How do you guys get your wheels serviced without damage?

Those bead seating tanks can be fun I use them often and yeah if you dont hold on it can pop you in the face.

as for the machine no the arm comes in and contacts the rim we then use a pry bar (one that comes with the machine not just any old pry bar) to pull the bead onto the foot . There is a plastic sleave that can be used over the bar for special rims. if you look just to the right of where it says hunter on the machine you can see the pry bar. If you are refering to breaking the bead down first not just removing the tire there is a metal plate looking thing on the bottom right that uses ait pressure to break the bead down

But once you go over to the tire balancer (again 4 months old $4k) there are metal cones that center the wheel this is going to sratch the inside of the wheel there is no any way around it. A plastic cup with a rubber gasket then goes on the out side and is tightened down with a big ass wing nut (simple terms)

 

Yeah I see that tool on the machine but that's why I check out the shops I use before I do business with them and meet the owners kind of OCD I guess but that's what I expect.

The shop I use has a TC 3900(it was like $8,000 he said) brand new plus they use nylon cones on the balance machines and they make sure no metal touches the rims period. they are a small Family business here locally and have been in business for around 75 years top notch operation.

 

GOD I'm glad I'm not in the auto repair industry anymore. Its like being a DR without the pay.

 

I think it's completely acceptable to hold the shop accountable for scratching a rim. It's an expensive part of the truck and if you're on this forum more than likely you don't like scratched rims.

I almost got the Firestone lifetime alignment but they told me they would scratch my rims. Went to modica bros and ASKED NICELY (You have to be careful, one guy who owned his own local shop told me to take my truck to walmart if I was going to ask him if his equipment scratched rims... Even though I wasn't being rude or anything. Must have offended him). If they had the proper equipment and told me they used rubber heads (or rubber coated) and only touched the tire. Sure enough, I have black painted TRD FJ wheels and they had my truck aligned in 30 minutes with no scratches.

That is just for alignment but I imagine it is the same with other wheels. Firestone balanced my wheels and they used a sort of wax/lube on the edge of the rim so the demounting/mounting machine wouldn't scratch it. You could tell it would have though without the lube. Just call around and ask if they have the equipment that won't scratch.

 

The lube is to help the tire go on the rim easier has nothing to do with scratching the rim

 

Well there were swirl scuffs on the lubed rim edge that I would not have been very happy with had the lube not been there to protect. Guess I got lucky. I have a strong feeling it would have been permanent scuffs otherwise, but I could be wrong.

 

Nobody is making that big of deal, so don't be an @$$. I just paid good money a month ago for new wheels, the same shop that sold me the wheels should be able to take a wheel on/ off a truck without damaging them.

I'm no pro at removing and installing tires/ wheels. But somehow in 20 years of driving and owning vehicles, I've never damaged my own wheels, or anyone else's I've personally helped take wheels off their car.

That is why it blows my mind, the "PROS" somehow do. If my wheels already had some battle scars from off-roading, or were a year old (No big deal) but a month old is unacceptable.

 

I think you're overreacting a little. Obviously you don't mind your wheels being scratched but others do. Whether it's an offroad vehicle or not, no one likes other people damaging their property, nor are they just going to be okay with it. If you wanted a beater, a 2nd gen Tacoma is not the ideal truck. I don't see why you think every single person in this thread is wrong, and I don't see a meme being made unless you do it because everyone here seems to feel the same way about scratched property. The truck costs 20K-30K, some of us like to keep major damage off of it. I hope you don't mind getting scratches on your paint either if this wheel thing bothers you so darn much.

 

The best advice I can give is if you are that anal about your wheels go to a specialized custom tire shop. Don't go to pepboys or tire Kingdom they get paid 10 bucks an hour and simply don't care. The dealership will most likely send you to the fast lube department and again you have kids paid 10 bucks an hour. Your not going to get the $35/hr senior master tech doing your wheels.

 

Some rims can be upwards to 2k per rim scratching a rim should not be happening every time you get new tire put on, balance rotations etc. I am not buying the fact that we have the technology to face time with someone across the globe but cant have a machine that changes tires and does not scratch the rim ever time. Do things happen now and again yes I can agree with that but its not every once in a while its like every rim gets nick'd every time. Its easier to be ok with on a truck but when you got a nice sports car or something it sucks.

 

I'm doing 4 tires on a 13 edge sport tomorrow 265/40R22 would you like pictures of how I do them?

 

There are a few that get it. Generally its the guys that have done it for a living. Mostly I am think it's comical with a touch of sad and a dash of WTF. Does make me feel sorry for tire shops and their employees though.

 

I guess if it depends on if you off road your truck, use it like a truck or want to keep it clean as a pavement pounder. I don't think it would be worth the hassle by where the scratches are on a dark rim could of been caused by lug nuts spinning off when removing wheel.if it were on the face of the wheel I would go through hassle but where it is at whoever did it probably thought you wouldn't notice. I know sometimes if you bring something in nice and shiny they treat it like its nice and shiny cause they know you care about the way it looks . You bring it in dirty they treat it that way, like your not gonna notice imperfections.

 

There is no need to feel bad for tire shops and employees because it is simply not a fact that mistakes are unavoidable. The technology is there to align a tire without scratching the rim, it depends on the shop and employees. If it were truly unavoidable, it would be a disclaimer.

I used to cut grass 20 hrs/week in high school and if any service at all has the right to leave a blemish and the customer not worry about it, don't you think it would be when cutting grass? Well while it does happen sometimes, it is never out of your power to slow down enough to do it correctly. Now apply that to a vehicle and I think it's pretty acceptable to not want your wheels scratched up. Paint and metal doesn't grow back.

Even if you offroad your truck a lot, there is no reason you can't also have it be clean when you're not offroading and expect there not to be blemishes on it from a shop.

If you scratch your truck, it's one thing. If you pay someone to do a job and they scratch it, that's an issue.

As for where the scratch is, I do and don't agree with you. If a scratch is on the inside of the lug holes, who cares? You can hardly see that plus it is a very easy place to scratch even by the owner. Understandable.

However what I am talking about is face scratches of the wheel. And the darker the wheel, the more that scratch sticks out. If it's something that can be touched up I don't have a problem but if not, I look at it just like a dent.

 

Well, all I can say is Auto Nation Toyota now knows how I feel about the service on my Tacoma no matter what it is.Sad thing is I have to take it back as the SW shake and vibration is back @65 MPH WTF!! I didn't really have a chance to get it over 65 last night when bringing it home today I did back to the dealer….

I think the like doing it nice because they do it twice……

 

Go get your wheel/tire work done at a Lexus dealer. You'll pay twice as much, but they give great attention to detail. They'll go as far as making sure the center cap logo is clocked consistently with the valve stem...

Over the last four years, I've scheduled all the shop service which require the wheels to come off to be done when I happened to have winter steel wheels on.

 

Hell no I wanna see video…..

 

I'm going to go. If the center cap is not aligned with the valve stem I'm sending you the bill.

 

^No, you contact Lexus corporate and demand they massage your feet the next time you go in for service.

 

What you're talking about is not necessarily what everyone is talking about. Scratching the face of the wheel is one thing. Read the whole thread and you'll see bitching about the actual rim (as in the lip of the wheel) getting scratches and nicks from wheel weights or being mounted in the tire or alignment machine. That shits just gonna happen. Same with the area around the lugnuts. That's gonna happen. Drive the truck and be happy. Nobody cares if you have a scratch in the he edge of the wheel. Its a Toyota 4x4 not a show car