Leburpor

What could cause an impact damage to the inside edge of the rim without damaging other parts of the car? I'm struggling to imagine a scenario for this as I've never come across one. ?

Biff Trout

Going off the road surface with your wheel and then hitting something on your way back onto the road surface. The inside edge of the wheel would be doing the hitting.

nicke60gre

My mechanics studies and technical knowledge-experience, drives me to arrive at the following conclusion.

I'm sure that this is the result of the rotated force difference between the inner and the outer edge of the rim. The inner is the most pressured edge. All this big inner lip have to hold the car's weight and if you add the camber angle additional force with the extra pressure of the Runflat stiffness at the same time, all that forces together have the tendency to overwork and stress the point where the spokes are holding the big inner lip. So, when a pothole, or any big pressure occures at the inner side of the rim the overloaded thin inner lip point near the spokes, where the maximum resistance appears, is forced to break.

So, it's a bad rims design, in connection with the Runflat stiffness inattented estimation.
Perhaps Dunlop RFTs are extremely stiff and thus, dangerous for our lives.

This is the reason why I'm asking if anyone with Bridgestones, or any other RFTs, have ever had a similar incident.

BTW.. Olus, where are you from?
Do you live in Greece?

Freewilly

I am really worry about the qulity of BMW rims.

ICEMAN 316

That's crazy the second link the rims just cracked apart

nicke60gre

I am sure that BMW have been informed about that problem, but think about the cost to recall & replace all the 138 and 124 style rims and/or tires all over the world. 138 is the most usual rim style everywhere (except Greece) 134 - 115 is the most usual here (16" without RFTs), much less style 138 -17" RFT, some style 124-18" RFT, and some style 135-18" on Msport pack equipped E60s.

BTW, this is a "must have" web page about rims, tires, alignments, etc.

http://www.chris-longhurst.com/carbi...yre_bible.html

I've posted it once in the past, but now again, I think I have to repost it FYI (Really useful technical informations)

Nick

olus

@all
Thank you very much for your replies and your wishes for my family.

@530i_msport : I will upload pictures of my car on a later stage. Actually I found this forum just yesterday.

@The Hollies : 5.700 Km only, mostly within residential areas (Athens). I am waiting BMW's response on this.

@nicke60gre: I live in Athens. Please send me a personal message. I need to discuss this issue with you, since I am going to sue them for sure.

@Biff Trout: I never said that this damage caused by an act of God. I have mentioned in my email that an impact caused this damage. But try to imagine an impact at the speed of 60 kmh, not on a pothole, or rock or anything. Just a small slide of the road and then this.

Anyway thank you very much all for your replies and your sympathy.

I will revert to you as soon as I have a response from BMW.

Olus

PS: nicke60gre: send me a PM . Thanks

Robbo

On my OEM 138's it says "China" on the inside...
I hope the quality is as good as European made rims!

/R

gatemaster

Glad you & family are safe.

Bad (read as: marginal) rim design. Obviously this rim (and 124's) fails under high load impacts. Other rims don't. RFT may contribute but IMO it's in the noise. BMW is probably smart enough to design a rim that works, but does not have the capability that other design have. I doubt BMW will ever address this formally. I'm not an expert but trying to look at this from a realistic point of view.

-mike

nicke60gre

I went this afternoon at the cellar where my old style 138 are stored, to see the inside details.
They are manufactured in Austria by AAG company. I have never had any problems, (with Potenzas RFT) until the time I've replaced them with my new M style 167 rims.