Alloys

[JeffL]

Sorry if this has been covered elsewhere, couldn't find a Search facility. My GS300 (2007) alloy wheels have peeling paint and I want to have them refurbished. Can anyone recommend a good company in the Stockport area? Has anyone any experience of problems with the tyre pressure monitors when having wheels refurbed? There are some mobile operators about but doesn't the new paint need to baked on in an oven? Any comments or suggestions welcome. Thanks.

[BarneyTT]

Can't recommend anyone in your area, sorry.

I had my alloys on my GS refurbed earlier in the year and although at the time only one tyre pressure sensor broke when the refurbishers removed them it transpired later at Lexus that another was faulty. My advice would be to spray them with something like WD40 or similar before putting them in for a refurb to aid removal, chances are if they have been on there for a long time you will end up with one or more breaking.

I had Lexus Bristol replace mine, think they were around £70ish fitted.

I wouldn't advice a mobile service as they generally only refurb the front of the wheel which leaves the rear to carry on corroding.

PS: I have since painted the calipers and hubs!

[JeffL]

Thanks Barney. Lovely looking wheels!

[BarneyTT]

On 02/12/2016 at 1:15 PM, JeffL said:

Thanks Barney. Lovely looking wheels!

Thanks Jeff.

[GSLV6]

+1 to the above.

 

I had mine (2007 GS300) done last year by Glevum wheels in Gloucester who came out, removed the wheels and took them back to clean up and powder coat.  I think the cost was £340 for all four wheels and they look brand spanking new.  I have just had to change all of the TPMS valves as all had corroded and WD40 wouldn't budge them. All needed cutting and drilling.  I wonder if the use of copper-slip or similar when installing replacement valve fitting kits is advisable to prevent corrosion?  Lexus Bristol did better than my local dealership.  Mine were £380 - odd to replace 4 and that was with the labour charge waived too! (ie cost of valves plus VAT).  Trouble is, all cars now have to have them (post 2012), something else we can thank the interfering brainless bureaucrats at the EU for, because apparently, none of us "EU Citizens" can be trusted with a tyre pressure gauge any more 

[JeffL]

Hi Paul

Thanks very much for the information on your wheels and TPMS experience. I suppose that because our cars are year 2007, the TPMS, if it fails, doesn't by law have to be repaired, although it is very useful and safe when it lets us know there is a problem. Having said that, this is the first car I have had with them (been driving for 50 years). I agree about EU law and I'll be glad when Brexit has been completed.

[GSLV6]

Hi Jeff, yes, I think so, although I don't know whether it would pass MOT with warning lights showing. I used ordinary replacement valves in mine for about 5 months after having the wheels done. For some inexplicable reason, no warning lights showed when first done but one day, with family on board and heading for the Lake District on holiday about a month or two later, the warning lights all started blinking whilst we were on the motorway.  I pulled over but all tyres were ok, so the sensors only picked up the lack of transmitters on the wheels on that first long trip after the work was done.  The lights didn't go out, despite trying disconnecting the receiving sensors.  I also learned that the wheels cannot be swapped as they are coded to specific corners, so best to get them re-done properly otherwise MOT and resale could be affected.  A nuisance and an expensive one!

[JeffL]

Ah right, thanks for the extra info.    :-)

[Mike Hartland]

It is going back a while but someone here devised a solution to having no TPMS. It will be in a thread somewhere but I seem to remember that it involved putting the sensors into a pressurised box that sat in the boot. This seemed to fool the system into thinking that they were on the wheels and the warning lights did not come on.

[JeffL]

Interesting. Thanks Mike.

[AmbroseJohn]

 

[Haylands]

On 12/6/2016 at 2:36 PM, GSLV6 said:

 I wonder if the use of copper-slip or similar when installing replacement valve fitting kits is advisable to prevent corrosion? 

Copper is further down the galvanic table than aluminium and as such should not be used together, it will promote corrosion especially with some salt water around.... the same applies to brake pads in alloy calipers, there is a specific grease to be used on alloy calipers and if I were you I'd use that on the TPMS valves....

[GSLV6]

I guess something like RG2 or a HM point Alloy/Zinc grease should be ok in that case.