Chrome A-spec Rim lips got damaged during alignment process>?

I thought I would start a new thread to see if anybody else had experienced this same problem with their 18" A-spec rims yet. Long story short...installed 18" Chrome A-spec rims a few months or so ago (first mod I did)- when I picked it up from the dealer, of course...I really didnt think the need to "spot check"all the rims so I drove home. Next day I wash car and find a "nick or small flat slot- hard to describe" on the lip of the rim. Of course...I shit my pants and got the dealer to replace it as it HAD to happen there during the install. After calling me a liar (more or less) and saying they thought something wasnt right here, they agreed to replace if I would just chill and not dog them out on some survey deal. I agreed and all was well after replacement. (nothing happened at all to cause this when I had it in my possession - no pot holes,bumps, etc.-not to mention this was only 12 hours later- so I didnt have to account for a whole lot of time here!) Not to mention...after they replaced it...I drove it for 4 to 5,000 without incident and they were flawless.

SO---I thought I could drive these babies (as I have all my other sets of rims on other cars) and show this lady that I was not bullcrapping her when I took it back in for the first oil change and they were still flawless (as all my other cars have been for years! - am very careful - almost anal about it) 4,000 later. WELL.....I took it in to get the A-spec suspension and Comptech sway bar installed (love it by the way) and next day after - here are these same friggin spots AGAIN! I knew that the body shop I went to aligned the car when they installed the suspension- as you probably always should - so then it came to me. MAYBE IT WAS THE ALIGNMENT EQUIPMENT THAT IS DAMAGING THESE RIMS? I took it back to the shop as it was a friend of mine and we discussed the situation (and I wasnt asking him to get me four new rims or anything...it was the exact opposite - It was just fact finding.) He brought out the peice that they mount to the rim to prove to me that this was not the cause and while he was trying to show me - I could tell even he knew that this was the cause. There are taps/lips that extend out from the bracket that are supposed to go between your rim and tire, so if it left a mark- it would in theory - be inside of the lip where it would never show or make a difference at all....well...even I could see that when he was hooking it up - that if you are not balls on accurate and have somebody else holding/guiding to take up the adjustment slack (which does not happen when Mr. Customer is not sitting right here watching, trust me) that in the act of mounting these alignment brackets and getting them properly set and tightened down - THAT THEY CAN AND WILL LEAVE SPOTS ON YOUR CHROME A-SPEC RIMS. I dont know if the gunmetal finish is the same...but it has happened twice now at two different shops...

But this kind of led me to believe that this may have also happened at the Acura dealer too.....because I bet they aligned the car when I upgraded rims/tires? Just a theory...but was wondering if anybody else has experienced these probs or is it just me? Has anybody else had small dings or weird flat spots left in their A-spec rims due to alignment tools or something like that>? When I was at the dealer....it just happened on one rim (passenger front) - when I went to the body shop - I think three out of the four rims had something. Am I doping this out right....or is this just shoddy work>? Is there a propensity for a problem here>?

MY THEORY IS THIS. THAT THERE MAY BE A PROBLEM WITH MOUNTING THE ALIGNMENT TOOL ONTO THE A-SPEC RIMS WITH CHROME FINISH AND NOT LEAVING A MARK OF SOME TYPE IF THEY ARE NOT VERY VERY CAREFUL - AND MAYBE IT CANT EVEN BE DONE...NOT SURE. Is there different ways of aligning cars? Different tools? Somebody with some knowledge on the subject help me out here. He showed me the different lip attachments they had to accomodate different mount types, etc. and I think he was using the right one for the job? Am I going to have to own two sets of 18" rims...one to get the car aligned with and one to drive on after that>>? (if I want perfect rims)

 

Oooh, yeah. These things happen all the time. Even my brand new Enkei got chipped.

A friend's WRX also suffered damaged wheels and Belle Tire replaced all of them at no cost. It's a very common problem if they are not being careful. Another friend's wheels also suffered the same fate. The bigger the wheels, the more they are vulnerable to being damaged.

 

That sucks big time! Ya, they would never admit what it was - but I knew! Since it was a friend....I am gonna have to get over it. They are not bad....but it does suck a bit. I am probably the only one that ever sees that though.

I am gonna just buy a new set next year and save the old ones for "shop use" as it is obvious that this is the only way I will be able to have perfect wheels. Switch out when I take to get aligned and switch back when I get home. Totally insane that you cant trust a shop to do it right....but at least that will get me though the process.

 

Had new winter tires put on yesterday on same set of A-specs. Dang...these rims are very soft...be very careful at all times! Tire shops have a way of making little marks on em if you are not on top of em totally! I might even recommend taking pics right there in the lot in front of them so they know that they are on notice....cause just saying something does not always have the same effect!

 

Michael:

I've come to appreciate the exterior of my TL (now w/ 42,000 miles, 2 years old) w/ what I personally coined "10 foot goggles." If it looks "newish" from 10 feet away, i'm still happy w/ my TL (too sick of getting little scrapes, chips, dings, in the body/rims, etc). Can't get a coronary this early in life .. 'specially not b/c of some car!

 

I totally agree with Peter here... I was anal about every tiny little scratch or bump and then I realized that it was causing more anguish than I should be giving towards an inanimate object. Its almost as if the moment I stopped worrying is the moment it stopped getting dings and scratches...

 

Funny you would say that....thats how I came to have an extra set of winter rims.....I decided the rash didnt really bother me (was truely not a big deal in retrospect - a week or so after) so I decided to use the rashed set for winter wheels when the time came. I drove on the rashed set until it snowed so badly I couldnt get around any more....then changed the tires to snow....leaving the new ones in the garage still for next year when it gets warm again! (dont think I mentioned I rushed and bought a new set of 4 rims/tires) Now I need to decide if I should just sell the OEM 17 inchers or keep em for whatever reason? Cant think of a good one yet.

Now for the new ones....will I go through all this again in the spring trying to keep em perfect? Probably. Until they get rashed....then I think I have to step back a bit and regroup before I place that order with Acura of Escondido on ebay! I mean...it wasnt a day after and I ordered replacements I was so upset. What a dude!

I think Jay Leno said it best last night on Overhaulin'.....I think I am president of the more money than brains club! (he was restoring an old Duesenburg and stated it took like 40 man hours x $70 per hour just to adjust the valves in cars like that!).