Bent Wheels :(

[JamesB41]

2016 RS7. Noticed a bit of vibration and took it to the dealership to have them take a look at it. Turns out *three* of my wheels are bent somehow. Told me I could drive it/live with it and it's not dangerous but it's the cause of the vibration. So I'm looking to get replacements. The dealership quoted me $1200 a WHEEL for the replacements (and that seems to be the running price online for the same part number). I'd prefer to keep the stock look as much as possible (I really like the wheels, that's one of the things that drew me to the car in the first place). Is there any alternative to shelling out $5K for a set of wheels? I know there are some sites online that say they offer "OEM" wheels, and they tend to be around $500/piece, but there's always an asterisk and they talk about potential cosmetic defects, don't have the center caps, etc. etc. Are any of these reputable? $2500 out the door is a lot more digestible than $5K.

Just looking for any alternative. My car has the titanium finish 21" wheels. If I'm gonna replace them all, I'm thinking of going with the High-gloss black. Then I gotta factor in a winter tire/wheel set. Gonna get pricey real quick.

And what do I do with the old ones? Just junk them I guess? Such a shame.

Edit: Is it possible to repair the wheels? He didn't say they were cracked, just that they were bent. Obviously I wouldn't want to mess around with safety, and the service guy told me that they wouldn't repair them...but might it be worth investigating with another local shop to try to get them fixed?

[RAF_S7]

A decent wheel repair shop should be able to sort you out. Google for some in your area.

There are also plenty of OEM wheels on eBay.

[Skyler@Achtuning]

Depending on the severity of the bend, wheels can usually be repaired. I would recommend asking a few local wheel repair shops about them.

If you're interested in a replacement set Hartmann offers a few 20" options for the RS7 for under $1,500-set. This would give you an additional half inch of sidewall to soak up road imperfections and hopefully protect the wheels a bit better but I know some NY streets can be pretty brutal. Hartmann has been in business for 40 years, their wheels accept OEM caps and lug bolts as well as TPMS senders.
We also have options from BBS available from about $2,400-set to 6,000-set depending on styling and sizing.

http://shop.achtuning.com/hartmann-w...-audi-rs7.aspx

[elptxjc]

Did you buy the car used? Sounds like an accident car to me.... if you don't know what damaged them. Also worth mentioning, aluminum wheels do NOT bend (they break instead), so they're probably compromised, meaning a much lighter impact/force would break them. Furthermore, a hit hard enough to damage wheels might have damaged suspension components as well. I'd buy new wheels (whoever pays for them), and get the car aligned/checked as well. By the way, I'd go with 20s. Good luck.

[dethmetaljeff]

2016 RS7. Noticed a bit of vibration and took it to the dealership to have them take a look at it. Turns out *three* of my wheels are bent somehow. Told me I could drive it/live with it and it's not dangerous but it's the cause of the vibration. So I'm looking to get replacements. The dealership quoted me $1200 a WHEEL for the replacements (and that seems to be the running price online for the same part number). I'd prefer to keep the stock look as much as possible (I really like the wheels, that's one of the things that drew me to the car in the first place). Is there any alternative to shelling out $5K for a set of wheels? I know there are some sites online that say they offer "OEM" wheels, and they tend to be around $500/piece, but there's always an asterisk and they talk about potential cosmetic defects, don't have the center caps, etc. etc. Are any of these reputable? $2500 out the door is a lot more digestible than $5K.

Just looking for any alternative. My car has the titanium finish 21" wheels. If I'm gonna replace them all, I'm thinking of going with the High-gloss black. Then I gotta factor in a winter tire/wheel set. Gonna get pricey real quick.

And what do I do with the old ones? Just junk them I guess? Such a shame.

Edit: Is it possible to repair the wheels? He didn't say they were cracked, just that they were bent. Obviously I wouldn't want to mess around with safety, and the service guy told me that they wouldn't repair them...but might it be worth investigating with another local shop to try to get them fixed?

If there are no cracks I'd just have them straightened. Sure it's technically not as good as a brand new wheel but it's also 10% of the price.



Sent from my SM-N950U using Audizine mobile app

[Audibot]

audiusaparts.com sells Audi parts for discounted pricing. I'd give them a looksee.

