Maybe I just never noticed before, but lately I've been seeing a ton of bent and cracked rims, and rims that have been repaired (welded), usually with poor results. Mostly I see them on CL but some on ebay and discussion of them on other forums.
Maybe this is due to the fact that current car "fashion" insists on huge rims, or maybe it's because of the amateur drift scene, but it seems ridiculous.
Am I crazy, or is this a pretty new thing?
It is pothole season around these parts. That might explain some of them. The market is also being flooded with poorly-cast Chinese knockoffs of more expensive spun-cast/forged wheels like Rays. That E36 M3 will crack if you so much as run over a penny.
yes.. it's all the cheapo ebay knockoffs
The trend to lower profile tires may have some bearing on that.
In reply to RexSeven:
Does that say "Vork" and "Ravs"? Wow...
iceracer wrote: The trend to lower profile tires may have some bearing on that.
I think that is the biggest part of the problem. When I was crewing for a Focus race car we had problems with bending wheels and even sturts due to the driver hitting the curbs. Once we changed from a 45 seires tire to a 55 series all those problems went away.
CGLockRacer wrote: In reply to RexSeven: Does that say "Vork" and "Ravs"? Wow...
This. Wow...It's like buying a Sorny TV or a Panasononic cordless phone. The cheap fake product train just stopped at the aftermarket auto parts station.
Extremely common on anything German (they use garbage aluminum) and anything over 15".
I doubt the TUV would let them market "junk aluminum" rims in germany..
mad_machine wrote: I doubt the TUV would let them market "junk aluminum" rims in germany..
I have a friend that ran a wheel repair shop for years. He said BMW wheels put his kid through college. And SAAB wheels funded some nice vacations.
CGLockRacer wrote: In reply to RexSeven: Does that say "Vork" and "Ravs"? Wow...
I am pretty sure rays is the parent company of volk.
Each one of my Mazda6 OEM 17" wheels have something bent on them. Thank you Michigan roads.
HappyAndy wrote: I have a friend that ran a wheel repair shop for years. He said BMW wheels put his kid through college. And SAAB wheels funded some nice vacations.
Ronal. Softest wheels I've ever seen.
I've had great success with Revolution and Team Dynamics wheels.
HappyAndy wrote:mad_machine wrote: I doubt the TUV would let them market "junk aluminum" rims in germany..I have a friend that ran a wheel repair shop for years. He said BMW wheels put his kid through college. And SAAB wheels funded some nice vacations.
I believe it, even the new BMW stuff is terrible.
Jarod wrote:CGLockRacer wrote: In reply to RexSeven: Does that say "Vork" and "Ravs"? Wow...I am pretty sure rays is the parent company of volk.
Oh, I'm a dumb berkeley. voRk and raVs. Got it.
I think its the drivers. I've never bent, cracked, or even curbed a rim. I guess I'm not driving hard enough. I have 45 series tires for the past 60k miles...
^Yep, ran my last few E30s with 17s and 40 series tires and never had a problem. But one set were real Work's and the other SSR's.
Car and Driver did 40k on a BMW 535i and had to replace three rims and repair three more. http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2011-bmw-535i-long-term-road-test-review
failboat wrote: I think its the drivers. I've never bent, cracked, or even curbed a rim. I guess I'm not driving hard enough. I have 45 series tires for the past 60k miles...
I bent one rim.. but I hit a kerb in a pouring rainstorm at night.. a kerb in a city I do not often go to that stuck out a good 12 to 15 feet from the traffic signal on the corner.
Other than that.. 25 years of driving.. only one bent rim.. 6 of those in a BMW with 17inch rims on 45 series tyres
I don't think current wheels have anything to do with it. There has always been cheap wheels, if you look at the ads in the old VW/Porsche and European Car there are good wheels and cheap wheels.
I think our roads are worse than they have been in a lot of years, I also think people do not pay attention when they are driving. On top of that Craigslist has made a cottage industry of trying to sell your junk to someone else, so you SEE more of them.
mad_machine wrote: Other than that.. 25 years of driving.. only one bent rim.. 6 of those in a BMW with 17inch rims on 45 series tyres
I can count on any car with 16" or larger wheels to have at least one that is bent enough to require being kept on the back. (Remember the DSM? I think it was uncommon for one of those to have less than three badly whanged rims)
Well, scratch that. Modern "cars" with 28" tall tires are somewhat immune, but anything with tires with sidewalls shorter than 245/45 is good (?) for bent rims.
What I like are all of the Corolla/Prizms out there with 14" steel wheels that bend.
See, i always figured this was why big rims were popular. "I'm so rich, i can afford to buy new wheels all the time. Check out my 20s, man these things don't last a week before they're septadecagonal!"
I blame over sized rims running low profile tires with poor suspension modifications that lower the car too much and reduce suspension travel.
The force has to go somewhere, and a cheap rim is probably going to be the weakest point in the force's vector.
We had a $1100 Kinesis Supercup crack (right on the spoke). Just because it has a trendy brand name doesn't mean it can't crack.
There are some good ISO cert Chinese companies. There are also "name brands" you think are high quality which aren't. Like the Enkei Factory down the street from my friends house in Suzhou CHINA
I bent a 5zigen wheel on my sisters tC on a monster pothole that opened up after a good rain. Only one I've bent so far. Low pro tire fo sho. I hit an equally impressive pothole on Manaray Sports in my IS I was sure it was bent but nope.
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