Slow leak, hole in wheel.

[byunts]

Hey guys,

I bought some used wheels recently. I noticed that one of the tires was slowly leaking air, ~ 5 lbs a day. I brought it into a tire shop and they found a tiny hole in the rim. They say it's a casting defect by the manufacturer. They wouldn't consider fixing it and advised me to get a new wheel. Any suggestions as to if this is repairable? These are replicas so I'm not sure who manufactured them, otherwise I would go directly to them.


Any thoughts?

Thanks

[Kaz]

Cracks in wheels that cause air leaks are bad, and yes, wheel shops generally will NOT repair them, because at least on cast wheels, it's usually an indicator of a bigger structural problem that could get worse if they, say, tried to weld on it. I had a BBS RS that had small radial cracks from the valve stem hole, and it had to be rebuilt (at least that's possible on a RS). You could try and wrap the inside of the wheel with some sort of rubber strip or something, but I'd be weary of trusting my life to that wheel.

[Artslinger]

If they say it's a casting defect by the manufacturer, I would get my money back from the person that sold you the rims, if you get no response take him to small claims court.

[Kaz]

If they say it's a casting defect by the manufacturer, I would get my money back from the person that sold you the rims, if you get no response take him to small claims court.

But they're used. Presumably sold as-is. The previous owner most likely didn't know they were defective.

[Artslinger]

But they're used. Presumably sold as-is. The previous owner most likely didn't know they were defective.


If it is a defect by the manufacturer than its a good chance the rims leaked when the person sold the rims. If the guy knew the rim leaked he must inform the buyer, I'd take him to small claims court.

He has a good chance of winning IMO, he needs to bring the statement from the installer detailing the manufacturer defect.