Hello again! When it rains, it pours...I managed to put a nice (non-repairable) hole in the tread of the Michelin mx4 tires that came with my '05 RL. I was stupefied to learn that discount tire quoted me nearly $600 to replace 1 tire! So, the question at hand is...do I replace the factory pax rims with aftermarket rims or do I bite the bullet and replace just the tire.

I'm leaning towards new rims and tires all around and I'm curious to know if there's a market for the factory rims (I'm not sure what sucker would want rims that are so expensive to wrap rubber, but figured it's at least worth the question).

 

A quick fix is to find someone on Acurazine who is selling his OEM rims ( the 17s) for whatever reason and just ditch your Pax rims. After I sold my RL ( with TSW 18s ), I sold my OEM 17s wrapped in winter tires ( about 90% of tread left + rims refinished to get rid of cosmetic scratches) for a total of $600 for the whole set to a 2005 Pax RL owner like you who was tired of his Pax RFTs.

 

Hmmm....so, should I take that comment to mean that not all OEM RL rims are pax rims? I've been pouring over the black market and have come across a couple of OEM rims which had no mention of the pax system...

 

Correct.

 

Excellent to know! Since I'm trying to do this on a budget, I'm thinking through a couple of different scenarios:

1. New rims and tires around. I think I can get this done for right around $1000. The best benefit of this is that I have 4 matched rims and tires on the car at the same time. The drawback is that it's the most expensive option.

2. Keep the existing PAX rim and replace the tire. I just don't think this is the right option given the wear that's on the rear set of tires. I really don't want to spend $1700 on replacing 4 tires over then next 1.5 years.

3. Get 4 new rims, transfer 3 of the PAX tires to the rims and purchase a new HXMXM4. I'd have 4 matching rims. The drawback on this is that I'd essentially have 3 timelines of tires on the car (the back tires, one front tire and the new front tire). This seems tedious given I'd have to un-mount and re-mount the existing tires to new rims. I'm guessing this would run around $800 - $900.

4. I can get a non-PAX OEM rim from ebay for ~$100. Buy that along with a new HXMXM4 and I'd at least have rims that visually match. I'm not sure how much one would have to be smoking (I am in Colorado after all) to make sense, but I figured it's at least worth having a chance at getting shot down. I'm guessing this puts me around $400.

Now that I read what I typed, I'm thinking new tires and rims make the most sense, but being that I'm tired and done looking at rims, I put the question to you, dear innerweb! Which option should I go with?

 

I'm selling my oem aspec wheels and tires. Pm me if your interested

 

I believe your options 3 n 4 are problematic. If you get non PAX rims, they may not fit the Pax tires you have so 3 is difficult. For no. 4, if you run 3 Pax rims n tires and one non-Pax rim and tire, your diameter of the one non Pax may be different - not sure if that is safe or advisable. Also wonder if SH AWD will get a bit confused.

I think option 1 makes the most sense especially if you plan on keeping the car at least 2-3 years. If you can establish that 253RL's Aspec 18s fit your car, they are definitely worth a look. And BTW when you get rid of Pax, your ride quality should improve too.

 

Hella mad phat rimz and tints yo!

 

You guys sure help me maintain faith in humanity! I'm going to replace the pax rims and go from there. Do you suppose it's worth posting my rims on the black market (and if so, how much should I realistically ask/get).

 

Dang it. I'm in the 253 right now and love those A-Spec rims but I'm not in the market for another major purchase so soon after buying the car. Ah well.

 

See my in blue.


BTW, "rims" are for people who are much less literate than yourself. The term you are looking for is "wheels".

 

Thanks for the change 007 (and for helping me get the right vernacular)! I'll be sure to look for some wheels that fit the bill and stay away from the cheaper things. I have a few PMs in my inbox from kind souls (or scammers looking to take advantage of) with OEM wheels.

 

Listen to what 007spy said. He's absolutely correct on all counts. I don't know how you'd get new wheels AND tires for $1000. That won't even pay for major-brand new tires alone (even the non-pax kind!). When I depaxed, I bought new 18" A-Spec wheels and Michelin Primacy tires for $2100. At the time, it was actually a little cheaper than replacing 4 pax tires alone so it was a no brainer for me.

