Unbelievable

[crupp]

So I took my car to the same detail shop I always do, for a quick clean, yesterday and when I get home I noticed some discoloration on my rims. I try for about 30 minutes and it's not comming off. I go back to today they work on the car for about 30-45 minutes, NO LUCK. My rims are blemished (all 4) so they admit to me that someone spread something on the rims or tires that should not have been put on. It's not acid because the blemishes are dark, almost black and the rims are still has smooth has they can be. Bottom line, they say they are going to look at the video cameras to see who did the job and they say they will replace the rims. The manager, the supervisor and the guy who cleans the cars said that this was there fault so we'll see what happens. I hope they are being honest here, if not I will probably have to get a lawyer.

By the way $450 per wheel, mounted and balanced. I'll keep you posted!!

 

[MattG]

If they don't change their tune in terms of offering to replace the rims, I'd say that they are being pretty stand-up. Obviously not something one wants to happen, but mistakes will happen, and the good guys are the ones who own their mistakes, and make them right.

Best of luck though!

 

[jwaters943]

Wow, that sucks. Be sure to keep us posted. Maybe you should upgrade to something non-OEM since they're willing to get you new wheels? You could pay the difference in cost, if any. Just a thought!

 

[bnajack]

Sorry to hear about your wheels. If you find out what they used, please let us know so we can avoid using that product.

Thanks.

 

[TJPark01]

I have the same rims. I can't imagine what the guy put on there. I detail cars, so I can't imagine what type of chemical he would put on the rims to discolor them. The materials on the rims aren't anything special, so a generic polish will do the trick. The only part where I could see someone doing something careless is on the hubcaps which are plastic.

 

[crupp]

I think it was something they put on the tires. The reason I say this is because there are streaks on the rims where the solution applied to the tire ran down onto the rim and it is obvious that the solution was sprayed on based on the spotting on the rim and the major damage is on the flat spots of the rim where the solution pooled.

In regards tothe plasitc the discoloration it is the same on them as well. I'll ppost some pics tonight

 

[crupp]

Not real sure why this would be in the Coupe section??

 

[TJPark01]

I'm trying to think of what the person was trying to do or remove. I can't for the life of me think what they could of done. Seriously, you would have to do something so horrifically stupid for that to occur. I mean rims aren't dainty things, brake dust is highly corrosive so they can withstand a lot. This would be like putting toothpaste on your hotdogs instead of ketchup. It's that egregious and careless.

 

[moose66]

Same thing happened to me. Different circumstances though. When I bought my car, it was raining, so I didn't get a chance to check things out in detail. A week later when I went to wash the car, I had these dark stains that would not come off the rims. I couldn't go back to the dealership as it was over 200 miles away. I tried a few things and nothing worked to remove the stains. Ended up swapping them out for chrome versions. Something I had planned to do anyway. So I was okay and it didn't cost me anything more than it would have.

Keep up posted. As I would love to know what created such annoying stains.

 

[crupp]

pics of rims;

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[MattG]

Hard to say, but it almost looks like a strong cleaner was applied to the wheel while the wheel was hot.

In general my experience is that it is hard to mess up wheels without some serious effort, but harsh chemical cleaners (brake cleaners and so on) can react at higher temperatures, permanently staining things.

Hope this works out for you, and keep us posted if you get any more info on what caused the staining.

 

[math8831]

i think i had the same thing on my paint a couple of days after delevery i had those stain just in front of the rear wheel on the side panel kind of black rain spot i took some wax and it did go off so maybe try a litlle wax there

 

[crupp]

i think i had the same thing on my paint a couple of days after delevery i had those stain just in front of the rear wheel on the side panel kind of black rain spot i took some wax and it did go off so maybe try a litlle wax there

Thanks for the suggestion Math. However, when I brought the car back yesterday they actually tried wax, polish, buffing and nothing worked. I'm with Matt in thinking they applied some sort of strong cleaner to either the tire or rim while it was hot and neglected to hose it off hence the staining. What's weird is the rims are still smooth as glass to the touch. I would have thought the affected areas would have had a course feel to them.

 

[TJPark01]

Bro so far no one seems to know what that is. I assume the shop tried taking it off with a polishing machine and heavy compound or polish. It's obviously some kind of liquid and the pattern looks like it was sprayed on. My only guess is brake cleaner used on the brake calibers, but that's only used when doing a brake job (do they do those there?). My only other guess is brake fluid which is highly corrosive and known to remove paint. Unless you have a brake line leak, which is highly unlikely, I'm stumped. Check the brake fluid reservoir, just in case.

 

[crupp]

Thanks for inquiring TJ. Brake fluid is good. IF you could see the wheels it is very appearant that something was sprayed on. I think it was sprayed on the tires (based on all the streaks/drip marks on the rims and the tires seem much duller now. Before when they were shined up they would have a very glossy look to them and now after they re-cleaned the car the tires have a definite muted appearance to them. Hopefully i can bring back that glossy look after few good washes and scrubbing of the tires. We'll know tomorrow after lunch when they call.

 

[TJPark01]

A buddy mentioned that it could be an easy mistake to make if...
a cleaner or chemical they used wasnt diluted properly.

Anyway, I feel your pain. If I see a bird dropping on a new car, I'm horrified. This would have given me a heart attack. BTW, if they dulled the rubber on the tires, you should have legal recourse to get new one too.

 

[crupp]

A buddy mentioned that it could be an easy mistake to make if...
a cleaner or chemical they used wasnt diluted properly.

Anyway, I feel your pain. If I see a bird dropping on a new car, I'm horrified. This would have given me a heart attack. BTW, if they dulled the rubber on the tires, you should have legal recourse to get new one too.

Good point on the tires. i have had problems with them streaking my windows and there answer has been the solution was not mixed properly. Appearantly they buy in bulk and count on someone on staff to get the dilution right. Not so much in this case!

 

[dataguy]

Sounds like you need to find a new detail shop...

 

[crupp]

Sounds like you need to find a new detail shop...

yup, as soon as they take care of wheels.

 

[TJPark01]

I buy bulk gallon jugs of chemicals, cause I detail as a hobby. I also have many different funnels as not to cross contaminate products. But a dedicated shop would buy drums of the stuff at a time and have hundreds of chemicals on hand. I guess if you hired low skill workers who's English wasn't so hot. I could see how this could occur. Please keep me posted...