OZK Customs + Method 701: Bead Grip Wheels for Sprinter

Aftermarket wheels can be a valuable addition to your van life adventures for many reasons – not just related to appearance. They can allow you to run larger tires, give you the confidence to take your likely very heavy Sprinter conversion van over taxing trails safely, and yes, let the world know that you are driving a true adventure rig down the road. The 701 Bead Grip wheels from Method Racing Wheels are a perfect example of an aftermarket van wheel that offers numerous practical applications for your adventures.

One important consideration is the wheel’s construction: if you are taking your adventure van truly off the beaten path, like way off the path, then you want a wheel that was built to do that. The Method 701 wheels are purpose-built for tough driving conditions – cast from solid A356 Aluminum with T6 heat treatment, producing a bullet-proof construction with a 3640 lbs. load rating – equal to even the most heavily upfitted Sprinter adventure van.

Method is so certain they have produced an indestructible tire that these come with one of the industry’s best lifetime structural warranties – a rim that is truly designed to stand up to the harshest demands. Along with the durable construction, these Method wheels feature a unique, market leading technology called Bead Grip, perfectly crafted for the adventure van niche.

What is so special about Bead Grip technology? If you have been in the off-road or overland or rock-crawling world for long, you will have heard of bead lock wheels. These wheels are carefully designed to allow you to run your tires at insanely low pressures, such as 3-5 PSI, for better grip while crawling on rocks and other tough surfaces tires and wheels are generally not meant to crawl on. But, due to their unconventional construction, using a ring of bolts threaded through the wheel to literally clamp the tire bead to the rim, bead lock wheels are not DOT compliant and thus not street legal.

So for your adventure van, which you doubtless intend to drive on streets and interstates to get to your trail, bead lock is not the way to go. This is where Method Racing Wheels’ patented Bead Grip Technology comes into play. Using strategically engineered ridges and grooves around the tire beads, Bead Grip wheels enable you to run your tires at low pressures, similar to bead lock, while remaining fully DOT approved and legal. In other words, if you want a wheel that you can use on the street, and on the toughest trails you can safely take your Sprinter adventure van down, bead grip rims such as Method’s 701 wheels are an innovative and intentionally designed option.

And if this was not enough, then just look at these rims. While some adventure and overland specific wheels are built up to be aggressive, full of bolts and rivets and other fussy tactical aesthetics, Method’s wheels offer an open, simple look – with the strength of 8 rugged spokes in a clean, non-busy design. The Method 701 Bead Grip wheel is a quality, innovative design that can help you can your van adventures further.

Why Method wheels? Method Race Wheels is renowned for designing and developing industry-leading high-performance wheels for racing, overlanding, and street applications. They are committed to the highest standards of engineering, and not limited by conventional ideas around wheel manufacturing, leading them to pioneering technologies such as the Bead Grip feature on the 701 Sprinter wheels. Through rigorous testing, and copious industry experience and knowledge, they have become a trusted source for superior wheels.

Check back soon for more info on the Method 701 Wheels from our OZK Customs podcast experts. Learn more about use cases, the pros and cons of these versus other adventure van wheels, and other questions you never thought to ask!