[akshay4587]

Originally Posted by prateekm

One of the alloy in my corolla has been damaged. The tyre repair shop guy told that it has very minute hole, from where the air is escaping. It is very small, and is almost invisible to the naked eye. Is there a way to fix this?

Yes,any guy who repairs alloy wheels will be able to fix it.

[swarnava.m]

Originally Posted by prateekm

One of the alloy in my corolla has been damaged. The tyre repair shop guy told that it has very minute hole, from where the air is escaping. It is very small, and is almost invisible to the naked eye. Is there a way to fix this?

If the hole is so minute that it is invisible to the naked eye, then what really is the problem? Do you suspect that it has resulted in a structural weakness of the wheel? If not, then maybe you can let the wheel be as it is rather than spend money over it.

[lancer_rit]

Originally Posted by akshay4587

Yes,any guy who repairs alloy wheels will be able to fix it.

It is not recommended to repair alloy wheels once they are bent, no matter what. Structural stresses can be worsened by trying to heat and beat it back into shape.

One of my car's alloys got bent recently. No air is leaking out - I have put this as stepney not to be used normally.

[Jeroen]

Originally Posted by lancer_rit

It is not recommended to repair alloy wheels once they are bent, no matter what. Structural stresses can be worsened by trying to heat and beat it back into shape.

One of my car's alloys got bent recently. No air is leaking out - I have put this as stepney not to be used normally.

Who says it is not recommended?

Part of a proper Alloy wheel repair job could involve de-stressing as well. A good shop will know when that is necessary and will have the equipment (essentially a very large oven) to do so.

You think they would be repairing Alloys in the US if it wasn't safe? They'd be suing left, right and centre. Done properly, its perfectly safe. That doesnt mean any bend can be fixed. There's only so much you can repair on an Alloy.

Jeroen

[lancer_rit]

Originally Posted by Jeroen

Who says it is not recommended?

Part of a proper Alloy wheel repair job could involve de-stressing as well. A good shop will know when that is necessary and will have the equipment (essentially a very large oven) to do so.

You think they would be repairing Alloys in the US if it wasn't safe? They'd be suing left, right and centre. Done properly, its perfectly safe. That doesnt mean any bend can be fixed. There's only so much you can repair on an Alloy.

Jeroen

Well maybe some people like to take risks ? I did some search on the topic when one of my car's alloys got bent. When the alloy undergoes an impact and gets bent, the lattice structure gets stressed. Heating and bending back to shape can further worsen the stresses.
And I did also check with Chris Longhurst of Car Bible fame. He said he wouldn't use an alloy once it was bent even if its a small bend.
US allowed cigarettes to be sold w/o warnings for decades - now most countries depict graphically cancers and related warnings on the packets. But you can still buy them, right ?

So, I wouldn't recommend trying to fix the bent alloy wheel - especially in India where its more like let's beat the wheel back into shape!

[Jeroen]

Well, it might be different in India. I don't have experience here. But in Europe and the USA repairing alloys is no big deal. But as I said earlier you need specialist knowledge and tools. Nobody would consider it a risk.

Here's another interesting read, and no its not just beat back in shape, far from it:

http://www.audiworld.com/news/01/whe.../content.shtml


enjoy,

Jeroen

[lancer_rit]

I am aware of various alloy repair shops and claims esp in US. In India, mostly its low tech effort.
In any case, I wouldn't do a repair even if its in Europe or USA - there is no way to be sure that alloy strength is not compromised no matter what the claims are - alloys are not steel rims which have more malleable properties. Especially, welding lips or sides of wheels is a complete no no.
Many folks would agree to my view since its a matter of safety but to each his own!

[Jeroen]

I think its more a matter of what you're used to. And how mature and advanced the local Alloy repair community/industry is.

It's done in the USA and Europe all over the place. You hit a pothole, bend your Alloy rim, you get it fixed, Most people wouldnt give it a second thought at all.

Certainly the European/USA papers and car forums aren't exactly ridled with articles on accidents related to repaired Alloys.

But you should never do anything you don't feel comfortable with.

Jeroen

[lancer_rit]

Ok, that is your opinion. Chris Longhurst's opinion is that alloy repair is a NO NO. For me, that holds more weight with no disrespect to you, so far as opinions go.

As I said, its a matter of safety and whether that is compromised - Many people do many things that may have risks associated - that automatically does not mitigate the risks.

Here in India, people take more risks on safety aspects than most places on the planet unfortunately - so a forum like ours needs to advise (and if required err) on the side of caution.

[Jeroen]

No offense, suits me fine. Not sure which Chris Longhurst you're referring to? Is this the car bible guy? This Chris Longhurst is a man like me:

On his homepage it states very clearly:

QUOTE
I'm a computer graphics artist with a passion for cars and motorbikes and I'm highly opinionated
UNQUOTE

See: http://www.chris-longhurst.com

Unlike Chris I actually hold various degrees in various technical fields and have been working in a highly technical environment for most of my career. Dealing with engines, hydraulics, Chemistry, Metallurgy, electronics etc. etc. But like Chris I'm certainly highly opinionated.

