Being that lips on wheels are popular these days, I'm surprised there aren't any OEM wheels that comes with a nice lip? Or are there? Is it a safety/liability thing?

 

I'm guessing it's more a "cost/production" thing. That, and OEM rims are usually heavy even without lips. Lipped wheels themselves are quite heavy, and so I shudder to think how heavy an OEM, lipped wheel would be.

 

Function and cost.

 

The function, cost reason makes sense; But you're telling me for high end brands like Mercedes where cost is not really an issue for the buyer; I'm surprised it isn't a factory option. God knows BMW and Mercedes has itemized options that are costly and not needed.

 

Well, BMW tend to outsource their wheel manufacture to BBS (maybe not for all models), and as for Benz... I don't know. Again, cost might not be as much of an issue to buyers, but it still adds to the cost of manufacture, so maybe that's why they don't do it?

 

Well, in order for them to produce lipped rims, they have to see that it attracts a larger number of buyers, so that they car exceed the cost of producing the rim.
It's all about oppurtinity cost. MC=MB (Marginal Cost=Marginal Benefit). Usually, companies will have to see it as MC<MB before they make unnecessary changes.
(Take a Macro Economics course if you are interested)

 

Manufacturers are looking at different things than most tuners are:

Minimal sound transmited through the wheel into the chassis
More durable rim, resistant to bends
Majority of brake dust falls "inside" the wheel, not outside onto finish
How easy they are to clean and how well does the water shed off of them
How durable is the finish and how well does the finish hide blemishes
Has to be percieved to look "nice" to the majority of people from all demographics.
How easy is it to mount tires without damage


etc, etc... different priorities