both rear alloys distorted?? E63 AMG

[mrmonkeyboy]

Can anyone shed any light on the possible causes of this please?

My car is in the dealership for service & first MOT and they've kindly done the usual MB health check and sent me a lovely video saying that both my rear alloys are distorted and need replacing.

It was in the same dealership a month ago for some interior warranty work and nothing was picked up then, so in the 100 or so miles I've done in that time (no more than 5 journeys), both alloys have picked up some serious damage.......how????

Also, are distorted wheels expensive to re-roll?

 

[renault12ts]

How does the car drive?

 

[John]

Did you feel any vibration when driving the thing at any speed?

I suppose it is possible that distortion was "balanced out" and they could be seen to not be true.

I've had at least one wheel in the past which needed to be straightened but was successfully balanced (just needed half a church roof).

It's not expensive to straighten wheels - and a place like Lepsons will tell you whether it's possible or not before spending money for them to try (which obviously hinges on how out of true they are).

As for causes - you can speculate all day but one would assume they'd taken a hard knock - although how both rears can be knocked and the fronts are fine is odd, unless the fronts were replaced and the rears left.

My wheel I mentioned above was done before I owned it because it was never damaged under my watch.

 

[mrmonkeyboy]

this is the weird thing, the car rides fine with no vibrations or unusual feeling through the steering wheel.

Can't be that bad as it passed the MOT

 

[brucemillar]

Hmmmm.. I suspect hat nearly all wheels are "distorted" hence the requirement for balancing machines. If you feel nothing up through the seat when driving? I would be ignoring them. If really worried. You could, as JohnEBoy says get them to Lepsons or a good wheel refurb company to take a look.

 

[John]

As per my earlier post - you can balance out a lot of warped wheel.

Don't place too much emphasis on the MOT. There is a sliding scale of testers from sensible, through Stevie Wonder right down to jobsworths.

Shame they didn't video them as part of their health check (I smell a rat if they didn't do this!)

As it has passed the MOT, I would get a second opinion from a trusted third party.

 

[developer]

The rears are more prone to buckling as they are only on 30 profile tyres.

Have you had it at high speed yet to see if you can feel it? - probably a vibration through the seat.

If you don't ever drive fast enough to feel any vibration, then there's no problem really.

 

[wu56Shoozz]

Todays roads now are torturous on Alloy wheels - pot holes have a lot to answer for, suspension failure and wheels are the most common.. A mate of mine tried to claim the council for a broken ball joint and buckled wheel.. " What pot hole?" was their reply in the space of 50 yard he photographed 21 potholes and said "Pick One!!" so yes its easy to distort a wheel doesn't take much..

Cars ruined by potholes up 25% says RAC after increased road surface rescues | Daily Mail Online

 

[stumpy1]

We have just cracked a wheel on a Range Rover so I would imagine potholes or speed humps are the culprit. Those little square ones that you can't quite straddle can buckle the inside of (wider) rear wheels.

 

[mrmonkeyboy]

They did video it, although I've only seen it on my mobile as I'm at work.

I'm planning on swapping on some winter wheels shortly anyway, so i'll take a closer look then.

thanks for easing my initial concerns

 

[KennyN]

It was in the same dealership a month ago for some interior warranty work and nothing was picked up then

Did the warranty work include anything to do with the wheels ?

If it didnt then why would they have checked them meaning the buckles could have been there for months.

Kenny

 

[mrmonkeyboy]

because the dealer performs a health check and video of the car including the underside of the car, wheels & tyres each time

 

[st13phil]

Both the near side wheels on my E63 are buckled. Unless you spun them with a pointer against them you definitely wouldn't see the buckle in the front, and you may not see the buckle in the rear.

Most likely your wheels have been buckled for some time, but weren't picked up as such when you had the warranty work carried out.

 

[Cyclone1]

Are they covered by the Warranty?

 

[st13phil]

^ Not for buckling.