What is our opinion of theses places? I picked up a set of BMW wheels for $100. One of then has curb rash about 1/4 of the way around but doesn't appear to be bent. I started to smooth it out and was about to start filling and painting the scratches, but I don't have any matching $$ paint. My attention span will not allow me to refinish the entire wheel. I've heard that these guys will return a perfect wheel for less than $100 and I'm thinking about giving it a shot. Anybody have any experience with them?
06HHR
HalfDork
10/28/15 12:13 p.m.
I used a place in Orlando and my only complaint was that when I picked up the refinished wheel it looked better than the rest of the set, but the color seemed just a shade darker. It shouldn't be a problem but it might be a good idea drop off a second wheel just to make sure they correctly match the color.
No experience, but my BMW indy recently added wheel repair (he's got the machine in-house) and is apparently pretty busy with work. Prices are a lot higher than $100/wheel for complete refinishing though. If you find a place that will do a good job for $100 I'd be interested in learning about it.
I know of several people and shops that swear by Wheel Collision Center in Bath, PA. You can send your wheels in to be refinished or exchanged if they have that model.
Prince Wheel Services is a popular choice within the BMW community as they are one of the few shops to have mastered the Chrome Shadow paint finish.
I had a miserable experience having my BMW wheels refinished by Wheels America and would not recommend. The finish was sloppy and a different color from the rest of the wheels, and they mounted the tire backwards (directional/staggered).
As it turns out, it was just easier to find a much better used one on eBay for $83. It probably would have cost more to have the old one redone, and this one will be shipped to my door for $20.
There is a guy here in CT. Precision Wheel Service in Branford. He does good work if you are ever in need of a repair. Most of the time if it's some older OEM piece it's cheaper to just find another one though, as you did.
When we first got my wife's E46 ZHP one of the rear wheels cracked. He repaired it and we drove on it for another 50k miles without an issue. I think it was $150 for the repair. At the time (2007) finding a rear ZHP wheel for less than that was going to be tough. I curbed one of the RX-8 wheels and blasted the paint off it, they fixed it like new. The only reason I had that one done is because the Shinka had a different color finish on the wheels than the regular RX-8 (hyper silver I think it was called).
I have a guy in Gardena, CA that does a pretty good job for $25-35 a wheel for 18s (depends on his mood and if he remembers me I suppose) for curb rash and sometimes minor bend repair (lip), welding in, grinding down and polishing. Have to have the tires dismounted before bringing to him. Been going there for 10 years and will be dropping off my latest set this Saturday.