As for what to do with your old PAX wheels and tires, let me know if you have any ideas. I can't give them away for free!!! If anyone wants mine, just let me know! :-P

And 253RL, how much do you want for your aspec wheels and tires? Is that the regular chrome or the black chrome? And what is the condition? Any scuffs/scratches?

 

I have an almost brand new set of originals (500) miles

 

Original what? PAX or Standard 17s or ASpec 18s? What kind of tires? How old? How much?

 

A good guy from CO helped me with a great deal on my MBZ winter rims Jan 2014. Happy to return some of that goodwill heading back towards CO.

I suspect PAX rims and tires are pretty worthless. Maybe a scrap dealer will give you a few bucks for the rims. One thing to think about is do PAX RLs have TPMS and if they do, how much more life is left in your existing TPMS. The good news is if you buy from Tire Rack or Discount Tire Direct, you can get new compatible TPMS for not too much $$. Good luck shopping - you now have the task of picking the best value tire out there for your RL and this forum is filled with analysis and views on what works best. Both Mich Pilot Sport A/S and Falken Azenis P722 did well on my RL when I owned it.

 

Even if you end up getting a cheap set of A-specs like I did and refinish, it still ends up costing a pretty penny. The advantage of that is you get any color you want, in brand new shape, for the price of new wheels, and maybe even less depending on where you shop.

The aspecs do have the plus of also being a more popular tire size, but you do lose some in comfort.

 

It's decision time tomorrow! (I'm not sure how much more I can/should trust the spare). As NJ mentioned, I need to figure out what to do with the TPMS. If I wind up with a set of oem rims that have TPMS installed, would it be as simple as plug-n-play or would I need to have a shop set it up?

 

Let's see, the net says scrap aluminum is $.50 a pound, at 30 lbs(?) each....carry the 5 and don't forget cosine, that's maybe $50 in scrap value for the wheels. I'M RICH! Time to quit my job and buy a solid gold toilet (right after I buy new wheels for my RL)!

 

Dave, where do you live in Colorado?

 

Bdogg- I'm in south Denver around i25 and C470

 

No shit? Which Discount Tire did you go to? Parker?

 

If you want to come see me, I'm a manager at the store in Lone Tree at Lincoln and Yosemite. I'll see what I can do for you.

 

Nay...I'm over in centennial (though I've spent a pretty penny over at the shop in Parker. I just moved from close to Lincoln and Jordan). I initially went to the shop off arapahoe and Havana who told me the only store around these parts that deals with pax wheels is off hampden and 25. It's been a damned fiasco!

I take it the shit you didn't have is because you and I are in the same neck of the woods?

 

Hey!!!! I purchased a set of tires for an '02 grand Cherokee from your store years ago! It's a small world...

You around tomorrow?

 

I'll be there 8-6. My name is Brian. I'd be more than happy to help you. Just keep a budget in mind and I'll see what I can do inside your budget or else have a wheel and tire in mind and I'll see what kind of price I can do for you on the setup you want.

 

The RL auto-learns TPMS sensors. Out em in, drive the car, and enjoy.



Also, I have to note that once you de-PAX, your car will not know. Thus, if you get a flat, the car will say you have 200 mi to find a fix. You don't. You also don't have a spare donut in your trunk. Keep this in mind down the road.

 

It's actually 100 miles for countdown mileage to get a fix.

And yes, if you depax, I would piece together the donut spare pieces to put in your trunk, unless you plan on calling for a tow in case of a flat.

 

You know what's weird about that...I have a spare in my trunk (well, I HAD a spare in my trunk, now it's on the car lookin' pimp all bright yellow). It looks to me to be the factory spare too...

When I got the hole in the tire, the TPMS warning came on, but there was never a count down timer. Could it possibly be that someone chose to have PAX wheels put on the car after the purchased it?!

 

Oh... now this is interesting! If you had a spare, and when you had a flat and there was no count down mileage counter, then your car sounds like it is not a PAX vehicle.

