Cracked Wheels

[Deepsix]

I have a 2004 Carrera 2 which I bought about 3 weeks ago, it has 40K miles on the clock and drives beutifully however, as I was just idly washing the car this last weekend and I noticed that the front drivers side wheel has a crack at the base of the spoke. Wheels are Porshe OEM 5 spoke 18"x 8 front and 18" x 10 rear.

To be fair upon closer inspection it looks like this rim has been "kerbed" at some point in its life. The spoke next to the one shown also has a hairline crack, as does the one of the spokes on the drivers side rear, these are small and my phone camera doesn't have the resolution to capture them.

Has anyone else experienced this? Is it a common fault on Texas rough roads?

Repair or replace?

[flyingpenguin]

I have a 2004 Carrera 2 which I bought about 3 weeks ago, it has 40K miles on the clock and drives beutifully however, as I was just idly washing the car this last weekend and I noticed that the front drivers side wheel has a crack at the base of the spoke. Wheels are Porshe OEM 5 spoke 18"x 8 front and 18" x 10 rear.

To be fair upon closer inspection it looks like this rim has been "kerbed" at some point in its life. The spoke next to the one shown also has a hairline crack, as does the one of the spokes on the drivers side rear, these are small and my phone camera doesn't have the resolution to capture them.

Has anyone else experienced this? Is it a common fault on Texas rough roads?

Repair or replace?

If it's not just the paint that's cracked, I would replace them. Any recourse with the seller?

There are great deals to be had on aftermarket rims these days. Check the adds in Panorama.

Good luck.

JP

[Deepsix]

Nope definitely a crack in the rim at the bottom of the spoke one, I can get a complete set of replicas for about $600 from Wheels and Caps, they have a special on at the moment, they look the same as the ones on the car, which is fine by me, seller sold as is I called and they were sympathetic but firm - I don't want to track the car just drive it on the road so I think replicas would be fine, any advice, anyone done this? I think it may also be waise to change all 4 rims out in case this is a fatigue issue and also so that all the rims are the same weight, I've been told these p-cars are sensitive to that sort of thing

Edited October 29, 2009 by Deepsix

[wvicary]

I would have all the wheels inspected by a repair shop. They can then advise you on the best route for repair.

[goldenwarrior1]

I would have all the wheels inspected by a repair shop. They can then advise you on the best route for repair.

A number of Non destruction inspection (NDI) methods exist to determine if it is a crack. Dye penetrant, or liquid penetrant inspection are examples that are relatively cheap compared to the cost of a new OEM wheel. Look around in the yellow pages or Google your area and you should be able to find someone who can do the work. Or, since you are going to replace them anyway, carefully sand away the paint from the damaged area and see if the crack extends beyond the surface. If you find it is only superficial damage then refinishing the wheels would be my choice. Good luck. :cheers:

Here is a link that explains the process.

Dye Penetrant Process

[Deepsix]

Thanks for your help guys, I've bought some replicas so I will put those on the car then see what can be done with the original wheels, if they can be rapaired fine I've got a spare set if not I'll sell the good ones and that will cover the cost of the replicas, I can't just take them all off and send them for refinishing beecause this is my only car and I need it to get to work etc, this way if they are repairable I'll run the replicas and put the originals back on when I seel it, or use one set as track wheels

Thanks again

Edited October 29, 2009 by Deepsix