I brought the 550 in yesterday to a local tire/wheel shop where I purchased Dunlop Winter Sport M3's for the factory 18's. Dropped it off immaculate, fresh from being washed. A few hours later when I went to pick up the car I talked to the manager & asked him how the install went. He said they had some trouble getting the runflats off and that he had to help with the install but that all went ok. I paid and went to leave and thats when I noticed a few things. The wheels were now filthy. Upon further inspection 3 of the rims have substantial damage. One is extensive, down to bare metal. The manager had to know they damaged the rims, since he helped with the intall, yet they waited to see if I noticed, which pisses me off more than the damage itself. I went back in and asked him to come out and take a look at a few things. We went out together and surveyed the damage. He offered to take care of the problem monetarily, no apology though. I told him I would check into what it would cost to have the problems fixed and get back to him. To top it all off when I drove home, guess what...they need to be rebalanced too. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. I will be checking into my options tomorrow as far as repair or replacement. Just needed to vent.....

 

Sorry to hear that! I took off my RFT's with not a single tiny scratch on my rims, so it's not impossible ! Hope you'll get your money back !

 

Thanks. It's frustrating because it is a shop that I have used in the past without any problems. I somehow was able to stay calm though my blood was boiling.

 

Sorry to hear but I am left to wonder why you didn?t put the winter tires on different wheels to begin with. This is standard operating procedure for many people here for several reasons, including minimizing damage but also because most people run on narrower tires in winter.

 

The factory 18's were in need of new tires, so I decided it was the perfect time to make them my dedicated winter wheel/tire setup. Like many others on the forum it is my intention to replace them the OEM BMW 166 or 172's maybe a reputable aftermarket 19". I don't think it is too much to ask to return something in the same condition it was left but I do understand that things like this happen from time to time. The deceit is the biggest problem I have. I am glad he offered to fix it right away or I don't think I would have been able to keep my cool. By the way, I voted for you as many times as I could.

 

I always insist on watching the install of the tire on the rim. I did just that last winter. My first job was working in a service station and pumping gas. I don't know how many times I watched the mechanics struggle with low profile tires like our own then end up scratching the rim. They would then hide the damage at the command of the station owner.

If the problem was not noticed I would then secretly call the car owner to tell them where to look.

There are some real dirtbags out there. Sorry you ran into some of your own.

 

Yeah, it does seem as though they are a bit shifty. I just can't get over the "wait and see if the owner notices attitude" it's just piss poor business. I really hope the manager keeps his word about remedying the problem or you guys might read about me in the papers.

 

The rims can be repaired to new quite easily..... But I would really reco putting your winters on separate wheels to maintain your summer wheels and make the change over simple and eliminate the chance of this occurring again......sorry for your aggravation

 

Agree. You need 2 sets of wheels with 2 sets of tires (Summer and Winter). This happened to my stock 18's when one shop tried dismounting my RFT's to put on my Blizzaks. I had them fix the wheels and they look like new again, but it was still a pain to deal with. Here's another reason why I hate Run-Flat tires. They just cause anxiety and frustration.

 

This is what I am always afraid of as we are very particular about the details.....some other's might not notice and its ok to them.