inflectionpt

So end of last year I paid $750 USD for 4 Sl55 rims from the seller on this thread, https://mbworld.org/forums/wheels-ti...lis-650-a.html. The guy had to ship from Canada to San Francisco so we agreed it would be $650 + $100 for shipping.

Anyways, I finally got them Monday and when I took them to get them mounted the shop said 3 out of 4 wheels were slightly bent. I was a bit surprised and but not too upset as I didnt' think the seller knew they were bent as he didn't indicate the problem on his post. At any rate I have to fork out another $100 to $150 per wheel to straighten out them out and I contacted the seller figuring since he was a very proactive and responsive seller, he might make this right. I even offered to just split the cost of fixing as I just thought it was an honest mistake.

So I get a response back saying basically I AM SOL. And he even told me that he did me a favor by selling them to me even when he had to pay $250 for shipping and that he had to turn down a local buyer who wanted to pay $750 for them. He seemed like a nice guy when I chatted with him on the phone but at the end of the day lacking enough integrity to make this right.

What pisses me off the most is the fact that he suggests that because I got such a good deal it was ok that the wheels were bent and weren't in the condition as advertised. He even told me I could probably sell the bent wheels for the same price and get my money back.

MIKESV8

and he's on this forum? throw his name around when you make posts. warn others. i saw his ad i believe.

togaclk55

Wow that sucks man

inflectionpt

IAMGOD is what he goes by. I honestly feel like he wasn't trying to cheat me but he felt it's ok because apparently I got the wheels at such a low price and the fact that his net was only $450 after deducting shipping and getting the tires off the wheels.

It doesn't make it right but what can you do.

02C32guy

Are they so bent that they won't hold air? Most of my wheels are slightly bent. The tire guys just have to pay extra attention to balancing them. The whole thing sucks, but if he couldn't see the imperfections and they work fine, what's the big deal?

mrobinso

I totally agree with the OP on this one, if he didn't advertise the rims were bent, then he should be held accountable for the costs of returning the rims to the condition they were advertised to be in upon purchase. It is the seller's fault he made a mistake in estimating shipping costs (one which you will likely now pay for unfortunately), and for all anyone knows, he may have been playing you all along to make you think you were "getting a deal".

For all forum members on here - for a purchase of this size, it is always smart to draft a short contract and have both buyer and seller sign before money changing hands. Even though such a contract will usually state the equipment is being sold "AS IS", it should also state that the equipment described and being sold is in good working order or is being sold in the condition described by the seller. Lacking that, it makes it more difficult for you to take action against the seller, but not impossible. If you paid via PayPal or credit card (which is always wise for these types of transactions), you could consider opening a PayPal dispute or calling your credit card company and explaining your situation and seeing if they think it is worth your while to dispute the charge. However, both of those avenues may involve you having to either return the wheels for a refund, which might not go with your plans if you want to still keep them and fix them, so keep that in mind as well.

The further twist in this transaction is that (it sounds as if) the seller is Canadian. If that's true, even if you wanted to file a complaint in small claims court in your local jurisdiction, I am pretty sure there is little likelihood the seller could be summoned realistically.

If you paid with cash or check, unless the seller has a change of heart (maybe if he gets flamed enough on the forum it could happen, but that is doubtful) you unfortunately are probably going to have to eat that cost. Fortunately, $150 isn't horrible and you still have the set of rims. Unfortunately, that is extremely frustrating and you are out $150 more than you planned to spend.

mrobinso

The big deal is that had the OP known the wheels were bent, he may not have wanted to buy the rims any longer, or he may have asked for a lower price. That is a big deal IMO. I am a big advocate and consumer of ecommerce, however, you do have to be very careful in your dealings, especially with forum transactions because it is very hard to obtain recourse in the event someone screws you.

inflectionpt

I did ask my tire shop if the wheels were ok to use even if they were bent. The recommended fixing them and bringing them back for mounting. I probably would have them fixed anyways as I don't want to feel like I am driving on bent rims.

inflectionpt

I'll be forking out another $450 to get them fixed but the cost is not really what upsets me. The fact that the seller can justify his wrong is quite annoying to me.

inflectionpt

So IAMGOD, the seller, writes back and proceeds to blame me for not asking for an inspection on the state of the rims when the tires were being taken off. I guess I rightfully deserve to receive damaged rims because as he puts it he "sent them in good faith" which absolves him from all responsibility.

amdeutsch

Did you get a measurement on the bents? I've seen people drive on them not knowing they are bent. I've also seen shops embellish the bents to make them seem worse than they really are. And sometimes you can only tell when a measurement is taken.

