anyone fitted ALLOYGATOR rim protectors?

[kalvin928]

bit pxxxxxd off to say the least!! got rid of my 20" alloys and went to 19" and I scrapped 2 of them today... cars going in on Friday to get these refurbished but now am looking for getting the best protectors ... heard rave review for the alloygator one but found they can be tricky to fit and tyre needs deflating etc., has anyone fitted these and their opinion pls would be appreciated. edit; just seen the rim ringz and these seem a better solution

 

[Laters]

I looked into rim protectors a while back with my wheels getting scuffed while others were driving the car.
Wasn't too keen on the fact that the alloygators could cause a slow leak with being fitted between the wheel and the tyre.

I do know a couple of people with alloygaitors fitted and a couple of them love the products where the other had nothing but slow leaks since they were fitted.

I currently use rimblades on my wheels but they are not 100% perfect either.
Alloy Wheel Protectors ? Rimblades and RImbands

They are stuck to the wheel with double sided tape and over the time I have had them fitted (just over a year or so) I have lost 1 (no idea if it was pulled off/damaged by a kerb all I know is when I was washing the car it was gone just leaving a bit of the double sided tape) and the other got mangled by a kerb at some point and was looking quite bad. Saying that it also did its job but there are several different rimblades about.
The earlier ones I had fitted were a lot harder material than the newer ones saying that if they do their job that's fine.
The replacement softer ones have been fitted for a month or so and no signs of coming off or problems but I did over clean the wheels and use some 3m adhesion promoter this time so maybe that helped.

 

[kalvin928]

many thanks for sharing you experiences! just had look on amazon and ebay for the rim ringz not readily available here but the alloygator ones are and will initially try these but will take heed of information of leaks occurring

 

[91dm]

Someone I knew had them fitted until it partly came away from the wheel and damaged all of the paint on the wing. It could have been his fault who fitted them badly, which is highly likely.

 

[Wingco]

Kalvin928 did you get the Alloygators fitted yet? and what has your experience been to date? I'm thinking of getting them fitted to my CLK220 AMG but am a bit concerned about the possible slow leaks, tyres are very low profile. That's why I've decided to have them fitted by the recommended garage here as at least I'll have some comeback if there are any problems.

 

[kalvin928]

hi, got wheels refurbished now, but yet to fit the alloygators! my issues is as the wheels are not original coating i.e. they are in sprayed gunmetal, no one wants to fit them in case paint is chipped, the alloygator are sturdy plastic and gather may chip the alloy wheel paint when trying to fit... however when I have the time I will have a go, meanwhile was also looking at other 'soft' options but as yet not to sure...

 

[Wingco]

I think, at least for the first time, it's worth getting them fitted by one of the authorised fitters in your area. Fitting may seem easy but having the right tools e.g. a hard and heavy enough soft faced hammer would appear to be a necessary implement. On the BMW (am I allowed to mention them here?) owners forum one guy mentioned that he had a hell of a job fitting them and in the end gave up and went to the authorised fitter who demonstrated that you needed a to give them quite a whack with the soft faced (his was plastic faced, not rubber) hammer. He, the BMW owner, was quite surprised at how tough the alloygators were (seemingly made of a really tough nylon, not plastic) but they were fitted after a couple of hours of chatting with the fitter and the actual work being done. Have a look at their Facebook page where there are some photos of a Porsche Cayenne's alloys saved from damage but the alloygator is well shredded. That's why they sell a single wheel kit and incidentally the silver one is in fact a grey - they can't add any metallic compounds to the nylon as it could chemically compromise the strength of the product. The air leak worry seems to be a thing of the past as the product was redesigned in 2010 and the plastic does not go far enough down between the tyre and rim to interfere with the bead of the tyre that provides the air tight seal. All this gleaned from looking and reading a lot of forums and reviews, think I'll go and see out local fitters here in Carlisle.

 

[karozza]

I'm the authorized importer/fitter for Alloygator here in Malta & not only have we fitted them to a large variety of cars, but I also have them fitted to all my previous & current cars including my SL55.

Just came back from a long weekend of driving all over Sicily with the SL at speeds I dare not say here, & they are just as solid as before left.

As long as the tyre pressure is as specified by car manufacturer(or at least 2.1 bar) & the joining clip has not been dislodged by kerbing, then you can safely say your rims are really protected.

You have to remember these have been tested at MIRA & in the very few cases we have come across a leakage(singular meaning not all the rims), it has always been the rim at fault(especially BMW rims). Normally, some kind of corrosion or badly refurbished rims. This happens as the Gator being a solid material, is not as forgiving on the defect as rubber. In this case, bead sealant applied by a tyre fitter is a good solution.