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Alloy Wheels

Technical issues not related to a DLOC car marque, eg tyres, ethanol, other car makes, etc. and legal, political and insurance
Sydsmith
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Alloy Wheels

Post by Sydsmith »

The alloy wheels on my Mercedes ML250 AMG have all become tarnished by water ingress behind the lacquer, I gather they are Diamond Cut, what ever that means.

I took out insurance on them when I bought the car, the garage now says that if I want them repaired as new I will have to leave the car with them for a week whilst the work is done, and they will not lend me a car for the time it is in.

I can't spare the car for that long, so they have suggested I have them refurbished and painted, "they will look Ok the man says" we can do it in a day.

I paid £360 for a three year policy and walked into this problem, why is insurance NEVER straightforward.

Question, I paid for a proper job, am I asking too much for this to be done properly or should I accept a paint job? I am likely to PX the car some time in the fairly near future, will painted wheels reduce it's value? ( man saysno)

I also wonder on a £50k car should wheels last more than 3 years, should I go back on Mercedes to get them sorted?

I guess some of you with more modern Daimlers will have some experience of this perhaps.

Vortex O'Plinth
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Re: Alloy Wheels

Post by Vortex O'Plinth »

As a fellow Mercedes owner Syd, I share your pain. Diamond cut alloys have been lathe turned on part of the profile using a diamond tipped tool; this produces a very fine micro-grooved finish without the need for further polishing. The surface is then protected with lacquer which - as you have found - eventually degrades or is punctured by stone chips and water gets underneath, corroding the surface. To renew the finish the wheels have to be stripped and mounted on a lathe for the diamond turning to be repeated. If you own the car for any length of time this is likely to be a recurring problem.

Alternative refurbishments are usually either to have the wheels polished (which is much quicker than diamond turning) - the practicality of which will depend on the form and profile of the wheel - and either re-lacquered or left bare - or to have them wet painted or powder coated. If polished and lacquered then you still have the original problem in that the lacquer will eventually fail again; if left bare you will be very busy with metal polish on a regular basis.

In my experience once lacquered wheels have corroded, paint or powder coat is the best solution. Of course the wheels will not look the same afterwards, but there are a huge variety of finishes that can be applied by professional wheel refurbishers - including 'chrome' paint. A painted wheel finish will be much more durable and depending on the colour and finish will not usually reduce the car's value. After a year or so almost any diamond cut wheel will show some signs of degradation and on trade-in a well preserved painted wheel is usually preferable to a tatty looking lacquered one.

(Just out of interest I went for the polished and left bare option, and regularly enjoy many hours of fun with the metal polish - not to be recommended!)
Nick

"Don't bother with the Air & Space Museum - there's nothing to see.......".

Petelang
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Re: Alloy Wheels

Post by Petelang »

I think you need to have a very serious word with the insurer since, it seems, they have miss sold the policy. It's typical, they are always keen to take your money but never to pay out when the purpose calls for it. Absoloute disgrace: name them and shame them on social media. The cheque will soon follow!
Peter
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Sydsmith
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Re: Alloy Wheels

Post by Sydsmith »

Thanks Nick, that's very helpful, my additional problem is I live in Aberystwyth and I bought the car in Shrewsbury so its a 160 mile round trip each time I need something done.

When I bought the car the AMG wheels were a great attraction so it is disappointing that after such a short time they look should look so grotty.

Your information will help greatly when I tackle the insurance company on Monday morning.

I have had Mercedes for 30 years and I love my ML, but having just paid £565 for front discs and pads to be replaced at 36,000 miles. I am thinking VW Toureg from a local VW garage when it is due to be replaced. Syd

faeton
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Re: Alloy Wheels

Post by faeton »