Not trying to defend, but explain.

inflectionpt

Ill get the measurements tonight as they r going to get sent out tomorrow to pacific rims.

MIKESV8

red flag right there. i'm sure he knew they were bent and just wanted to get rid of them for cheap. he already had what he was going to say planned out. if i were him, i would've split the cost in half since either one of you knew (if he really didn't know) and it does not cost over $200 to ship 4 rims! i have a UPS business account i can find out exactly what it costs just give me the weight.

edit: i calculated it out and it costs about $170 to do it

NCE500

This post makes me sad as it hurts the basic trust we have on the forum.

Having sold a few sets of rims/tires on the forum myself, I always either run the rims on my car for a day to ensure they are good, and/or have my tire guy spin them on his balancer and balance as necessary BEFORE I advertise them for sale. I also take detailed pics to ensure that any imperfections are clearly shown. I would have had these rims straightened and balanced before advertising them for sale, and charged a little more to cover my costs. I personally would not even go down the road of advertising and selling bent wheels as it is a recipe for problems. I've never had an unhappy buyer.

If the seller knew they were bent, and did not state so, and sold them as being good, they were obviously misrepresented; and hiding behind a low price now as justification is complete BS. I'd report him to the mods.

AMG3.2

Definitely talk to your credit card company to dispute the charge, if you did pay via card. Sucks to hear about things like this on the forum. Hopefully Pacific Rim does a good job with them.

ImmaBeSmug2

ATT Civilians: Just put it out on the curb for the carting company before you sell it to anyone with an automotive board username.

DuaneC63

Unfortunately it's worse than you think. To "straighten" wheels they must be heated. When they are heated they lose their structural integrity. I won't drive on them.

inflectionpt

I paid via paypal and did it in a way that looked like I was gifting money per his request. I'll find out what american express can do for me given that's what I actually used.

MBFLO

Youd have to be pretty dumb not to know rims were not bent if your selling them after transporting to post office. thats just BS on the seller and he should be blasted and banned from sellin anything else round here .

You should of been able to get them done cheaper then 150 per wheel . you can buy the same wheels brand new in reps for that price . dont matter though as you sent them out to get fixed

I believe you have no grounds for a claim if you sent as gift which was a mistake . He even made out by not having to pay the paypal fee which you paid i believe , you might have not recieved what you expected but it could of been worse ppl here have been burned for thousands and never recieved anything so not that it makes this ok though

kent426

If it is just a wheel lip, use a rubber mallot and slowly beat them round, it won't hurt the rims. I bought a set of SL 55 rims in Seattle and one had a lip bend on the inside, I beat it out and no problems.

Its a shame about those wheels, I know I was talking to someone about that exact set. He really didn't cut you a deal with the damage, they were a fair price without the damage.

inflectionpt

Thanks Duane for your input. Can others please chime in about reconditioned rims? Are they potentially unsafe? The C32 is really my primary track car so I am going to be pushing the car quite hard. Maybe I'll just wait a bit before I have them sent out to Pacific Rims.

E55Dimon

I've owned 9 sets of wheels on my w211. First set I used for winter were SL500 18's, upon taking them off to put on a set of summer 20's we noticed 3/4 were bent, two in a couple of spots. I had no idea.
I think all used wheels are slightly bent, unless you live in a summer climate where there are no potholes.
Also have repaired a slightly cracked/bent expensive wedssport 18" wheel before and it worked out fine, just took em a while. Don't have options when your wheel is discontinued in correct custom size etc. it's also always a rape to repair a wheel.

Take it to a serious wheel shop, see what they say. I'd expect any used wheel over 17" in size have a small bend or two if from a northern climate..coming from my severe wheel-***** experience.

FrankW

Sorry, but this to me is more of a he says she says type of deal.

For one, as e55dimon said the seller might not know if they were bent.
For two, like amdeutch said the shop could be making them sound worst then it is and/or they are not the best at balancing larger wheels and tires.

Speaking as someone who is known on the forum as wheel-***** going through 9 sets of wheels.

hyperion667

that's really lame, hopefully the seller didn't know they were bent.....
when I had some wheels switched the other week, the tech said I had a bent rim, slightly bent, but I could sense it.....I'm not riding on those anymore, but I guess
they can bend.......
good luck, hope you find some justice

Phil C55

A properly straightened wheel is fine, safe too. I used this company for a wheel repair and it came back perfect. I recommend them highly. as soon as wheels became larger than 16" they started to get bent regularly. A sidewall on a tire is a considerable part of impact absorption and when there is little sidewall the rim takes the shot.

http://www.cjwheelrepair.com/index.htm