[JamesB41]

Thanks for all of the replies. Part of the irritation is that if I go with 20" then I'm into new tires as well. It never seems to end. Can I reuse the TPMS sensors from the old wheels? Or will I need to get new sensors as well? Does that change if I go with a different wheel? i.e. if I replace them with the same wheel do I avoid that cost vs. putting on say, 20" replicas.

[Audibot]

TPMS is interchangeable, as the valve-stems are a standard size. (though I thought the newer cars used the ABS/wheel speed sensors for TPMS)

[Skyler@Achtuning]

TPMS is interchangeable, as the valve-stems are a standard size. (though I thought the newer cars used the ABS/wheel speed sensors for TPMS)

The RS7 is an exception and still uses in wheel TPMS to be able to display a real time pressure reading. The RS3 can also be equipped with them depending on the build package.

[wangshuo1989]

Did you buy the car used? Sounds like an accident car to me.... if you don't know what damaged them. Also worth mentioning, aluminum wheels do NOT bend (they break instead), so they're probably compromised, meaning a much lighter impact/force would break them. Furthermore, a hit hard enough to damage wheels might have damaged suspension components as well. I'd buy new wheels (whoever pays for them), and get the car aligned/checked as well. By the way, I'd go with 20s. Good luck.

TX people don't have to worry about crappy road it seems :) In north those potholes will easily bend wheels if you are not careful.

[parkstr8]

After relocating to Dallas from Los Angeles - roads here suck. Had to replace 2 wheels and straighten 2. Never had that many issues with wheels in 26 years in LA.

[JamesB41]

Sounds like my options are:

1.) Replace with OEMs @ $5K from dealer. Figure out winter when it happens.
2.) Replace with OEMs from ebay or some such? Seems a little dodgy to buy reconditioned wheels.
3.) Replace with 20" wheels (replicas) which offers me the chance of either getting all seasons or having summer/winter tires on the same wheel? But this means all new tires as well.
4.) Replace with 21" different wheels that are less expensive and keep my existing tires.

Seem right? I guess I'm kinda leaning #3.

[allenzhang215]

I got myself a set of reconditioned OEM wheels for under 2500. They are good so far.

[NardoRS7]

People are always selling their OEM wheels here on the forums. Just look in the classifieds section.

[kouzman]

Where are you located? If you are in NYC I still have my old 20s from my rs7 which I sold last year. I just want to empty the garage. I will unload them for a very low price.

[dab]

2016 RS7. Noticed a bit of vibration and took it to the dealership to have them take a look at it. Turns out *three* of my wheels are bent somehow. Told me I could drive it/live with it and it's not dangerous but it's the cause of the vibration. So I'm looking to get replacements. The dealership quoted me $1200 a WHEEL for the replacements (and that seems to be the running price online for the same part number). I'd prefer to keep the stock look as much as possible (I really like the wheels, that's one of the things that drew me to the car in the first place). Is there any alternative to shelling out $5K for a set of wheels? I know there are some sites online that say they offer "OEM" wheels, and they tend to be around $500/piece, but there's always an asterisk and they talk about potential cosmetic defects, don't have the center caps, etc. etc. Are any of these reputable? $2500 out the door is a lot more digestible than $5K.

Just looking for any alternative. My car has the titanium finish 21" wheels. If I'm gonna replace them all, I'm thinking of going with the High-gloss black. Then I gotta factor in a winter tire/wheel set. Gonna get pricey real quick.

And what do I do with the old ones? Just junk them I guess? Such a shame.

Edit: Is it possible to repair the wheels? He didn't say they were cracked, just that they were bent. Obviously I wouldn't want to mess around with safety, and the service guy told me that they wouldn't repair them...but might it be worth investigating with another local shop to try to get them fixed?

try alloy wheel repair if they are in your area. very reasonable 150 a rim and they come to your driveway. Used them multiple times on rs6 pos hartmans, handle both bends and road rash.

[Phantom75]

If you have the 21" this doesn't surprise me on those thin sidewalls, and I don't think they are true forged wheels.

This is one reason I wanted the 20" wheel package. More rubber, more tire options, fully forged wheels.

