All Alloy wheels Stuff

All Alloy wheels Stuff

Naturally, wheel refurbishment, will bring your cars wheel virtually back to new. So, the process includes totally stripping down all the old materials. Consequently, down to the original metal. Including, the total wheel both the inside and the outside. Of course and starting the renewing process all over again. All the wheels are resprayed with colour of the customer’s choice. Then they are baked in an oven at high temperature.

The final process is to apply a coating of lacquer. Of course, to give the alloy wheels a further coating for protection.

locking wheel nuts

Locking Wheel Nuts Lost! How Not to get at Your

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Locking Wheel Nuts Lost

Locking Wheel Nuts Lost

So, most people in the auto trade know about the “locking wheel nut problem.” As a result, cars arrive at our garages and tyre shops with no way of removing the vehicles’ locking wheel nuts. In the beginning, most cars have a set of tools that enable us to remove the locking wheel nuts. These tools are fitted to secure the alloy wheels and prevent theft. Indeed, some alloy wheels are very expensive and an easy target for thieves.

Many modern vehicles are fitted with alloy wheels, and indeed, at one time, they were a selling point when garages sold a new car. In the early days of this, the wheels were often stolen. The alloys were probably sold as scrap and eventually melted down for other uses. Similar to the latest spate of “catalytic converter” thefts that we are having at the moment!

Alloy wheel thefts what was the answer?

Importantly, the theft problem had to be solved! So, the answer would be the invention of the locking wheel nut. These came in a set of four (one for each wheel). A simple tool would fit on the locker, enabling the driver or garage to remove the locker when required. Over the years, the system has worked, except for a few hiccups!

Mainly that the car owner would loose the lockers and when the car turns up for say a service and needs the wheel removing then “whoops” there is no locker to remove the wheels. So, this happens time and time again. Fortunately, as an ingenious industry, we again solved the problem. Most garages now carry a special tool that enables us to get the locker nuts off without damaging the car’s valuable alloy wheels.

How not to remove with a saw!

So, I thought that I had seen it all until my staff sent me this image for our blog. One of our customers had attempted to cut out the locker with a hacksaw! This can clearly be seen in the images. What do you think? Have you seen anything like this? Please let me know.

brand new alloy wheel

Potholes Damaging Alloy Wheels-Repairing Alloy Wheels is Making For Steady Business At Local Tyre Stores

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Potholes Damaging Alloy Wheels

Potholes Damaging Alloy Wheels

Eric Roberts‘s insight:

Potholes Damaging Alloy Wheels and tyres are a major problem everywhere? But you can claim your money back

Of course, this is a story that I have been harping on about for a few years now. It seems that local government highway departments and city government departments are

struggling with the enormity of the problem.

This excellent article is from the Detroit metro in Canada, but the story could be from any city in the “Western World”. From a local point of view we have the same problems across the whole of the UK. We are also benefiting from the extra business that this problem is bringing into us, damage to the  wheels and damage to the  tyres and many broken springs.

What to do if your wheels/tyres are damaged !

The potholes also cause damage to the cars suspension and often knock out the cars wheel alignment. Some of the damage can be claimed back from your local authority here in the UK.

Unfortunately, I do not know how the law works in other countries. However, if you do have pot-hole damage. Firstly, then you should take a picture of the potholes.  Secondly get an invoice for the work carried out on your car. Thirdly, then you can put in a claim for compensation. Of course, to recover your losses from the damage that the potholes have caused.

A few of our customers did this after our advice and were successful with their claim. Because of the rise in the number of damaged alloy wheels. So, we have purchased an alloy wheel straightening machine. I feel that this along with a new tyre vulcanising machine will give our customers a better all round service !

Importantly, improving customer services is always one of my business priorities. Consequently, many damaged tyres can be repaired with the correct equipment ! So, large tyres that are now used on many SUV family cars are very expensive. Getting a nail in the side wall normally means a new tyre.

However, we have now invested in equipment to make use able to repair such damage! Significantly, these repairs are both safe and legal.

 

See on detroit.cbslocal.com

How Not to get at Your Locking Wheel Nuts

Damaged Alloy Wheels Repaired- This damage could have spread and shattered the wheel very lucky Driver ?

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Damaged Alloy Wheels Repaired

Damaged Alloy Wheels Repaired

Relaxing. last week I was sat in my small office . Day dreaming and  just looking out of the window. So. I noticed a breakdown recovery truck with a blue car on the back. I never thought more a do about it as we have these broken down cars brought into us all of the time, as most busy auto centres do.

About ten minutes later a member of my staff came in shouting for me to have a look at this wheel..The Damaged Alloy Wheel had come off the car that was brought in on the back of a transporter, a Ford Focus with a sport conversion, up-rated brakes and over size Cheap Alloy Wheels, you know the thing I mean this was a young guys car and a bit sporty.

However the guy had been going at speed and hit a massive pot hole in the road. The impact had caused a massive blow out to both his offside (drivers side) alloy wheel and completely

wrecked the tyres and caused severe damage to the alloy wheels. We can have small damages repaired by a local alloy wheel welding specialist. These are very often small cracks that appear on the rims and start to leak air from the wheel and tyre assembly. This is most common on some BMW models and some times we have known BMW replacing wheels free of charge. These small cracks can be repaired successfully, to the pleasure of many of our customers. It has been a bad time for broken and cracked alloy wheels recently due to the large increase of pot-holes on our roads, and so it is good to be able to give our customers the good news when they do not have to buy a new wheel, but we can have their damaged Refurbished Alloy Wheels repaired.

I had not seen alloy wheel so badly damaged ?

We were all amazed at the massive split in the Pothole Damaged Alloy Wheel that came off the front. Shockingly, have never seen one so bad. Splitting was almost all round the circumference of the wheel. If you look at the image bellow then  you can see what I mean. Luckily for the customer we have just become a member of a buying group. Now here in the UK called MD . Fortunately, one of the suppliers we can deal with. Hence, sells TSW wheels Alloy Wheel and Tyre Packages. We were able to supply four new wheels along with two new General Tyres and the guy went on his way a happy driver.

Pellon Tyre and Auto-centre offer car and van servicing and repairs now including “Wheel Repairs” to all makes of vehicles.  Also we sell General Tyres online from our website.  Using the tyre selector and choosing your tyre size. Offering courtesy cars to local motorists who need to go to work. Leaving their car with us for work doing. Of course, we are also an official MOT testing station.

So, 80% of cars now have alloy wheels fitted to them! and as you know, every day thousands of these wheels are incurring minor damage. Of course, from kerbing, potholes. Causing  stone chipping and lacquer discoloration. Predominantly, this damage stands out like a sore thumb. Especially on polished rims. Of course by offering this new service we were looking for a cost effective method. Of course to repair and bring the damaged alloy wheel(s) back to a showroom finish.