Really bent wheel or a repair rip off?
 

This is my first thread because I had an accident in on snow and my frs hit the curb at 20-25 mph sideways.

When I took the car to the dealer, they told me this wheel is bent and charge ~$400 for replacement(and more for other mechanical parts including lower control arm).

I can see it tilting if I look from above, but i think it's more likely to be the problem with the suspension - it's getting replace any way. If it's indeed bent, I guess i'll need to see an eye doctor.

Can you tell if I should accept the dealer's suggestion?(I do have full insurance) Shall I order a rim from ebay and supply to the dealer(hoping to cut some premium increase)

Thanks!

Update:

you could buy a whole set of wheels with tires and tpms on the forums for that much lol

Looks a little tilt. There are people on the fourms selling whole set of rims and tires all 4 for cheap if you look in the classified section. Looks like you might of bent some arm in the suspension. You need an alignment too after its fixed.

Can you point me to which corner to look at for the tilt? I don't really see it anywhere in the image.

Yeah I know. But the fact is how much of the saving I can get(not geico can get). I don't know how bad it is if I live with it - probably not a very good thing.

Tons of people sell their factory wheels and tires for super cheap here. Just look in the members classifieds section and PM some people. Seriously, $400 can land you a set of all 4 wheels and tires. lol

Here's the easiest way to test. Assuming u don't have camber wear, unbolt the wheel and roll it along a flat surface, if it doesn't go straight or seems to wobble part way through its rotations. It's bent. Or u can leave it on, jack up the car look down at the side of the rim from the fender and rotate it by hand several rotations. If its bent at some point it will look like it wobbles. It can be very subtle or obvious depending in te bend.

Sorry to hear of your misfortune. One of the lessons to learn (of a number) is to avoid sliding your car around in a city any where near curbs. Because just slapping a curb sideways at a walking pace can do a lot of expensive damage.

Whenever I'm horsing my car around in slippery conditions, I'll do it only where there's a lot of real estate out to the side like in big 3-4 lane intersections so that if I lose it my car will slide to a complete stop before contacting anything. Oh, and I only do things like that when NO ONE else is around, like in the wee hours. Anyway, you want to avoid this in the future, right?

That sounds about right; cheap if anything. You should be able to find online pricing for a single OEM wheel. Typically, they're $400-$600 each.

They're so expensive when bought that way, that you may wish instead to look at Tire Rack, for example, and buy a set of new wheels for not a lot more.

The odds are that one or more suspension components ARE BENT. It would be surprising to learn nothing was bent. They're not designed for that kind of impact stress.

I cannot say what you should do, but it appears that your dealer's estimate is reasonable given what happened. I've seen guys slap the rear end of their S2000 into a city curb, sliding sideways in the wet at city speeds, and it cost $8000 to repair all the damage. I expect they hit a bit harder than you did, but still...

Take it to a trusted independent repair shop with an alignment rack. Chances are if you hit a curb that fast just a wheel is not going to repair the issue. I'm willing to bet bet lower control arm, maybe a tweaked knuckle or Strut and a wheel will be in your near future.

People stop driving on summer tires in the snow. It is NOT safe.

Ask the dealer to prove to you that the wheel is bent/damaged. If they were able to determine that the wheel was bent based on a visual inspection then they should be able to show it to you. If they claim that the damage wouldn't be visible ask them to put the wheel on a balance machine. A low mileage wheel/tire combo should still be in balance. If the wheel balances taken straight off the car it should be fine.

Hello joshix and welcome to our forum ..... http://www.runemasterstudios.com/gra...mages/wave.gif

So, you whacked your car against a curb .... nasty break....:cry:

In addition to a bent rim and lower control arm, have them check the strut and wheel bearings for damage.

Since your insurance is paying, I'd suggest you just go with a new rim. A few 100 dollars difference isn't going to make a significant difference in your premium and it will be less of a hassle.

Did you learn a lesson when you whacked the curb ... ??

I whacked a curb last year, during a snow storm, driving my wife's Saturn. Yep, my lesson learned was that all the nanny systems in the world can't always save you from ..... stupid driving!

Yep, new lower control arm, front strut, front & rear wheel bearings & rim.

That won't happen any more ...... she won't let me drive her car anymore .... :(

I hope you get er fixed and rolling again soon!


humfrz

I didn't mean to drift the car in snow. It was a complete accident.

You're mostly right. Total fix is 3.3k.