But in any case, keep an eye out on ebay. Single OEM wheels and OEM sets are on there all the time. No way those wheels are worth $1200 each. You could get fully forged monblock custom made for that kind of price. I'd look for a used wheel and call it a day. The Reproduction wheels would be bad for the 21" spinny looking ones either, as there is nothing super light or special about the oem wheel, but Id probably just wait to buy a single OEM used myself.

It might be repairable as well.

TSW makes some good flowforged wheels which are probably better than the OEM.

Is it RSforged, I forget, that makes $2500 forged sets. Nothing super fancy but pretty good wheels and at lease as good as oem.

If you're in the $2500-3000 range on price you can find a complete set of oem with tires right now on ebay, or look to one of many site vendors for wheels options. There is also a guy selling HRE in the classified section right now that you might be able to get in your pricerange when he is motivated to sell!! They are beautiful.

[JamesB41]

I think part of my confusion comes from listings like this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/OEM-Origina...YAAOSwDZ1a8f03

What does it really mean to be "remanufactured"? That the wheels were broken/repaired? I wouldn't care if they buffed out some road rash, but if there was some structural damage I'd want to steer clear and it's hard to know. I see "OEM" tossed around a LOT, and I would normally take that to mean that they came from Audi directly...but the price is absurdly low in some instances, relative to what the factory charges. http://www.originalwheels.com/audi-w...s72016rims.php is another example. Sorry, I'm just a total neophyte when it comes to this stuff :(.

[allenzhang215]

I think part of my confusion comes from listings like this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/OEM-Origina...YAAOSwDZ1a8f03

What does it really mean to be "remanufactured"? That the wheels were broken/repaired? I wouldn't care if they buffed out some road rash, but if there was some structural damage I'd want to steer clear and it's hard to know. I see "OEM" tossed around a LOT, and I would normally take that to mean that they came from Audi directly...but the price is absurdly low in some instances, relative to what the factory charges. http://www.originalwheels.com/audi-w...s72016rims.php is another example. Sorry, I'm just a total neophyte when it comes to this stuff :(.

James, the ebay link is actually the local shop where I got my set of OEM wheels. I think they are saying "reconditioned". Normally minor things like road rash, etc. If it has some structure damage, it is very likely not able to be fixed. If you are looking for the 21'' blade wheel, my friend might have those since he got a set of performance style wheel, I will ask him.

[AUDIofil]

When you look for wheels online you have to pay attention to actual descriptions. If it says "OEM style" then it's not OEM. It might be replica and look very similar but it's not a real thing. For remanufactured wheels it's much harder to tell/know what was wrong. They might just have road rash fixed but they might also been straightened up. I would personally look to have your set straightened up and call it a day or as other mentioned switch to 20' to have some more protection.

[JamesB41]

Every local shop I've spoken to basically is telling me that they don't touch alloy wheels. I'm 0/3 so far and they just seem to think it's either not possible or not worth it.

@allen that would be awesome, thanks!

[allenzhang215]

Every local shop I've spoken to basically is telling me that they don't touch alloy wheels. I'm 0/3 so far and they just seem to think it's either not possible or not worth it.

@allen that would be awesome, thanks!

He already sold those.

[JamesB41]

Thanks for looking. Appreciate it.

Also, I just looked at my wheels and they have *two* part numbers on them, which is confusing. 4G8601025AM and 4G8601025AN. If I wanted to find someone selling a used version of the exact same wheel, how do I know that I have the right part? Googling 4G8601025AN for example, yields a "Machined Black" wheel and looking here https://parts.audiusa.com/a/Audi__/5...S/1330401.html lists them as two different types of wheels it looks like? Kinda confusing.

[MP4.2+6.0]

The different part #'s are finish differences IIRC. They really should grind off the number that doesn't match the specific finish, but at least for several years now it has been like this.

As noted, those are heavy cast wheels. If you go to some of the forged OE 20's, you can take off up to about 9 pounds of unsprung weight per corner--a lot. I did on my S8, staying with an OE design but using the lightest forged 20 x 9 (27 pounds). I assume you don't have the CCB option, but if so I think that leaves you with the 21's.