Dink

I have 19 inch HRE wheels, and the tires have been leaking air for the last few days. I took my car in for service A and told the dealer to look at my tires and wheels. They just called me to say that both passenger side wheels are bent and that is the cause of the air leakage.

What can I do for the wheels? I have no money to buy new wheels. The dealer referred me to a tire and wheel specialist near the dealer. I called them, and they said they would have to look at it. I'm planning to go to that specialist shop later today, but I don't know if I can trust them to fix the wheels. I've heard many stories about more damage from an attemp to fix.

Please help...

DbleNckel

did you ever run into curbs that you know of??? how did they get bent?

Dink

not curbs, but i hit a huge pothole going pretty fast. the rainstorm left many new potholes which i hadn't noted.

i'm looked at my wheels before going to the dealer, and could not find any bends. maybe they are on the inside where i cannot see..

s4avantgarde

hre uses softer 5000 series aluminum inners (but 6061 outers where the lip is) so if you hit a pothole this would be the weak point of your wheels. You will probably have to replace the inners on those two wheels. hre or any competent wheel repair shop should be able to do it for you...just make sure you let the silicone on the outers dry before you mount tires..

ys

lap

with the appropriate Authority/Agency which governs that particular section of road where the damage occured (take pic's etc!!) & demand they address your situation ($ for your damages & the road) immediately. Photo the road again after they have fixed it (in most cases they will do so quickly) & use that evidence (more pics) to argue your point that the road was in a substandard state of repair!

Good Luck...

lap

PS. that is one of the reasons why I'm still on 17" (albeit, with stiffer suspension)

Zeppelin

Do the wheels vibrate or feel out of balance when you drive the car? If they don't I would fix them with a can of fix a flat or similar sealant. Hell MB gives you a can in the trunk if you have a 2002 model.

Dink

I don't really feel and vibrations, but there is a definite huge bent, which I think is from the wheel, and I don't really know if the sealant stuff will do. Eventually, I think I will have to get new rims, or get them fixed anyway.

s4avantgarde, how can I just replace the outers? What kind of shops can do this? I don't have any other wheels, so this would mean that I won't have a car for as long the repair goes. Could you give me some more information about replacing the outers?

Also, I went to a wheel specialty shop yesterday, and after taking a look at my wheels, they said there would be a 50/50 chance that the wheel would just crack why they are trying to fix it. again, if the wheel cracks, then I'm pretty much without a car, so I don't want to risk it.

thanks for your help..

deuce zer0

where are your stock wheels?

Dink

stock wheels were sold...kind of regretting it now.. but needed some money..

FrankW

read the instruction of that fix-a-flat...

anywayz, I would call HRE and see what they can do for you. I thought they would have warranty for their rims? Or you can call EVOsport or TWS, maybe they can give you info on where you can find a shop to fix the rims.

noka

The fix-a-flat stuff is only a short-term workaround, not a "fix" as someone suggested. Take them to a repair shop and get an estimate. Then consider selling them on E-bay and getting a less expensive set of wheels. Worst case, you need to seriously evaluate whether you are living beyond your means and possibly consider another car.

I am not making lifestyle judgement about you, but you did mention you don't have money for a new set of wheels. IMO, anyone owning such a car should be able to at least afford a new set of wheels (and possibly more when it comes to other maintenance and service).

Good luck.
Norm

Zeppelin

I suggested this option since he has no money and will have to park the car until he gets some. Besides I was unaware that he could get warranty from HRE


The rims can't be bent that bad or he would not waste his time taking it to a MB Dealer for evaluation. I use tire sealant in all 4 tires on my jeep and have for many years. Granted this is as a precaution, but it does not cause any advesre driving behavior.

If the rims were not visibly bent and it drives o.k. There would be no issues with using the proper tire sealant (the stuff in the trunk may not be the best) to plug a slight leak on a temporary basis(until he has money)

Dink

about the money...

when i sold my stock rims, i sold it mainly, because it was taking up space in my apartment, and didn't want my mother to realize i had bought rims, as she was coming to see me at that time. i sold the tires and rims relatively cheap to a local buyer. i remember zepplin coming down to take a look at the rims..
at that time, though, i could have used the extra cash.

i just don't have 5000 lying around waiting to be spent on new wheels, but if it comes to having to buy new rims, i do have the money to do it. its just that the money could be used elsewhere, (like season tickets to the Padres!!)

maybe this wheel stuff is a bit beyond the means of a college student, but i don't really feel like it's beyond my means of living, as I can afford it. it's that i just don't have the means to throw money around like some people can, (like people with ferrari's and other nice things)

Dink

Zep, the wheels are without question, visibly bent. losing 1-2 psi's a day.

the air compressor that came instead of the spare tire is really becoming useful these days.

Vader13

Dink, the wheel guys will fix you up, don't worry and watch out for potholes..

Gid_E_Up

http://www.wheelcollision.com/

cldriver

I had 2 of my stock C55 wheels repaired at Wheel Collision. They messed up on the first attempt cause the made another scratch while re-mounting the tires on the wheel. Eventually, they did repair both wheels. It was ok service.

Vomit

Good to see you are still around Chris! Hope everything is OK (other than wheels)

I've seen you drive. . . even HREs will suffer when you hit a city street pothole at triple digit speeds!

BTW, I have two stock front wheels sitting in my garage that are yours for $300.00 (for the pair). They are not perfect, but are certainly not junkers either. If you can round up a pair of rears, you would be stylin. PM me if interested