Designer wheels to kill — and to die — for

ORLANDO, Fla. — Charley Hossairati sells status.

Inside his Orlando, Fla., shop stand rows of monstrous, gleaming chrome wheels that fetch as much as $20,000 a set from patrons eager for the hottest-selling aftermarket accessory in the automotive world. The name of Hossairati's shop — Eye Candy — is a perfect description for the shiny status symbols.

"It's candy, and everybody wants it," Hossairati says.

Popularized by rap culture, custom wheels have become a multibillion-dollar business, with sales skyrocketing in the past decade. But police say these pricey rims are just as popular with another group: thieves.

Although agencies generally don't track wheel-specific crimes, experts point to the steady rise in stolen cars in the United States since 1999 as an indicator of the lust for designer rims. Orlando police did break down their numbers recently and found 61 rim-related thefts this year through mid-August, up 42 percent over the past two years.

Sometimes such crimes can have deadly results. In April, a Daytona Beach, Fla., man was gunned down during Black College Reunion as four men tried to steal his brother's wheels. Last month, a suspect was shot and killed during an attempted theft of a souped-up car in Orange County, Fla.

Orange County Undersheriff Malone Stewart doesn't think those incidents signal any kind of imminent jump here in wheel-related violence similar to what has plagued cities such as Los Angeles. But he says drivers who flash the fancy wheels need to realize this: To certain people, "rims are valued above life."

A look at the numbers provides some reasons why. Since 1996, custom-wheel sales have risen more than 67 percent, with $3.2 billion in sales from specialty wheel and chrome spinners in 2004, according to the Specialty Equipment Market Association. That is a sizzling commodity on the black market.

"Certainly outfitting a nice SUV with 22-inch rims ... adds to the chances of a vehicle being stolen not so much for the goal of having that ride yourself, but for all of those expensive 'add-ons' which translate to fast cash on the street," says Frank Scafidi, spokesman for the National Insurance Crime Bureau, based in Chicago. "Absolutely and without question, nice big rims are one of those items that make a vehicle more appealing to a thief."

Indeed, last month, Orange and Seminole, Fla., deputies arrested Philip Formica, 25, and Ronald Concoby, 26, at a rental unit where they recovered seven sets of rims and tires. Authorities charge that the pair targeted wheels from Volkswagen Jettas and Golfs, and a Nissan 350Z, and sold the stolen rims for $800 to $1,200 a set on eBay.

In 2002, when Otis Johnson opened Big Rims in Orlando, he figured that business experience wasn't as critical as the words coming from some very influential lips.

"In all the rap songs that people listen to, all they talk about is big rims," says Johnson, whose clients include Orlando Magic players. "Rappers help promote [specialty rims]."

Morphing cars into flashy showpieces holds the same appeal today as it did for hot rodders and lowriders in the 1950s and 1960s, but with a hip-hop extreme makeover. The confluence of rap culture; TV shows such as MTV's "Pimp My Ride," which tricks out junkers; and video games such as "Gran Turismo," in which players customize race cars, add a fresh twist.

"Tricking out cars for young men has a lot to do with asserting their masculinity," says Carleton Kendrick, a family therapist and author of "Take Out Your Nose Ring, Honey, We're Going to Grandma's."

But the passion has embraced men and women of all ages.

"A couple Saturdays ago, a guy in his late 50s came in looking to put aftermarket wheels on his SUV," recalls Keary Salazar, who works for Hubcap Heaven in Orlando. It's "all ages, from young to old. There's really no certain stereotype."

Says Hossairati: "A lot of people use it as a way to reward themselves for their hard work. Some people use it as a hobby. To some people it's just a fashion statement or a stature thing.

"You'd be surprised how many Isleworth customers I've had come here, multimillionaires who come in and fix up their vehicle as an expression of self. It's [also] your everyday Joe, your hardworking man, looking for a piece of candy."

Rims come in a variety of designs, with chrome creations boasting lug patterns that resemble arrows, crosses and scepters. Then there are "spinners," which give stationary wheels the illusion of movement. Locally, "dubs" (slang for wheels with diameters of 20 inches or more) are popular, wheel dealers say.

Some thieves have been willing to kill for designer rims, as happened with alarming frequency a decade ago in Los Angeles.

Last year, a 17-year-old Hialeah, Fla., boy was charged with murder and carjacking after a driver was killed for his spinners. In April, three men in Oakland, Calif., were charged with gunning down a 21-year-old postal worker in a rim-jacking attempt, while also in April, police think thieves shot and killed a 27-year-old man in St. Paul, Minn., for the rims on his Chevrolet Blazer.

The allure of big wheels and the accompanying rewards explains why neither the threat of theft nor worse deters buyers.

Victor Brown stood recently at a counter inside Eye Candy, a credit approval away from Daytons. A set would complete his planned renovations to the weathered 1985 Cadillac Seville he bought last year.

Brown, a mason, doesn't mind going into debt for a set of wheels whose price tag far outstrips the blue-book value of his Seville.

"My car now, I gotta park out in the back [of nightclubs] 'cause the big dudes come with the 24s [24-inch rims] and 22s," says Brown, an aspiring rapper. "My cousin has some 24-inch spinners, and I rolled with him one day. He was at a gas station, and this pretty girl just walked up and said, 'Whose car is this? Whose car is this?' and asked for his number."

That sealed it for Brown.

Though his heart is set on Daytons, if his credit betrays him, Brown's fallback is a visit to a budget street-dream merchant in his neighborhood who sells status at bargain prices.

Brown is asked if these cheapie wheels might be hot, in the illegal way.

"I dunno," he says, turning away with a laugh. "I dunno."