Owning a car in this climate typically means having a second set of rims with tires. Most of us realize that this second set can be quite expensive, especially if we want to keep up the look of our pride and joy with something other than the unsightly black steel rims. Some of us just like to have a spare set of rims with tires mounted as an immediate replacement for “performance driving” use.
One of the other options to buying new, is to look on the various buy and sell sites, including more local ones like Oakville buy & sell, for a used set of rims – that may also come with a useable set of tires as well. What do you need to know before starting that search for the best deal?
Wheel size and fitment
The first thing to know is the actual size of your rims.
For example, I was looking for a staggered set of 7.5”x17” fronts and 9”x17” rears. Most cars have identical front and rear rim sizes but quite a few of the more higher performance cars have wider rear wheels – hence the term “staggered”. If they happen to come with matching tires, their sizes would be 225/45/17 and 255/40/17.
The other issue to be aware of is that not all rims of that size will fit your car. To simplify things, the best approach is to simply try and find something that is especially made for your car – such as an OEM rim.
Aftermarket rims are also an option, but you need to be very careful to do the proper research to pick something that will not only fit but is also suitable for your type of use. Many of our local tire shops as wheel as the car dealers can give you some good advice on what will work for you. I narrowed my search to those specific rims made for my car as they needed to be extremely well made. In my case, I was also on the lookout for ZR rated tires, capable of safely handling higher speeds.
The search began.
Buy and sell cautions
When scanning the many buy & sell sites for rims, you will quickly realize that there are two types of sellers. The dealers; typically tire shops, used tire shops and local garages; and, private sellers.
In my case, I was looking for a private seller that perhaps had sold the car and had the spare set of rims still hanging around. In previous years, I have had excellent luck with finding both useable rims and tires from fellow car club members.
This time I came across a seemingly good set of rims with tires located not too far away in Hamilton. After a number of clarifying “messenger” text messages and pictures to confirm sizing and condition, I offered to purchase them for somewhat less than the listed price. That settled, I arranged to pick them up and close the deal.
When picking up used rims or tires, there are a few important things to keep in mind.
Check the rims for damage
On our roads, it is all too easy to hit a pothole and that can cause significant damage to the rim. What may at first look like just a small dent to the inner lip of the rim, can actually be a much more damaging impact that results in the rim no longer being truly round. That level of damage can only be truly identified by a tire shop that can spin the rim and properly check it.
As the picture shows, the damage is not really all that noticeable – especially if you’re picking up the rims in the dark.
I have been driving high performance cars for over 30 years and have done more than my share of tire and rim changes – so I figured I knew enough to be careful with buying used rims. In my recent experience, I did my best to check the outer and inner rim edges and did not notice the slight dents on the inner lip of two of the four rims.
The following day, I took the rims to a nearby tire specialty shop and to my dismay, was told that one front and one back rim were not useable or even repairable.
A bit of a surprise for sure.
I contacted the seller and asked for my money back as these rims should never have been put for sale or even advertised as in good condition. The seller claimed no knowledge of the damage and basically said tough luck and left the buy/sell group to prevent any further contact.
This was not the response I had hoped for.
Check the tires for age and condition
Sellers often like to use the “penny” test to show that there is still useable tread on the tire. What may look like a perfectly useable tire may in fact be total garbage.
The first clue would be the age of the tire. Old tires, regardless of tread depth are dangerous. Many of the automakers such as Mercedes-Benz and Ford, recommend replacement within six years of the production date, regardless of tread life.
Some tire manufacturers like Continental and Michelin state their tires can last up to 10 years, as long as they are inspected every year.
Regardless, it is important to be able to identify the date of manufacture.
If the tire was manufactured after 2000, it will have a four-digit code on the sidewall. The first two digits represent the week and the last two, the year.
A tire with a DOT code of 2618 would have been manufactured during the 26th week of 2016.
If the tire was manufactured prior to 2000, it will have a three-digit code. It doesn’t matter what that code means because you should be scrapping that tire immediately. Most tire shops won’t even mount that old a tire on a rim for you. In my recent “purchase”, the tires looked quite good, no cracks and with decent tread.
However, the three-digit DOT date code identified these as pre-2000, so at least 20 years old.
Garbage!
Some good news in the end
After hearing that my rims were not repairable, I started to investigate what determines whether rims are in fact not repairable.
After all, the damage did not look that bad.
A little research identified a couple of specialty repair shops in Hamilton that claimed to be able to repair most damaged rims. These shops typically specialize in the repair of curb rash or another surface damage. Very few actually claim to be able to repair alloy rims that have more serious damage.
I finally found Tirehause on Pritchard Rd. in Hamilton who after checking the rims carefully, concluded that they could in fact be repaired – partly because of the quality (strength) of the rim – in this case an OEM Porsche rim made in Italy. They further explained that most rims with this kind of damage would not be repairable due to the weakness of the metal. Other damage such as a bent spoke would also make the rim too fragile after a repair and could result in a serious accident.
Lessons learned
We have often heard the expression “What looks to be a good deal is not always a good deal” or even “Never judge a book – or in this case a rim - by its cover”.
When looking to buy used rims, make certain to have them checked by a good tire shop for any possible damage – before you buy!
When buying used tires, check the date of manufacture.
If they are older than three or four years, perhaps you should pass.
