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Alloy wheel refurb recommendation?


Will370z

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Its not a matter of being too nice (well maybe it is), im just fed up now and at least i've got the car back.

 

I'll enquire at lepsons and get them to give an estimate, if this is for 4 wheels to get the match i will put the proposal to Nissan. Either give me a brand new alloy or pay for refurbing all 4.

 

They have all but admitted they cannot deal with issue and rather than delay me any further they have agreed for me to take it wherever I want to fix it. I know that places ownership on me but at least I can now get it done properly and at my convenience and no cost

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as Nissan won't release the wheel paint codes its down to the individual wheel refurbers doing their best - some of which, as we are seeing are less than satisfactory. So I would bite the bullet and go for all 4 (or insist the dealer pays for all 4) but make sure the final finish is as close to OEM spec as possible. A pot of touch paint will then help deal with any subsequent stone chips/minor clips :shrug:

IMO its impossible for Nissan to release the paint codes. Its at least a 3 stage paint, so they can give the code for each stage, but then how much do you lay down on each application to get the light that comes through to match the other wheels? In the Nissan factory this is no doubt all done by machines. The cynical side of me say that they take the normal silver wheels and just add a bit of grey/smoke over the top though, so you might be lucky to get somewhere that can take the normal silver wheel and add smoke over it, but I doubt it would work well as it would be over the normal clear coat.

 

If the dealer wont give you a new wheel (thats what I'd push for) - get all 4 wheels done by Lepsons/S&P, they do great work and will be much better finish than the OEM Nissan ones.

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I feel pretty well qualified to comment on this subject having had my fair share of experiences with refurbs on both the siliver and dark 370 Rays.

 

As Colin has shown via his link to my earlier thread, I had all four wheels on my Black Edition repainted recently because of problems I'd had with a couple of refurbs on the dark wheels. I couldn't be happier with the outcome and the key advantage is that I now have a paint code for a prefect match if there are any mishaps in future. The main issue with the OEM wheels is, as Chris has pointed out, the multi-stage finish. Try as I might, I was not able to discover a paint code for the wheels - I don't think one exists, which means you are banking on the refurbisher to use their eye to get the best possible match. I went to a supposedly top outfit and ended up with one wheel darker than the rest :bang:

 

I am a bit surprised that it's not been possible to get a good match on the silver wheel though. Although they are also a multi-stage finish, its not as unusual a shade as the dark rays. It may be that I wasn't as much of a perfectionist as some, but I even had a few refurbs done by Wicked Wheels on the Silver and was happy with them :shrug:

 

Will - If all else fails, my advice is to get all four repainted. You then have the added reassurance of knowing that they are all the same and any accidents with the curb in future can be sorted out without all the hassle you are currently having - just keep a note of the paint code if you do! :thumbs:

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Some more info ref Wicked Wheels:-

 

Which branch did you use and when?

 

The reason I ask, is a branch I have used before now (they recently left the WW franchise) were known to use Lepsons for more specialist stuff. Since they left WW I have used them and other members on here have too it is still run and owned by the same guy so there must be a possibility that they still use Lepsons. I only found out about the Lepsons tie up very recently, indeed it was the very reason I decided to use Lepsons and they did any absolutely top class job. :thumbs: Hope this helps :) Sorry if this is repeat info info Will, couldn't remember if I had told you this or not :shrug:

 

I feel pretty well qualified to comment on this subject having had my fair share of experiences with refurbs on both the siliver and dark 370 Rays.

 

As Colin has shown via his link to my earlier thread, I had all four wheels on my Black Edition repainted recently because of problems I'd had with a couple of refurbs on the dark wheels. I couldn't be happier with the outcome and the key advantage is that I now have a paint code for a prefect match if there are any mishaps in future. The main issue with the OEM wheels is, as Chris has pointed out, the multi-stage finish. Try as I might, I was not able to discover a paint code for the wheels - I don't think one exists, which means you are banking on the refurbisher to use their eye to get the best possible match. I went to a supposedly top outfit and ended up with one wheel darker than the rest :bang:

 

I am a bit surprised that it's not been possible to get a good match on the silver wheel though. Although they are also a multi-stage finish, its not as unusual a shade as the dark rays. It may be that I wasn't as much of a perfectionist as some, but I even had a few refurbs done by Wicked Wheels on the Silver and was happy with them :shrug:

 

Will - If all else fails, my advice is to get all four repainted. You then have the added reassurance of knowing that they are all the same and any accidents with the curb in future can be sorted out without all the hassle you are currently having - just keep a note of the paint code if you do! :thumbs:

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Sorry - I meant the mobile service - just contacted them via the website and they were done outside the house in a van. I thought the finish was fine when I had the silver wheels, but I am a more fussy these days. Even if I didn't have dark wheels I probably wouldn't risk it now. There is a wicked wheels based in Guildford who do onsite work, but I can't vouch for them as I've never used them. I used SCR Audio in Ashford, Middlesex for my full repaint. They were great. They were honest and told me they couldn't guarantee a perfect match on the multi-stage finish of the dark wheels, so I decided to ask them to do a full repaint. Cost a lot more obviously, but I'm glad I did it if only to save all the hassle in future. I try to be very careful parking, but the car lives in the road so the pavements are always there...waiting........ :wacko:

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