Maybe Chris does have formal training or education, he doesn't advertise it though.

As I've said before on this forum, never let facts, experience, formal training and education come between you and your opinion.

More importantly of course, don't believe everything you read on the internet.
Doing research on a particular topic and googling is not the same.

Enjoy those alloys!

Jeroen

[lancer_rit]

Interesting discussion. Maybe, I have strong opinions too :-)
I have a technical degree too, but I also know that knowledge is not a factor of the degrees I have. I have done courses in materials and stresses and the like but I can't claim I have the expertise to prove or disprove something wrt alloy wheels.
What I do know is that my degree doesn't have that much bearing on my field of expertise or the depth of it, so learning and applying builds real knowhow. Degrees help, but then Bill Gates or Honda had none.

I know that all kinds of information is on the internet, and not everything is factual, thank you for that hint. That is why I chose not to believe self-advertising, profit-making concerns who say they know how to repair damaged alloys - even weld broken lips (in the article you posted) !!
I guess I am ready to stand corrected, if you tell me that Volvo, or Mercedes or OZ racing etc etc prescribe alloy wheel repair for damaged wheels Or that you have special expertise on alloy wheel materials, manufacturing, etc as part of your work...

My last post on this topic. Peace out.

[Jeroen]

So I contacted a few main Jaguar and Mercedes dealers in the Netherlands/UK and the USA, that I have used in the past. Told them that I curbed one of my alloy rims and that it needed repairing, including straightening. Could they help me with that/did they refurbish alloys at all?

Here is one of the answers of Mercedes Netherlands/UK

Quote:

Ref: CH-1-3144437474

Dear Jeroen

Thank you for contacting the Mercedes-Benz Customer Assistance Center Maastricht N.V.

In response to your recent email communication, we can confirm that we do provide the possibility to have wheels refurbished at Mercedes-Benz Retailers, providing that the customer is paying in full for the repair, without any financial assistance from Mercedes-Benz UK.

Should you have any further requirements please do not hesitate to contact us.

In our efforts to continuously improve our service to customers we would greatly appreciate your feedback, by way of a survey, to gauge your satisfaction with our brand. Please visit: www.dccac.net/qm/ukencsw and enter this case registration number: 1-3144437474. Thank you for your time.

Yours sincerely

Claire Hegarty
Customer Service UK
Unquote

I have also contacted a good friend of mine. He is currently president of one of Jaguar Clubs of North America, a Concours d'elegance judge and more importantly, until very recently, worked for Jaguar Services USA for some 15 years.

Here's what he wrote:

Quote:
Alloy repair is dependent on the extent of damage and where the damage is. The deciding factor is usually proximity to the tire bead seating surface and how large the damaged area is. An area under 1cm or so would most likely be ok to repair for a street driven condition. Any wheel used in a Concours competition setting would be rejected by the stewards in virtually all sanctioning bodies for repaired damage in the bead section.

When I was with the dealership, we had a specialist who came around to do those types of repair as it took some skill/materials/equipment which the service dept. did not have. Pricing was quite reasonable as I recall.
Unquote

What I'm trying to point out is that repairing alloys is standard practice in the USA and most of Western Europe. Most main stream dealers will offer the service. Some might even have the necessary equipment and competence in house, some will simply subcontract. And there are many companies that provide this service directly to the public or via dealers.

Lease companies, who are particularly sensitive to proper repairs, approve alloy repairs as well. Just google and you will find various insurance companies specification on when and how alloy repairs need to carried out.

There are still those that insist it should not / can't be done. Some of them in the USA and Europe. Feel free, if you follow my post you know I love personal opinions, go and buy those new alloys every time you knick them.

No skin of my nose, just trying to enlighten the Team-BHP community on standard practices outside India.

I had several of my alloys refurbished over the years. Especially when we lived in Kansas City, USA. The size and number of potholes in some of the main roads and highways beggars belief. Once, I watched the whole process and I can tell you, it does require a lot of skill and certain cases very specialized equipments, like ovens. And competence for instance to know how to de-stress alloy. Involved a whole bunch of approved (by insurance company) tables and calculations to figure it out.

So it might not be something that is readily available here in India. Probably not, I'm having problem getting an electrical socket fixed here in Delhi, let alone fix an alloy rim.

Jeroen

[Vikas Arora]

@Guys, any pointers to alloy wheel repair shops in Gurgaon? Looks like one of the alloy on my Vento is bent and repeated balancing has not been able to solve the wobbling.

[shankar.balan]

I ve watched many an episode of Wheeler Dealers where Mike and Edd keep buying old cars and wherever required, get the old alloys completely refurbished.

My Yeti's alloys though just two years old, have a number of small nicks and chips from the horrible Bangalore potholed roads. Im wondering what to do to restore these to their former glory.

[glenmz]

Noticed a small bend on my alloys during the last WA/WB.
Slight wobble was noticed during balancing. No air leak was detected.
The chap who did balancing told that he can send it to jc road and get it fixed and quoted 950 for this. Reasonable? Any places thats recommended for this job?