Tethys v Thor

[Borehamovi]

Please can I have any words of wisdom regarding keeping Tethys 17" alloys clean, from any fellow Swedespeeders who have them.

I adore the look of these wheels, especially with the lowered chassis option and Maya Yellow paint that my wife and I are on the point of signing up to, but worry that they will be fiddly and time consuming to keep up to my usual standards of cleanliness.

I am therefore considering a switch to Thor alloys instead, as these appear more amenable to wiping with a sponge, including getting my hand 'inside' to do the job properly by sticking it through the spokes, than do Tethys.

Before doing so, are my fears grounded or groundless, please, and if the former, do Thor wheels suit Maya painted S60s, as I have yet to see such a combination on the street, in a dealer, or in any photos.

I intend to keep the car for at least six years, so being able to keep the alloys free of brake dust induced corrosion is as important to me as are the cosmetics of proud car ownership.

Many thanks for your help.

[GrecianVolvo]

I, personally, think that TETHYS are superior to THOR. They really add a sporty look to the already sporty S60.

They are very easy to keep clean as long as you do not neglect them; I have not had a problem with them for almost 2 years now. I just spary them with a wheel cleaner every 10 days and rinse them with a hose...never had to scrub them!

Yannis

[Theodore Ruxpin]

I threw a hissy fit when my dealer told me it was not possible to mount the Tethys wheels to my 2002 S60 AWD (They said VOLVO stated it was not technically advised to mount the Tethys wheels on the AWD. The reason? They haven't told me yet...since I asked this past June). So I "settled" for the Thors.

I really loved the looks of the Tethys wheels and was pretty disappointed when I could not get them(Through a dealer swap), but after two weeks the Thors really grew on me. LOTS of people have the Tethys so I love how different the Thors look. With my tint and Thors the sleek streamlined profile of my S60 looks darn MEAN.

I put the same wax I use on the paint on my Thors and I think it has helped a lot in the cleaning department. Just wipe and roll!

[Kaizai]

I like the Thor's more. They are like version 2 of the Volans

[Iceman]

I don't know about the Tethys but the Thor's are pretty easy to clean. I just don't like the look of the Tethys at all. Way too many spokes. I was elated to find out that the Thor's were available in a package when I bought my AWD.

PQT

[fave23]

I was just in your fair town. Visiting my uncle in Studley Green nice place. I was disappointed that the Wasps were not playing til Saturday. Maybe next time. I was surprised that you could still order the Maya Gold. I don't think it's offered on new cars here. The cleaning of the Tethys as was mentioned, is not as complex as you may expect. Spray and rinse with high pressure and they're done. I've looked at after market rims but can't find any with better esthetics IMO. My Maya s60 is well suited to the Tethys. I wish I had those country roads in Canada. Cheers.

[Harrison]

I know it's not an "upgrade" from the standard issue with the AWD...but I do prefer the look of the 16" Orbit rims.

They look more... "rugged" than the Tetheys (which look like bicycle rims) and less "busy" than the Thors (which I do like better than the Tethys).

All in all, I think the Orbits look great- simple, tough, elegant.
Appropriate for an AWD version of the S60, I think.
Perhaps it's no accident that they also echo the looks of the XC70's 16" Tellus (6 Spoke) rims.

As I like to say, less is sometimes more.

[Borehamovi]

Hi fave23,

Hope you had a good time over here, though a shame you didn't get the game you wanted. There'll just have to be another time!

Winter (relatively speaking compared to some corners of the world!) just arrived, with heavy frosts and some very slippery driving conditions in our neck of the woods.

Yes, Maya is a gorgeous colour - and it would appear luckily - still very much available here!

But... (There's usually a 'but'!) My wife raised concerns about the lack of legroom, headroom, and boot (trunk) space, so ..... Putting my sensible head on, I realised that she was right, and the Maya S60 I have lusted after ever since they were released is too small for family needs, including loaded up intergalactic blasts right across Europe once a year. We have therefore just ordered a Ruby metallic red V70 2.4T, with the lowered self levelling suspension option (pretty low, and a nice and horizontal stance), rear spoiler, sports leather interior, fully Dolby upgrade, and a load more. Wheels? Tethys are not available, in the UK at least, so we have stuck with the standard Amalthea 17" rims, which have smooth curves, not sharp 'internal angles' like the Thors, so should be easy to clean. Infact, apart from the spoiler being absent, ours shuld look exactly like the Ruby red V70 shots in this site's gallery. The next ten weeks are gonna be *so* slow!

Bye for now,
Steve