Now that my blood pressure has returned closer to normal, I thought I'd post my experience and get some suggestions from everyone. I purchased two Michelin PS2 tires for the rear from Tire Rack and removed my rear wheels once the tires arrived, took all to a local tire store which was recommended by my local Porsche dealer as they don't do tire mounting. I have done business with this shop before with no issues. This time, not so much. I specifically asked the counter salesperson if they could mount these without scratching the wheels. He then gives me a look like I had just insulted him. I think... rude but at least he will insure no scratches. Wrong. After a short time, the wheel guy comes in to tell me that they were done and I show him my car to put them in. As I placed the first one in the car, I notice a faint line on the outer rim that runs the about a quarter of the way around. I pull the wheel back out and sure enough, it's a scratch. Steam exits my ears, profanities fly, blah, blah, blah. I then look at the other wheel and sure enough, it too has scratches. More steam, profanities. We take them back to the shop area and I have the salesperson come out to look at them. He asks the tire guy what happened and he says there must have been a bur on the tool. Nicely done, genius. The sales person tells me that they have about eight "heads" for the machine but they were using their last one as in they didn't have a new one to put on prior to working on my wheels. This after I specifically asked if it could be done without scratching my wheels.

Anyway, the salesperson tells me that they might be able to be buffed out and that I should take them to a paint shop to see if they could do this. Customer service was missing in action throughout this whole experience. So, I asked my dealer what they recommended and they gave me the name of a local wheel finish repair company. My question (finally) is what everyone thinks I should do in this situation? Have the scratches buffed out as best possible and live with the possibility that there will probably be some faint remnants of the original scratches or demand that the tire store replace these wheels with originals so I end up with comparable wheels to what I brought him? I'm sure the later will not be welcomed and I wonder if this will be worth the fight or even possible. So... there it is. What do you think and thanks for your input?

The worse of them is just detectable with my fingernail and doesn't appear to be deeper than the clear-coat. I have a mobile repair guy coming tomorrow to inspect them. Here's a shot of one of the scratches.



Joseph

 

I had a similar situation where they not only put a couple of minor scratches on the rim, they mounted one of the PS2's backwards and of course the arrogant tire guy says its impossible and lauged at me. They gave me $200.

 

Get some scratch X at local store to see if you can puff it out by hand. If not, an orbital may do the job. If not, the wheel will need to be refinished. Did the shop say they'll pay for this repair? I too find tire replacement to be a hassle for this exact reason.

 

Wow, I'd be PISSED and you obviously were and had every right to be. Wait and see what your guy that's coming out tomorrow says. At the very least they'll need to incur the cost of the work you have done to the wheels. I don't think replacements are necessary, but definitely any refinishing, they should be on the hook for. Good luck and sorry to hear about this. I hate when things like this happen.

 

It seems like no matter what you have done to your car to solve a problem, the vendors become another problem. This situation pisses me off.
I would not attempt any restoration on your own, but take a few pictures and wait to see what the tire store intends to do. Notify them via certified mail of your intentions to pursue legal action if the wheels are not properly refinished to your satisfaction.

 

I had a similar thing happen to me. I went to a tire shop that mounted tires on my BBS CH for my M5. They managed to scratch 2 of the edges even though I'd specifically asked them to be carefully just as you have. Honestly, I don't think they take that comment seriously. They probably think, "yeah yeah...we've heard it all before, trust us." etc. Sure enough, they scratched it and had me go to a wheel finish shop where they suggested that I polish the edges of all four wheels rather than try and refinish it. Looked good but I still was pissed off that it even happened in the first place. Fast forward a year later, I had a flat on my Range Rover tire so it needed to be replaced. I don't even know why I went back to the same guys but they ended up scratching the wheel AGAIN even though they knew me from before. This time though, I specifically told them that if they scratched it, I might want a new wheel because it'd be impossible to polish the edges of these wheels because it's a flat type rather than a "rolled lip" type like the CH's. Sure enough they scratched it. Faint hairline scratch all the way around! I don't get it, don't they check their equipment beforehand? I bet that most owners don't care like we folks do. They had me refinish the wheel which looked HORRIBLE. I demanded that they get me a new wheel and they finally relented. However, because of a bad manufacturing batch, it took Land Rover 7 wheels before they finally sent a good one! So it ended up taking me two months before I got the wheel situation taken off. Needless to say, I'm never going back to these guys again. IMHO, it doesn't do any good to find shops that "dealerships" recommend. I would go with places that other people with sports cars like yourself recommend instead.

