MANDRUS WHEELS = JUNK!!!!
03-31-2011, 02:11 PM
#27
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Mercedes CLK 320 W209
It's my duty to keep you from going mod crazy on your 63
04-16-2016, 06:01 AM
#28
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190e 2.6, 190E 3.2, 300ce, clk320, 320CE SportLine
DON'T BUY THIS BRAND OF WHEEL!!!
I just bought a CLK320 with a set of Mandrus Millenium's (the beautiful 15 spoke ones) and they are FULL OF CRACKS!!!
One wheel was off the car when I got it, flat. I pumped up the tyre, and hosed it with water looking for the leak, and I found that there were 2 cracks leaking air in the BACK of the rim, and on further inspection, there are about 5 repairs from previous cracks.
There is a little bit of gutter rash on the outside, and I expected to see damage from kerb jumping incorrectly on the inside, but NO, not even a paint chip. Just full of cracks.
I found the problem... They have "MADE IN CHINA" cast into the back of a spoke.... Disappointed, as they look spectacular on the car!!! No chrome peeling off anywhere that was not initiated by the gutter rash...
I just bought a CLK320 with a set of Mandrus Millenium's (the beautiful 15 spoke ones) and they are FULL OF CRACKS!!!
One wheel was off the car when I got it, flat. I pumped up the tyre, and hosed it with water looking for the leak, and I found that there were 2 cracks leaking air in the BACK of the rim, and on further inspection, there are about 5 repairs from previous cracks.
There is a little bit of gutter rash on the outside, and I expected to see damage from kerb jumping incorrectly on the inside, but NO, not even a paint chip. Just full of cracks.
I found the problem... They have "MADE IN CHINA" cast into the back of a spoke.... Disappointed, as they look spectacular on the car!!! No chrome peeling off anywhere that was not initiated by the gutter rash...
04-16-2016, 03:33 PM
#29
MBWorld Fanatic!
DON'T BUY THIS BRAND OF WHEEL!!!
I just bought a CLK320 with a set of Mandrus Millenium's (the beautiful 15 spoke ones) and they are FULL OF CRACKS!!!
One wheel was off the car when I got it, flat. I pumped up the tyre, and hosed it with water looking for the leak, and I found that there were 2 cracks leaking air in the BACK of the rim, and on further inspection, there are about 5 repairs from previous cracks.
There is a little bit of gutter rash on the outside, and I expected to see damage from kerb jumping incorrectly on the inside, but NO, not even a paint chip. Just full of cracks.
I found the problem... They have "MADE IN CHINA" cast into the back of a spoke.... Disappointed, as they look spectacular on the car!!! No chrome peeling off anywhere that was not initiated by the gutter rash...
I just bought a CLK320 with a set of Mandrus Millenium's (the beautiful 15 spoke ones) and they are FULL OF CRACKS!!!
One wheel was off the car when I got it, flat. I pumped up the tyre, and hosed it with water looking for the leak, and I found that there were 2 cracks leaking air in the BACK of the rim, and on further inspection, there are about 5 repairs from previous cracks.
There is a little bit of gutter rash on the outside, and I expected to see damage from kerb jumping incorrectly on the inside, but NO, not even a paint chip. Just full of cracks.
I found the problem... They have "MADE IN CHINA" cast into the back of a spoke.... Disappointed, as they look spectacular on the car!!! No chrome peeling off anywhere that was not initiated by the gutter rash...
04-17-2016, 07:17 AM
#30
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190e 2.6, 190E 3.2, 300ce, clk320, 320CE SportLine
It was pointed out to me in another forum, that "Made In China" cast into the back of one of the spokes was the "key" to identifying a "DUD"..
Makes sense really...
Makes sense really...
08-02-2018, 03:06 PM
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190e 2.6, 190E 3.2, 300ce, clk320, 320CE SportLine
08-03-2018, 12:08 AM
#33
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It may NOT be a matter of being too cheap to buy MB branded parts/components. Sometimes one just wants what one wants and the cost of what one wants is not among the highest priorities. The cracks in the wheels could be due to manufacturing by TSW, the wheels could actually be knock-offs by some third party, or the cracks could be due to the prior driver raging war on pot holes and curbs...…
08-03-2018, 03:19 PM
#34
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I bought my car for $3500 the wheels from the factory would be about the same. Also they are soft and crack easy. I broke 5 wheels in 3 years when I moved to austin. I'm running Madrus wheels now and have had no issues.
10-27-2019, 12:54 PM
#35
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2016 E350 4MATIC Sedan
Hey guys, I'm alittle late in on this thread..
I too am surprised to hear of the trouble you have been having.
I have nothing but good things to report about my Mandrus rims.
I'm also surprised to hear Mandrus rims being refered to as Chinese rims.
I was under the impression that Mandrus are a German company and make rims specifically for Benz cars.
The packaging my Mandrus rims arrived in were riddled with German wording.
Did you buy copies?
I am sorry to hear that you have had issues with peeling.
I'm surprised at this too.
As mentioned, this could be a result of the bent rims.
As for bending rims, that can only be attributed to road conditions or/ and driving style. I'm not trying to make you feel bad, it's just the most likely cause, that's all.