Now, after re-reading your original post, it pretty much confirms it. 2005 RLs did not have PAX as an option. PAX started in 2006 and it was ONLY on the Tech Pkg which included Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS) and Active Cruise Control (ACC). Since you said you have a 2005, there is no way your car would have come with PAX from the factory.

Now, the next question then is are you sure the tire you have a hole in is a PAX tire?? And what about the other 3 tires on your car? Are they PAX as well? How do you know? What is the tire size printed on the sidewall of the tire?

Someone could have theoretically put PAX tires on an 05 RL, but it's not trivial because the lug nuts for the non-pax and PAX RLs are different also. 2005-2008 RLs without PAX have the flat washer type lug nuts. PAX versions have the acorn style lugnuts and the wheels are matched to the corresponding lugs. Thus, if you really have PAX tires on your car, the spare that came out of your trunk is designed for flat washer style lugs while your PAX ones are designed for acorns, so one or the other is mismatched and is dangerous to drive on.

Now you have me curious. Which do you have? The easiest way to tell is the printed size on the tires.

 

Crikey! I'm pretty sure the lug nuts I have on the spare are acorn shaped...that would also explain the 1 random flat nut I found in with the jack. I'm positive they're PAX rims (especially since I now have the tire off the rim that got damaged). The rim clearly has the aluminum band around it. Furthermore, the tire measurements are weird (I recall "680" being somewhere in there). I'll get the info and post when I leave work (which is momentarily...to go see bdogg at the tire shop)!

Imma also going to dig up the carfax to see if there's anything on there about replacing the wheels. The report didn't show any damage, but now I'm wondering if someone hosed the wheels early on and replaced them (for some entirely stupid reason) with PAX wheels.

Stay tuned Jr. Detectives!

 

I stand corrected on the nuts. They're flat (whew). The tires measure at 245-680r460a. Michelin hxmxm4.

 

Ok so you definitely have the PAX tires and wheels. But your 2005 car didn't originally come with them. My guess is someone either ruined or sold the original wheels as people still do want those and replaced them with the PAX wheels and tires that nobody wants and can be had for free (like mine!).

So then now your immediate problem is that the flat lugs are NOT meant for the PAX wheels. Pax wheel holes are accord shaped. Using flat lugs on those wheels is not safe at all! However, flat lugs are perfect for the spare tire because that's what they were designed for. I would go check out the lugs on your other wheels asap.

But in the end, I think you want to just get new (normal) wheels and tires all the way around and get whatever lug nuts your new wheels are designed to use.

 

Megatron, I believe this is yours.

 

I love you guys! Working on finalizing a deal today and I'll let you know what I wind up with...

 

OP: I kind of hope when you bought your RL, you felt you got a really solid deal. Reason being whoever actually placed those Pax rims and wheels on a non Pax car essentially reduced the overall value of the car. They may say the Pax set 'costs' more but really as all of us RL ( and ex RL ) owners know, an OEM non-Pax set is worth more than a Pax set.

Most important though is that you're going back to non Pax so good luck with the selection, choice and install. Post pics when you get em.

 

NJ06RL - thanks for the well wishes! I don't mind disclosing that I paid 10.9 for the car which was about $2500 less than what I could find locally in Colorado ( I purchased It in Amarillo). Even with the wheel replacement, I still feel like I got a good deal.

As a matter of fact, I went with the 18 inch aspec wheels 253RL offered. They may not be pristine, but they're a good value and they get me into a wheel size that has a whole lot more options than the stock wheels. I'll post a few pics when they're all installed!

Thanks for all your support on this one guys...it's really good to see such a strong internet community working together to solve problems and have fun in the process!

 

I wonder how the 19" Honda Accord HFP Rims would look on the RL...I need photoshop skillz.

 

They would look great sitting off to the side since they're the wrong bolt pattern.

 

Mad props to 253RL! He sent me wheels after I sent him hundreds of dollars. He also packaged them really well and sent them all cleaned up! THANK YOU!

I'll shoot a few pics when I'm in the mountains tomorrow so I have a nice backdrop.