Perth and other parts of WA, can hit serious heat levels by early January, it’s a good time to pay closer attention to how your rims are behaving. Let’s break down why your VE starts to sound off on hot roads and how you can stay ahead of it.
What Happens to Rims in Extreme Heat
Summer heat doesn’t just make the cabin uncomfortable. It reaches everything, including the metal parts of your car. Alloy rims naturally expand when heated up. It’s a small shift, but enough to change how they sit against the wheel hub or how other components move around them.
• Thermal expansion increases when your car sits in the sun for long hours or drives across hot roads. Over time, this heat makes tiny shifts in how things fit together.
• The road surface can shoot right back into your rims, which makes the metal even hotter. This affects the gap between your rims and the surrounding wheel well parts.
• If bolts haven’t been checked in a while or anything’s slightly worn, the heat exaggerates the problem. Loose spots that might go unnoticed in winter become obvious as soon as summer hits full swing.
Common Causes of Rattling Sounds From Your Wheels
That jittery, metallic sound is more than annoying. It's often a clue that something in your wheel setup needs attention. In hot conditions, it doesn't take much to stir things up.
• Lug nuts that have loosened slightly or weren’t tightened evenly can rattle with movement. Once the metal heats up and expands, there’s more wiggle room for those parts to clink against each other.
• Inside the wheel housing, rubber or plastic pieces like spacers or bushings can soften under heat. They begin to lose shape, which lets the rim shift with road vibration.
• Heat also brings out the weaker spots in your Holden VE rims. If there's an old micro-crack hiding along a spoke or near the hub, the pressure from heat and road vibration can make it worse and noisier.
How Road Conditions Add to the Problem
Summer doesn’t just heat up your car. It changes the feel of the road too. Out here in WA, roads in January are dry, hard, and often covered in small cracks or swelling patches of bitumen. It creates a perfect storm for your rims to move around in ways they shouldn’t.
• The surface under your wheels isn't always perfectly flat in summer. Bitumen gets soft and bubbly. Small potholes get deep fast. Your wheels hit these irregular sections, and combined with the heat, your rims absorb more shock.
• Rough stretches that might feel mild in spring get sharper in summer, especially driving at speed. This adds more lateral pressure around the bolts and the contact point with the brake disc.
• Those quick hits from uneven road surfaces tap into the extra looseness caused by thermal expansion, which is when rattling often starts or gets worse.
Preventing Summer Rattles Before They Start
You don't want your holiday road trip cut short by something that could've been avoided. Heat-related rim sounds often have early symptoms if you're listening for them or at least looking in the right places.
• It helps to plan ahead before long summer drives. Check for any cracking or wobble in your VE rims or around the bolts. A full inspection now can mean fewer problems mid-road trip.
• Where you park your car matters. Leaving it under direct sunlight all day, especially on bitumen, bakes the rims and tyres more than you might think. If there’s covered parking or a car shade available, it’s worth using.
• Dirt and grime from summer roads can build up faster than winter months. Check your wheels regularly and clean off brake dust or stuck-on gunk. Left alone, this buildup can make the rims shift or rattle when heat causes them to expand.
When the Rattling Means It’s Time for a Replacement
Sometimes a rattle’s not just a sound. It’s a warning. If the issue keeps coming back or gets worse, it might be time for a replacement rather than a sanding or retightening job.
• If your car starts pulling to one side lightly or the steering wheel shakes during acceleration, you could be looking at an alignment problem or serious rim damage.
• Most noise from rims in the heat is vibration-based. If that turns into a heavy knock or clicking, it could mean the rim face is warped or has an internal crack. Heat tends to expose wear that’s already there. That’s why even older rims seem to suddenly “go bad” during summer.
• Replacing a rim on time can prevent damage to your suspension or brake assembly. Letting it ride through summer might cause uneven tyre wear or even a loosened hub setup.
Keep Your Rims Quiet and Road-Ready This Summer
A lot of summer driving discomfort can tie back to your wheels, and what might start as a subtle rattle could grow quickly in the heat. Holden VE rims available from us are designed to match both the original factory fitment and high-quality aftermarket options, helping you keep your Commodore driving smoothly even during WA’s harshest conditions. Our knowledge comes from working with the full range of early Commodore models (VB to VL) and the newer VE range, so we understand how heat and roads in Australia can affect your set-up.
If you're noticing the sound more often when driving over warm bitumen, or your Holden VE rims begin to feel different underfoot, don’t wait too long to have them looked at. Knowing how heat messes with fitment, friction, and metal wear gives you the upper hand. Summer's a great season for road trips and holiday drives, as long as your wheels are up for it. Staying alert now can save you costly repairs later.
Persistent noise from your VE’s wheels, even after handling the usual checks, can signal it's time to inspect the condition of your parts. Heat and long drives on hot WA roads often take a toll on worn components. At Holdcom, we offer reliable solutions for everything from warped metal to tired hardware. Browse our selection of Holden VE rims to help get ahead of summer wear. If things still don’t seem right, give us a call and we’ll help you find the fix.
