The shop who mounted the tires on my SVTF screwed up my wheels. The good news is they fessed up to the damage and want to take care of it. The bad news is they want to repair the damages, not refinish or replace the wheels.

The damage isn't horrible to the average person, to for an anal retentive enthusiast such as myself the car looks horrid. It isn't as if they bent a rim or anything. They did, however, scratch/chip every single one of my wheels during the tire mounting. These scratches/chips are down to the aluminum. The finish of my wheels is a metallic dark argent color (not a plain silver), so they stick out like a sore thumb.

My issue here is they want to pay to repair the chips using their mobile wheel repair company (or another similar company of my choosing). So basically the tech comes out, slaps on some touch up paint, and calls it a day.

Tell me if I am wrong, but a paint touch up on a factory powdercoated wheel is going to:
a. probably not match the color factory powdercoat
b. probably look almost as bad as a chip itself
c. probably not have the same longevity as the factory coating (i.e. will fade at a different rate, not hold up to the elements, etc)

I'm obviously a bit pissed off at this idea. This car is only 1 of 101 vermillion red 3-door SVTF with the European wheel option. Not like this was going to be a car selling in the six-figures 20-years from now, but hell, I intend on keeping the car for quite a while and would like it not to look like a shitbox due to no fault of my own.

So I'm curious if anyone here has had this sort of service done to their vehicle. If so, who would you recommend? I want to get about two estimates to get the work done....and I think the work that needs to be done is a complete refinishing of each wheel. Names and phone numbers would be greatly appreciated.

Couple pictures:

 

Wow that would REALLY piss me off. Good luck with whatever you choose, I would make them replace them though if the repair turns out to be shitty.

 

Pissed doesn't even begin to describe how I feel about my car and the way the shop "management" has acted. The part that really pisses me off is regardless of replacement or repair is I'll have to put up with this damn shop for the road hazzard deal (if I ever get a flat :knock on wood: ). I'd almost rather take the money they give me and set it aside to repair/replace the wheels when my road hazzard runs out just so I don't have to risk this shop f-ing up my wheels again!

 

TransWheel (do a Google) up on 41. I personally would accept no less than these guys (and they are the best, at least as far as local goes.)

Had 2 of my wheels redone there.. fixed a bad crack in one and refinished the other, they came out PERFECT, and are still going strong 8k miles later.

 

Awesome! I'll give them a ring tomorrow. Know of any comparable places to TransWheel? I'll need to get a couple estimates from different places. I was thinking about ProCoat (had great work done by them in the past), however they are technically not a wheel repair shop and they may reject their estimate.

 

http://www.transwheeltirecenter.com/
sucks to hear about that man, i hate that, they should treat our cars like theirs

do you think transwheel would fix mine, my grandpa tipped them over and they spun on the rim, so the black paint or coat is off, they'd fix it right?

 

Transwheel is good. Let them know you were referred by TampaRacing and TampaVeeDubs to get a discount.

 

Got the estimates today. Both are complete restoration w/powdercoat:

Glenn's Wheel Polishing - $150/wheel including mounting & balancing. 2-3 day turnaround.

Transwheel - $155/wheel PLUS $15/wheel for mounting & balancing. 5-7 day turnaround.



I also found out today that this mobile repair place that they want me to use is the same service most used car lots use to repair damaged wheels. It is basically a band-aid fix by just touching up the wheels w/paint. That would be great if I were selling my car tomorrow, however this shit won't cut it in the long run.

So a complete refinish, per Glenn, is the only way to truely guarantee the longevity of the repairs. Hopefully this shop's insurance carrier will feel the same way.

 

For those prices, you can get new wheels. Suggested price on 2003 Dark Argent SVT European Appearance Package wheels (PN: M-1007-S177E) from the 06 Ford Racing catalog is $120.

Gene Evans Ford in Union City, GA has the best prices on wheels around. (I got my 95 cobra R's from them for 150 each (25 under msrp). 866-520-7893

Or call Scott. I'm sure he'll hook you up too.