 

I definitely know how you feel - it happens to everyone who modifies their car.

Some things I consider preventative measures:

1. What machines are they using? Any installer worth their weight is going to use Corghi Equipment...sounds funny, but in my experience (and I've had to mount easily over 50 sets of wheels) the most knowledgable installers use Corghi Equipment. This equipment allows the tire to be mounted basically without any metal ever touching the rim. (Other equipment requires the use of a tire iron to "pop" on the tire)

2. Make sure the installer knows how much you care about your wheels. I always ask (even though you already know the answer) to make sure the installer takes special care - "please don't run the tire iron across it" (if they aren't using Corghi equip) and that I've waited a long time for these wheels. Also make sure if possible that they mount the tire from behind (or face down) if possible. This way when they have to run the tire iron it will be across the rear of the wheel rather than the front. This is commonplace for reverse offset wheels.
3.Go to a reputable/reviewed shop. Ask around, ask friends. If you're in SoCal, go to Lucent. Nuff said.
4. WATCH THEM, but be polite. Anytime someone is being watched they'll most always take extra special care because the customer is watching. I know this may sound annoying, but I'd rather annoy them now then have them ruin a set of wheels I've waited months for. Again, any shop that is good will allow you to watch them because they're experienced and have nothing to hide.

 

I only use touchless tire machines.
In OC we have Shoreline Motoring.

 

any norcal or phoenix recommendations guys?

 

Honestly I think the wheel repair people will get them looking good as new.

You think it's bad handing over a set of street wheels, just wait till you're getting tires replaced on some tinfoil thick race wheels. Watching them try to break the bead on a race wheel that only weighs 12lbs will give you a heart attack. Needless to say the kid working part time after school doesn't get to play with those.


Oh, I've been going to Tucker Tire in SoCal for many years now, couldn't muster a bad word about them if I tried. They are in Azusa and Aliso Viejo iirc.

 

Thanks everyone for their suggestions and information. As an update, the wheel repair guy came out today and after discussing the situation with him, he respectably told me that repairing the wheels without stripping them completely wouldn't provide a flawless result. I did have him touch up my BBS RC's on the wife's BMW though and he did an excellent job. But still, nothing I'd feel comfortable with on the GT3. Not that my wife's car is any less worthy, it's just that we are planning to sell it soon.

I contacted Wheel Enhancement who said they could refinish the wheels to an original condition. Apparently, they strip them down to the casting, fix any minor imperfections, respray paint and clear coat and bake them. At this point, I am waiting for a written quote from them to take in along with a written quote from the dealer for two new wheels. That should put the fear into them and make the relatively inexpensive cost of repainting them attractive.

So... I got thinking, why not take this opportunity to do some minor customizing. My ultimate plan is to add the CF RS wing and CF mirrors to my Speed Yellow GT3. As a compliment to those items, I was thinking that black wheels would work well. But, I don't particularly like the all black wheels as seen on the 997 GT3 RS. While it gives it a mean look, it seems to lose some tire/wheel definition... in my opinion. I actually really like the look of the stock wheels so altering these may just be an option. What do you think? Here's what I'm thinking, either a gloss or satin black spoke finish with the rest in the stock silver ala 996 GT3 RS...

 

Just a suggestion; have Wheel Enhancement do all four wheels. This would avoid a possible slight deviation in color. You may have to pay for the undamaged rims, but thats a lesser evil compared to staring at mismatched wheels.

 

I had a similar, but different situation. My wheels were severely scraped at the car wash. I took full photos, Better Business Bureau report, sent multiple letters, and won in small claims court. I was awarded $3480.00 for the "replacement" of two wheels.
I dont know if its worth your effort, but it is one route.
good luck

 

Well, I took the quote from Wheel Enhancements as well as a quote for the purchase of two new wheels from my dealer and the shop owner cut me a check on the spot for the refinishing by Wheel Enhancements. I suppose that if I really wanted to push the issue with attorney at side, I may have been able to get replacement wheels but I am content with this outcome. Being without my car for the time it will take to have the wheels done isn't ideal but I can live with it. Plus, if I decide to have the spokes painted, the positive way to look at this is that the tire store's lack of capability will be paying for a portion of this. That's the only positive I can find though.

 

That's funny that you mention Tucker Tire. They are the best and can easily be trusted with my wheels. I'm actually going there in about an hour to get my new tires mounted on the 997.