Opinions on wheel damage (With Poll)

[JohnnyMac]

Hello All,
I know as soon as I ask for opinions, chit's gonna get real but Imma gonna do it. I'll try to keep this short....

Bought these via CO. I went against my better judgement as I wanted to support a small business so went a bit off brand. Started off bad by them sending me different wheels than pictured. Told me I got the right wheels but the manufacturer provided them with the wrong picture. Claimed "not our fault". OK, so negotiated a $75 refund and extra year of finish warranty if I keep them. I did. Within 6 months the wheels started pitting and now (1 year later) the chrome is bubbling in spots. I have just over 4000 miles on the wheels. After waiting a month for a reply and then going back and forth for another month, CO states they are bound by the manufacturer's (Xtreme Mudder) decision and XM has decided that the pitting/bubbling is due to my lack of maintenance. I stopped by a local wheel shop and they were surprised that the wheels aren't being covered. Good thing they gave me that extra year of finish warranty. I reached out directly to XM wheels but got zero response.

I wash the truck pretty much weekly with warm soap/water (including the wheels). Never used any chemicals on the wheels. My area doesn't use any salt or chemicals on the roads nor acid rain. All four wheels are showing the pits/bubbles. My chrome bumpers, door handles, mirrors and trim all have been cared for in the same way and show no pitting. Since I noticed the pitting, I used some chrome polish to remove the leaching and get a better look.

My take is the chrome was either applied too thin, or the wasn't applied correctly and should be covered by warranty. What say you? Thanks for reading this far.....


Wheels shown online didn't have the faux rivets.

This a after polishing and you can see that the entire wheel has tiny pits starting on the horizontals.


This Pic is pre chrome polish and shows the metal under the chrome leaching through.

This pic is a close up showing bubbles and where the chrome has lifted and flaked off.

This pic shows after I polished it. Note in the lower left where I hadn't polished it yet.

Another example of prior to polishing.

 

[buddy guy]

Only thing I know for sure is I'll never buy XM wheels! Nice of everyone to stand behind their product...not. I don't think you have any recourse except to **** them on social media..factually. and see if you can shame them into doing more. Seems to be most effective these days.

My westin step bars didnt make it a yr before rusting. No response from westin to the issue. So never again..and congrats, enjoy the bad review.

Sent from my SM-N960W using Tapatalk

 

[MADDOG]

I see cheap wheels, you described a dodgy seller, and it appears you have an incompetent manufacturer.

All you got is your warranty and if they disclaim that due to poor maintenance I would argue that they have no idea how you cared for your wheels so how could they claim that? They weren't there when you washed them every time.

But, at the end of the day you may be SOL.

Good luck.

 

[JohnnyMac]

..

 

[MADDOG]

Threads merged.

 

[ADUBIS]

30 years ago or so I had a run in with a dealer that refused to stand behind a warranty issue. I told them if they did not make it right, I would pull my pants down and walk around telling other customers how they dishonest they were. They called my bluff. Good thing I was wearing my tighty whities that day. Needless to say my pants didn’t make it very far down before they realized I wasn’t joking and they stepped up and fixed the problem.
Can’t say this will get you anything other than possibly an arrest record so try at your own risk

 

[JB1]

It's a shame that Custom Offsets didnt fix the wrong wheels initially, but even worse that they wont help you resolve this warranty claim. They seem cool with all their videos and gallery pics but I would never ever buy anything from them.

Unfortunately I think your screwed, I would use this as a lesson learned and from now on find the best price online, then go locally and get a price match.

 

[JohnnyMac]

It's a shame that Custom Offsets didnt fix the wrong wheels initially, but even worse that they wont help you resolve this warranty claim. They seem cool with all their videos and gallery pics but I would never ever buy anything from them.

Unfortunately I think your screwed, I would use this as a lesson learned and from now on find the best price online, then go locally and get a price match.

Agree 100% JB. And rest assured I will not do business with these guys anymore. I would also suggest to everyone else to steer away from them. If you run into any issues, the customer service is pretty poor.

Great advice about getting an online quote and buying local. My daughter has a little business locally so I normally try to buy local. Not sure what swayed me to deviate this time, but lesson learned.

On another note, anyone have suggestions on painting/coloring these. I sprayed plastidip on a set of wheels on my RX8 a few years ago and it seemed to do pretty good. I really considered going black to start with, but figured since I had chrome bumpers I'd try to coordinate a little.

Also, stay away from XM wheels. At least the XM304's. El cheapo's.....

 

[JB1]

How do they look from 10ft away?.....you could just run them as-is until you save for other new ones or find a good used set.

 

[oe542bob]

JohnnyMac, thanks for this. Sorry about your wheels, that sucks.
I was just about ready to use CO, but I certainly won’t now.

 

[JohnnyMac]

How do they look from 10ft away?.....you could just run them as-is until you save for other new ones or find a good used set.

They're not bad 10 footers. If I polish them up you have to look twice. Just sucks they are barely a year old and only had them on for a little over 4k miles.

 

[JohnnyMac]

JohnnyMac, thanks for this. Sorry about your wheels, that sucks.
I was just about ready to use CO, but I certainly won’t now.

Yeah for sure. I'm guessing some folks have done OK with them, but I would do what @JB1 said and price them out there then go local for a match.

 

[ADUBIS]

I’m all for saving a dollar but if my customers buy a part online cheaper than I can sell it then kudos to them. I won’t install it and the website they got the part from probably won’t install it either.

I’m no hypocrite. I will buy online if I find an item that I want if it can’t be purchased in a local brick and mortar store, and I am capable of installing on my own. I am also willing to deal with any issues that arise if something goes wrong.

 

[Sandevino]

30 years ago or so I had a run in with a dealer that refused to stand behind a warranty issue. I told them if they did not make it right, I would pull my pants down and walk around telling other customers how they dishonest they were. They called my bluff. Good thing I was wearing my tighty whities that day. Needless to say my pants didn’t make it very far down before they realized I wasn’t joking and they stepped up and fixed the problem.
Can’t say this will get you anything other than possibly an arrest record so try at your own risk

That was you...??

 

[tron67j]

On an older vehicle I used to use 0000 steel wool and a polishing compound, it made everything look better but there is no way to permanently fix other than removing all the finish and replating. If you are not getting any results from warranty then there is not much to do except keep them looking good until they are no longer good enough to keep and you buy new. The problems come from underneath but can be exacerbated by brake dust and all the road grime the sticks to them, even the water pooling in them when parked. Not a viable option but washing and drying before parking for the night would at least slow the continued deterioration of the wheels. Good luck.

 

[tron67j]

I’m all for saving a dollar but if my customers buy a part online cheaper than I can sell it then kudos to them. I won’t install it and the website they got the part from probably won’t install it either.

I’m no hypocrite. I will buy online if I find an item that I want if it can’t be purchased in a local brick and mortar store, and I am capable of installing on my own. I am also willing to deal with any issues that arise if something goes wrong.

I agree with this, I also buy stuff online and when I do I try to support a business that I at least have some time to. Like buying from vendors here. It helps them continue to support our forum and if I have a problem I am sure they will work with me to make it right. Some things I just don't see online as an option because I want to have the ability to stand face to face with them if something arises. I may pay more for local but these people are supporting the community and in the end some of that comes back as sponsorship of a kids team, taxes, etc. I owned a small business for years and knew most of my customers by name since they were repeat customers, and I saw them at parades, in the store, etc.