I Have recently like you Sid bought a Merc with AMG wheels , I also was talked into damage wheel insurance , Reading the small print later this cover is up to £200 Per wheel , Time will tell whether its worth the paper its written on . My problem was the electrickery on the dash told me I had a puncture , Went to my local tyre dealer super small company expecting the usual free service or at the most £10 pound to repair , The puncture was a screw in the centre of the tread normally an easy repair {wrong] The boss told me I had run flats and it is not permissible to repair , The Tyre had never been run flat . I had to buy a new tyre , when the tyre was removed there had been two previous puncture repairs . ?? I said better check other tyres another had also been repaired , I ended up having two new tyres , At least the valves were ok at prices of £75 upward and having to be reset on computer that was a relief . Also not having a spare resulted in urgent action,
Thinking about this after I should have gone back to the dealer who sold me the car , If as I was told repairs to run flats were not allowed I think they could be amiss in selling me a car with two illegal tyres , Unfortunately by the time I thought of this the evidence had gone. I will ask the question when I visit the dealer again , Dave

David S
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Location: Forest of Dean

Re: Alloy Wheels

Post by David S »

I always avoid buying German stuff if i can.

Don't blame the insurers if your wheels corrode, blame the product.

Ask any AA man where he makes his money. One such recovery man told me that Mercedes get all their parts from China and assemble them in Germany for the "Made in Germany" badge. He thoght they were not as good as reported.

I firmly believe what the Germans are very good at is Marketing - but not anything special in engineering. British, French Japanese all build good reliable cars these days.

Look around and see if there are many German cars on the road with old style Registration plates, and consider how many were sold new in them days .....

Food for thought!

Sydsmith
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Re: Alloy Wheels

Post by Sydsmith »

Had Mercedes for over 30 years and never had a gripe, but I have to say they have been a bit iffy with this wheel problem and I am really thinking about the wisdom. The ML of course was built by Jeep in the USA.

I have decided to take this up with Mercedes, they sold me the car and the service chap quite blatantly admitted "Diamond cut wheels are always a problem, when they replace the tyres they remove the centre cap to balance the wheels and and that damages the finish and water gets in and cause the problem you have"

Hang on, if they know that is a problem and have known about it, then they should fix it under warranty or at least the sale of goods act.

Watch this space.

Warsash 2
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Re: Alloy Wheels

Post by Warsash 2 »

Hi Syd
I have a 2008 Jaguar XJ supercharged car and besides some kerbing marks the alloy wheels scrub up pretty well. Before that I had a 1998 Daimler V8 and they were the same. I am not sure where they are made but do not seem to have the problems discussed here
Regards


Colin

Vortex O'Plinth
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Re: Alloy Wheels

Post by Vortex O'Plinth »

Sydsmith wrote: Mon Mar 19, 2018 11:49 am Had Mercedes for over 30 years and never had a gripe, but I have to say they have been a bit iffy with this wheel problem and I am really thinking about the wisdom. The ML of course was built by Jeep in the USA.

I have decided to take this up with Mercedes, they sold me the car and the service chap quite blatantly admitted "Diamond cut wheels are always a problem, when they replace the tyres they remove the centre cap to balance the wheels and and that damages the finish and water gets in and cause the problem you have"

Hang on, if they know that is a problem and have known about it, then they should fix it under warranty or at least the sale of goods act.

Watch this space.
Good for you Syd - and good luck! Unfortunately Mercedes are notorious for weaseling out of warranty commitments, particularly their paint and perforation warranties. That said, I have always found Mercedes build quality easily outstrips that of its competitors - even in cars from its "quantity rather than quality" period around the turn of the century, however their cars are not always particularly good value for money.

Although they look the dog's danglies, both diamond cut and polished alloy wheels are universally susceptible to corrosion damage; it's not just a Mercedes problem. The Chrysler 300C I had a few years ago had three sets of wheels replaced under warranty due to premature failure of the protective lacquer. It was a very common problem on this model.

The particular difficulty with the diamond cut finish is that it's expensive and time consuming to restore, which is why the dealers are keen to fob you off with a painted option. Certainly you should be within your rights to demand a like-for-like replacement, even if paradoxically it's likely to be less durable than a painted refurbishment.
Nick

"Don't bother with the Air & Space Museum - there's nothing to see.......".

David S
Posts: 188
Joined: Sun Feb 21, 2016 9:23 am
Location: Forest of Dean

Re: Alloy Wheels

Post by David S »

Well I think it is really bad. They know it is a problem, so they ask you to pay for insurance to cover their failure ..... and then they do not pay out!
I understand your anguish!
Mercedes Benz are in what we call a win-win situation.

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