Is it worth rebuilding alloy wheels?

Although alloy wheels have a fairly high resistance to defects compared to steel rims, if they get into a hole at high speed, defects and geometric irregularities can form on them. In some cases, chips or cracks may appear. The speed of the car and the relief of the road surface directly determine the degree of defects in alloy wheels.

In the vast majority of cases, a cast rim cannot be restored, although the success of the repair directly depends on the degree of the defect and the method of repair. It is important to understand that alloy wheels are produced by pouring a hot alloy into a special mold, then the metal is hardened and artificially aged. This technology gives the finished product its consumer characteristics.

Welding of cast rims

In tire centers, mechanical defects (chips, cracks and broken fragments) are often offered to be repaired using argon welding. In fact, this allows you to restore only the appearance of the rim, but not its suitability for further use.

After passing through the hardening procedure (heating the alloy and its rapid cooling), the cast rim can no longer be heated again under any circumstances. This will negatively affect its physical characteristics, since after heating the alloy from which the rim was cast will lose its structure forever. No matter how the masters of the tire center praise their equipment, you must remember that restoring the original structure of the alloy under such conditions is simply impossible.

To support this, here is a quote from the Association of European Wheel Manufacturers (EUWA) “Recommendations on Safety and Service for Wheels for Wheels”: “every repair of rim defects by heating, welding, adding or removing material is strictly prohibited.”

After heat treatment of the disc, it is very dangerous to ride it!

Rolling (straightening) of a cast rim is widespread everywhere in almost any tire center. The rolling procedure is carried out by analogy with the rolling of steel rims on the same equipment. Please note that in this case, the craftsmen roll the casting after heating the deformed components of the rim with a blowtorch or other methods. This is strictly prohibited for the reasons stated above.

A relatively harmless way to restore is to try to “tap” the deformed sections of the rim with a hammer, and then roll it “on a cold” machine. As a rule, this is a very time-consuming and expensive process. Such restoration is possible only in the case of light defects, when it is still possible to do without straightening. With a more complex deformation, it is no longer possible to “tap” the deformation without heating.

It is important to remember that a heated cast rim is no longer suitable for installation on your car. When buying alloy wheels, carefully examine their surface from all sides. Warming up usually leaves spots on the surface of the cast disc that cannot be washed off. This allows you to determine where the rim heats up if it has not been pre-painted.

Cast rim painting services are offered at almost any tire center. The paintwork can indeed be restored, but this should be done by professionals in this particular area.

To prepare the disc for painting, you need to completely remove the old coating. In addition, after painting, the disc should be diagnosed for statistical imbalance caused by uneven application of paint and varnish on its surface. This procedure requires special equipment.

The general recommendation when painting cast rims is to find serious specialists in this field with good recommendations, who have the necessary conditions and equipment. If possible, conclude a written contract with them, which will fix the warranty obligations. Otherwise, you risk getting wheels that are unsuitable for your car, or their factory appearance will be lost forever.