Wheel experts please chime in!

amberzombie · 07-24-2020, 01:22 AM

So the back story is - I bought my 2015 M4 in 2018. It had one previous owner that I was aware of, and from initial inspections, the car was in immaculate condition.

2 weeks ago I was washing my car, and when I was hosing down my wheels, little bits of the finish started to flake off!

Pictures below for reference.

How can this happen? Is this normal due to the age of the car? Or perhaps the wheels have been refinished at some point, or worse still - I have crappy budget wheels on?

hope someone can chime in!

9M71 · 07-24-2020, 01:41 AM

By hosing down, were you power washing or just a garden hose.

Going to bet it was a refinish job that failed. If you're concerned someone swapped knock off wheels, remove them and look for the BMW stamp. Or you can weigh them to gauge whether they're real forged wheels (lighter) or knock off cast wheels.

bsmf8x · 07-24-2020, 02:26 AM

Find someone with 437m rims on their f8x and compare the finish. Usually refinished are lighter.

All 4 of my wheels (437m) were refinished and I power wash it weekly and it looks fine. Got it done by a very good shop so they look 9/10 I'd say slightly lighter than OEM but still way better than what a lot of these shops do. They make it way too light.

Then, I'd figure out if they are real or fake wheels lol. If they're fake you're kinda screwed need new ones cause they'll bend and they're just shit quality.

If they're real, you can get the two wheels on the same side refinished for like 100-150$ each. Don't just do one, do both on the same side so they match and your side profile doesn't look janky/ghetto with mismatched finishes. Every shop claims they can do a perfect job but nobody can, when the light hits it a difference will be noticeable.

0% chance OEM finish would have this issue. Unless you're using some 3000 psi power washer with the zero degree tip lol.

07-24-2020, 01:22 AM	#1
amberzombie Lieutenant 61 Rep 590 Posts Drives: MG F80 ZCP Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Sydney, Australia iTrader: (0) Garage List 2007 E90 320i [0.00]	Wheel experts please chime in! So the back story is - I bought my 2015 M4 in 2018. It had one previous owner that I was aware of, and from initial inspections, the car was in immaculate condition. 2 weeks ago I was washing my car, and when I was hosing down my wheels, little bits of the finish started to flake off! Pictures below for reference. How can this happen? Is this normal due to the age of the car? Or perhaps the wheels have been refinished at some point, or worse still - I have crappy budget wheels on? hope someone can chime in! Attached Images
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07-24-2020, 01:41 AM	#2
9M71 Major 1234 Rep 1,164 Posts Drives: 2018 F80 M3 \| 6MT Join Date: Jul 2019 Location: NYC iTrader: (2)	By hosing down, were you power washing or just a garden hose. Going to bet it was a refinish job that failed. If you're concerned someone swapped knock off wheels, remove them and look for the BMW stamp. Or you can weigh them to gauge whether they're real forged wheels (lighter) or knock off cast wheels.
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07-24-2020, 02:26 AM	#3
bsmf8x Lieutenant Colonel 777 Rep 1,636 Posts Drives: F82 Join Date: Jan 2020 Location: NY iTrader: (1)	Find someone with 437m rims on their f8x and compare the finish. Usually refinished are lighter. All 4 of my wheels (437m) were refinished and I power wash it weekly and it looks fine. Got it done by a very good shop so they look 9/10 I'd say slightly lighter than OEM but still way better than what a lot of these shops do. They make it way too light. Then, I'd figure out if they are real or fake wheels lol. If they're fake you're kinda screwed need new ones cause they'll bend and they're just shit quality. If they're real, you can get the two wheels on the same side refinished for like 100-150$ each. Don't just do one, do both on the same side so they match and your side profile doesn't look janky/ghetto with mismatched finishes. Every shop claims they can do a perfect job but nobody can, when the light hits it a difference will be noticeable. 0% chance OEM finish would have this issue. Unless you're using some 3000 psi power washer with the zero degree tip lol.
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