I leased a 2021 BMW M550i 7 months ago
I live in Chicago and the roads are full of pot holes
Last week, I realized my front right rim got busted (see pics). Don’t know how it happened.
I didn’t purchase tire and rim insurance when I leased the car (paying $2,500 extra for insurance didn’t make sense to me at that time).
My rims are 20 inch from BMW (not custom made)
I made a stupid decision and took my car to a local auto repair shop and they confidently told me they can fix it for $160. When the job was finished, I could not believe how bad of a job they did (see photos). I was not happy with the outcome at all, and they kept telling me to use sand paper and paint it to make it look better.
Below are my questions
Can this rim still be repaired if I take it to the right shop and can it be looking close to brand new? If so, how much am I looking at for such repair?
(I feel that this local shop that “fixed” my rim ended up doing more damage than repair, and I am afraid that this rim is no longer fixable as a result)
If I decide to just replace this rim with a new one through BMW, how much would it cost?
Should I just take it to the dealership and have them fix it even if I pay higher price?
Can anyone recommend me a really good shop that can help me in Chicago?
From the pics, its look like they gave you a structurally sound rim that can be driven on, but no guarantee for max rated speeds, however there is no way that rim can be used for lease termination.
At some point you will need to buy another matching rim, whether new or used in good condition for the lease termination.
Also for future reference, you could have purchased 3rd rim/tire protection for far less than the dealer.
I’ve never purchased rim protection, direct or 3rd party, but I believe you can buy that at any point, it won’t cover replacing this rim, but any future damage to other rims or if you replace this rim. I believe they will want to inspect the car rims & tires before writing a policy, but others here on LH who have 3rd party can weigh in. Good Luck.
No. Absolutely not. That has been welded on, poorly. Whatever heat treatment that wheel underwent to be strong enough to support the load it’s designed for is no longer in place. That wheel was trash before, it’s trash now, and it should go in a metal recycling dumpster where it belongs.
In your opinion, is it dangerous for me to keep driving with that current rim condition? I won’t get a day off for another 2 weeks or so and I drive this car about 30 miles every day
I can’t say it’s a great idea to drive that much further than the distance from where it’s parked today to a tire shop or dealership. I certainly wouldn’t drive it 500 miles. That entire area of the wheel is substantially softer and weaker than it used to be, due to the heat from the welding. Even high-temp PC (400deg) can alter the heat treat on a wheel - aluminum welding is much hotter than that.
Rim repair is great for curb damage. The moment you crack a chunk out of the wheel, it’s trash. Sorry.
Once a rim is cracked and repaired, its structural integrity is questionable at best . Try to find a used one for your own safety. It will fail lease return inspection anyways .
It is what it is… for your peace of mind, get a replacement rim ASAP (don’t wait). Just be ready for the worst pricing… you may not have many sourcing options for these new ‘21 rims, and you may just have to bite the bullet and order it from the dealer (who will likely have to have it shipped from Germany?). Or try a bmw forum like bimmerpost… maybe someone’s looking to get rid of the stock rims. GLWT, let us know how it goes
Out of curiosity, was it still holding air with the crack? If so, then I think a repair was possible. BUT, to make it look good would probably cost more in labor than just buying a replacement. Also, if it was holding air, the current repair is fine to drive on temporarily, IMHO. But, DAMN! They let their kid practice welding on that, it appears. That is atrocious. I can’t believe anybody with an ounce of pride in their work would turn that over to a customer.
I paid $100 a rim to recondition my badly curbed BMW rims. Machined finish to the one you posted. You can see how it comes out reconditioned from a good shop 100-150 and maybe avoid buying a whole new rim.