The rear rims have a dish on them and could be more likely to bend but I am still surprised to hear it happen.
As Newjd2 said, I too have hit the odd ba$tard of a pot hole on occassion and have never experienced problems.
As Wes said, it could just be bad luck but I suspect it could be the driving style and road conditions.
On a side note, I waxed my rims 3 times, inside and out, before putting them on the car, in order to prevent any chances of peeling caused by the elements (even though I don't drive the car in the rain or in winter lol). But I still don't think these rims should peel even if you didn't wax them and drive them in wet conditions alot of the time.
I too am surprised to hear of the trouble you have been having.
I have nothing but good things to report about my Mandrus rims.
I'm also surprised to hear Mandrus rims being refered to as Chinese rims.
I was under the impression that Mandrus are a German company and make rims specifically for Benz cars.
The packaging my Mandrus rims arrived in were riddled with German wording.
Did you buy copies?
I am sorry to hear that you have had issues with peeling.
I'm surprised at this too.
As mentioned, this could be a result of the bent rims.
As for bending rims, that can only be attributed to road conditions or/ and driving style. I'm not trying to make you feel bad, it's just the most likely cause, that's all.
The rear rims have a dish on them and could be more likely to bend but I am still surprised to hear it happen.
As Newjd2 said, I too have hit the odd ba$tard of a pot hole on occassion and have never experienced problems.
As Wes said, it could just be bad luck but I suspect it could be the driving style and road conditions.
On a side note, I waxed my rims 3 times, inside and out, before putting them on the car, in order to prevent any chances of peeling caused by the elements (even though I don't drive the car in the rain or in winter lol). But I still don't think these rims should peel even if you didn't wax them and drive them in wet conditions alot of the time.
I realize this thread is terribly old, so I am hoping this reply will still get a response.
Did you notice much of a difference in ride quality with your Mandrus wheels?
We put after market wheels on our 2016 E350, and 6 months later, we took them off and replaced the stock wheels. Did they look good? Yes, but the degradation of ride quality wasn’t worth it.
I don’t love the stock wheels, so I would like to find some that have a little more personality, but not at that expense. Mandrus keeps coming up, but I want to make sure we aren’t going to end up stuck with wheels that we can’t use again. 😊
10-27-2019, 01:21 PM
#36
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2012 CLS 550 Launch Edition, 2004 CLK 500, 2004 Honda Civic
I realize this thread is terribly old, so I am hoping this reply will still get a response.
Did you notice much of a difference in ride quality with your Mandrus wheels?
We put after market wheels on our 2016 E350, and 6 months later, we took them off and replaced the stock wheels. Did they look good? Yes, but the degradation of ride quality wasn’t worth it.
I don’t love the stock wheels, so I would like to find some that have a little more personality, but not at that expense. Mandrus keeps coming up, but I want to make sure we aren’t going to end up stuck with wheels that we can’t use again. 😊
Did you notice much of a difference in ride quality with your Mandrus wheels?
We put after market wheels on our 2016 E350, and 6 months later, we took them off and replaced the stock wheels. Did they look good? Yes, but the degradation of ride quality wasn’t worth it.
I don’t love the stock wheels, so I would like to find some that have a little more personality, but not at that expense. Mandrus keeps coming up, but I want to make sure we aren’t going to end up stuck with wheels that we can’t use again. 😊
I still have the car after all these years still sitting on the same Mandrus rims with no issues.
What will cause the ride issues isn’t the wheel in my case, but the different in size / thickness of the tire. Overall, I’m still happy with my Mandrus choice years later.
Cheers,
Angelo
10-28-2019, 09:24 AM
#37
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08 CLK350
Back in about 1966 or so I was working at a place that bought, sold and raced formula cars (open wheel, formula 1, formula Ford, etc.) The mag wheels we could get invariably leaked because the castings were porous. After having a couple of tires go flat on the trailer on the way to the track (Lime Rock), we solved the problem by painting the inside of the rims with epoxy boat paint - bright blue, as I recall. End of problem. This would work on porous castings, but don't do it on small cracks. Remember that small cracks invariably grow into larger cracks, and if you have cracked rims, that is a safety issue. You don't want a wheel coming apart at 75 mph on the interstate.
If the casting is porous, paint the inside of the rim. If the rim is cracked, it is junk, replace it NOW, don't drive on it. Don't bother painting it - that may give you a false sense of security (Hey, it holds air, what's the problem?) but it simply postpones the inevitable failure. Cracked rims can *sometimes* be welded, but in most cases doing it *properly* costs more than the rim is worth. There's a reason the expression "Then the wheels came off" refers to a disaster.
Best Regards,
Mike/Florida
If the casting is porous, paint the inside of the rim. If the rim is cracked, it is junk, replace it NOW, don't drive on it. Don't bother painting it - that may give you a false sense of security (Hey, it holds air, what's the problem?) but it simply postpones the inevitable failure. Cracked rims can *sometimes* be welded, but in most cases doing it *properly* costs more than the rim is worth. There's a reason the expression "Then the wheels came off" refers to a disaster.
Best Regards,
Mike/Florida
Last edited by MachNone; 10-28-2019 at 12:14 PM.
