So last week a local shop (Duxler in Evanston) mounted my new tires on '05 sedan sport rims. I even made a note warning them not to strip the paint on the lug nut holes. So of course when I picked it up half of them were stripped down to the black. One rim also had a 5" long section by the rim that was down to metal. They said they would make it right and they had a paint guy stop over before I left. He was going to fix it so I would not even notice.

Today was the day. Before I even go in I check it out. He painted the wheels. It is obvious from the paint on the rotor surface that the loser did not remove the wheels. So besides contaminating the pads, "how can one paint the lug holes without removing them?" You can see the paint lines in the lug holes where he masked them. The front of the spokes are glossy and the sides satin/dull. Obviously he did not spray on any angle but straight on so the spoke sides only got overspray. They originally moved around and marred 5 wheels (I have a sport spare as well). But did not paint it! So when you put them next to each other they dont match. The service rep told me the "tiny amount of paint on the brakes is no big deal, and he thought the wheels looked great etc... they spent $200.... what do I want from them.... they are super busy..
In the end I told him I would have to call back and he said I could come back later and this time they would take them off to paint (like the paint guy said he would). Sucks. Tires are from Tire Rack. Before and after pics.

 

That blows. My wheels have taken a beating from oversized impact sockets as well. One of them is real bad. You'd think these morons would have gotten accustomed to the idea of high-quality wheels these days.

I'll probably just touch mine up myself... unless he buys me new wheels, I figure why bother having a butcher try to make good on something that resulted from his own negligence?

 

Sorry to see this happen to someone again. Happened to me too a while back.

I suggest you get an inexpensive set of tuner lugs and buy an extra key. Keep one at home and one in the car.

This way they have to use the key and not the oversized socket.

Good luck...hope it all works out.

 

Even with lug keys these guys can be brutal on the sockets, it is enough to make you want to sit there and take the lugs off yourself, or swap on your stock rims/tires before taking the car in. Or it might be enough to keep me from buying aftermarket rims in the future.

I don't know I always get over the modding bug after "finishing" and looking at all the money spent and watching the resale value diminish severly over time. Hopefully my next car will be in the $45K+ range (Acura RL maybe?) and I won't feel the need to mod as much, although wheels are usually the first mod I make. OH THE QUANDRY

 

^I typically take the rims in only because of this very reason. Put the stockers on and take the aftermarkets in alone.

 

I feel your pain. The dealer scuffed my rims. Due to my not knowing better, I accepted their offer to have them refinished. Man! What a 1 month nightmare. The first time, they came back finished, but the inside was all scratched up (more like curb rash on the inside) and painted black. They sent it back. The second time, they painted the inside grey/silver, but there was now a small scratch on the front and the inside was still scuffed. They sent it off a third time. By then, it had been about 3 weeks. The dealer and I split the cost for a new wheel. I had had enough of "hoping" for a "like-new" wheel. Infiniti consumer affairs said that they had their hands tied behind their back - they can only intervene on warranty issues. This was a "dealer issue". So, I was at their mercy - so I bit the bullet and lost $$$ to get a new wheel. They did put effort to refinish it and I think the average person would have been happy with the refinished wheel. But I put so much effort and detail into my car, it was driving me nuts to know that wheel was like that. I had the option of taking the refinished wheel or lose money and get a new wheel. I lost

That's the last time I send a wheel to get refinished! I'll stay with the scuffs next time.

 

The truth is it is sometimes not worth the fight. You've got to put a price on your time and aggravation level. As crappy as it sounds, it is sometimes easier and most effective to simply walk away and never go back.

I once freaked out on a dealer when they ran my (then new) '84 GTI through an old brush-style car wash as a "courtesy" during a major service. It took me a month of waxes to get the swirls out!

 

Whoa, I would be so ****in' pissed if those were my wheels