This is a warning to anyone thinking of buying new alloys for their pride and joy. I bought a set from dealers name deleted and have had nothing but trouble with them. In fact I would go so far as to say they are extremely dangerous! All four wheels suffer from intermittent, sudden deflation with the tyre almost leaving the rim. All the wheels have been tested and none have been punctured. This sudden and complete deflation has caused severe damage to every wheel. I now have a stack of alloys in my garage which cost me £550 and which are absolutely useless. I spoke to the supplier by telephone but they didn\'t want to know and they do not reply to any of my emails.
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Dynamic Dave
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I've never had sudden deflation but I've always found alloys let the tyres down slowly unlike steels.
I regard alloys as inferior quality.
I remember reading that some police forces insist on steel rims as they are stronger.
Why would anyone want to make their car weak and have to pump their wheels up more often?
Stick the original steels back on, Jonrola, and you'll have a better car all round.
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Hi Gen.
I have put the originals back on and although they are alloys as well they have never given any problems in 5 years of use.
Wanna buy a set of crap alloys? They look lovely - you could use them for bookends! Just Kiddin'! Thanks for the reply Gen!
Road Runner
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The issue with alloys is that they have been known to become porous as they get older, hence a gradual loss of pressure. This propblem has been known for decades, so I wonder whether one of our more technically able back roomers can shed light on whether or not technology has improved to mitigate or overcome the problem.
Porousness is certainly one of the reasons why police forces sometimes specify steel instead of alloy; cheaper replacement costs on cars which lead a hard life will be another. I seem to think that alloy wheels have a tendency to splinter/fracture in an impact, whereas steel bends.
DEither way, does sound like you were sold a pup, jonrola, and there should be some legal comeback surrounding whether or not they were fit for prupose.
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No doubt genuine research has been done to prove it, but I can't see how any solid metal object becomes 'porous' without losing mass somewhere. What certainly does happen is surface corrosion at the bead (often by a clip-on balance weight) causing seepage at that point. Result - pressure drop of about 1 psi/day. Sudden deflation sounds more like fitting the wrong width of tyre for the wheel.
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Interesting thread this. I wonder how many people (like me) didn't know any of the potential problems with alloys. Jonrola - I'd suggest trading standards as one of your first ports of call. This is a potentially serious safety issue. I'd also take advice from the legal people at the CAB - £550 isn't peanuts after all and I think you ought to have some comeback. Good luck and keep us posted please.
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Repeated sudden deflation on all four suggests incompatability of the wheel rims with the tyres; did by any chance existing tyres go back on wider rims? If so, of course, it is a point which the dealer should have brought up.
I am very sorry this happened, but I have always believed that there are far to many brands and designs of after market wheels for all of them to be OK, and certainly there is much room for confusion.
Insurers are said to bump up premiums for replacement alloys because of theft, but is there something else they know?
Tomo.
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If porosity is a problem couldn't this be overcome simply by painting the inside? Either with ordinary ali primer or something special?
I find the exact converse in fact - genuine 10-year oldl Volvo alloys never lose even a fraction of a pound. The only air they lose is when I check the pressures.
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I am no expert but I am sure that a non-porous membrane would be fitted if such a big problem existed.
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Sounds like you have the wrong size tyres on the rims. What J and what tyre size have you fitted. Too wider tyre for the J can cause the type to pop its been over bumps and too narrow a tyre pop under heavy cornering. Come Back Regards Peter
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A little off-thread I admit but: when I punctured an original Continental tyre on my BMW 320d (original alloy wheels) the tyre dealer took pride in offering the 'identical' Continental tyre as a replacement. Turned out however that they were marked differently - in particular the originals were made in Germany and the replacement was made in Mexico. May not be a typical comparison I know, but the originals hold their pressure 100% over several weeks, whereas the replacement needs a regular top-up.
Oz (as was)
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Some More Info.
The wheels are 16\" BK604\'s fitted with Nankang Sport - NS1 tyres (205/45/16). Internal mark on alloy is 16x7JJ. The alloys were supplied with these tyres fitted (I wasn\'t given a choice). If there are any experts out there please could they let me know if this combination of tyre size and wheel size is compatible?
When I spoke to (dealers name deleted AGAIN!!) from the motor store where I had bought the wheels they said they would send two replacement valves to the store for me to try. When I went to collect them I was told that I would have to pay for them (£9) - How petty can you get? I left two alloys and the new valves into my local tyre centre. Next day I went to pick them up and was told that one of the new valves was faulty (surprise! surprise!). I tested it myself and it was dud! The other new valve made no difference.
Alloys are 15 months old and problem is 12 months old.
Road Runner
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There are plenty of people on the net flogging alloyws, but not much information; however, see-
www.performancealloys.com/index1.htm
Tomo.
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The tyre size is okay for the wheels, so no problem there. I also have the BK604 (7x15 with 195/60VR15 Bridgestone RE720), and after a year I've had no problems with them holding pressure. What I have found is that the vast majority of people who have tried Nankang tyres wouldn't go near them again. It may be that because of the low profile of the tyre, the beading is coming away from the rim when cornering, allowing air to leak out. Short of replacing a couple of them with another brand, it's difficult to point the finger.
Andy
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If porosity is a problem couldn't this be overcome simply by painting the inside? Either with ordinary ali primer or something special? I find the exact converse in fact - genuine 10-year oldl Volvo alloys never lose even a fraction of a pound. The only air they lose is when I check the pressures.
My Volvo alloys lose pressure regularly. Decent tyre dealer 're-painted' same and to date no prob, but i'm wary.
Volvo circa '93 850
Regards.
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