Hi guys has anyone else had issues with their alloy wheels and the quality of the finish. My car is 2015 500S and still within warranty and I’m considering keeping the car and noticed today that the alloy wheels all four of them are degrading around the central hub 500 caps. It’s not the plastic caps but the actual alloy itself I can only describe as sort of chipping away/peeling/pitted alloy.
I’ve never had these wheels off other than the dealership for servicing so I would say it’s a defect. Has anyone else had these issues and before I call dealership does anyone know if covered under warranty thanks.

Dean500 said:

Hi guys has anyone else had issues with their alloy wheels and the quality of the finish. My car is 2015 500S and still within warranty and I’m considering keeping the car and noticed today that the alloy wheels all four of them are degrading around the central hub 500 caps. It’s not the plastic caps but the actual alloy itself I can only describe as sort of chipping away/peeling/pitted alloy.
I’ve never had these wheels off other than the dealership for servicing so I would say it’s a defect. Has anyone else had these issues and before I call dealership does anyone know if covered under warranty thanks.

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I can't tell from the photos; are these laquered diamond cut wheels? This looks to me like water (aided by winter salt) has penetrated the lacquer and corroded the alloy underneath.

Not often reported on 500's, but extremely common on diamond cut alloys of all marques when used through the UK winter climate. A friend had this on a Merc CLK despite garaging the car and meticulously detailing the wheels with all the right products. She had one complete set replaced under warranty, and 50% off a second set (which also failed the same way), and was then told this would be the last. Each set failed after about three years.

The number of specialist wheel refurbishment businesses which have sprung up over the past few years is testament to how durable these sort of wheels aren't.

It's at least worth trying to get another set under warranty; it's clearly corrosion damage and not kerbing, but Fiat may simply say you didn't wash it often enough and/or with the right products. They can be recut & relacquered, but this won't be cheap - expect to pay at least £100 per wheel. An alternative is to have them stripped & powder coated, which will give a more durable finish. Both these options will require an alloy wheel refurbishment specialist.

They probably won't polish out satisfactorily (unless you're going for a full chemical strip and multistage ceramic polishing + relacquering, which will cost even more).

A new OEM set (hopefully with a generous contribution from Fiat) would be my preferred option, and probably not much more expensive than professional refinishing, but you'll need to take very good care of them or the same thing will happen again.

If you do get another set, consider also buying a set of steel wheels for the winter months; it'll also be a great excuse to invest in a set of winter tyres.

jrkitching said:

I can't tell from the photos; are these laquered diamond cut wheels? This looks to me like water (aided by winter salt) has penetrated the lacquer and corroded the alloy underneath.

Not often reported on 500's, but extremely common on diamond cut alloys of all marques when used through the UK winter climate. A friend had this on a Merc CLK despite garaging the car and meticulously detailing the wheels with all the right products. She had one complete set replaced under warranty, and 50% off a second set (which also failed the same way), and was then told this would be the last. Each set failed after about three years.

It's at least worth trying to get another set under warranty; it's clearly corrosion damage and not kerbing, but Fiat may simply say you didn't wash it often enough and/or with the right products. They can be recut & relacquered, but this won't be cheap. An alternative is to have them stripped & powder coated, which will give a more durable finish. Both options will require an alloy wheel refurbishment specialist.

They probably won't polish out satisfactorily.

If you do get another set, consider also buying a set of steel wheels for the winter months; it'll also be a great excuse to invest in a set of winter tyres.

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Thanks I believe they are diamond cut but not sure about the lacquering, thanks for the detailed reply it gives me some hope with the dealer for warranty work

Dean500 said:

Thanks I believe they are diamond cut but not sure about the lacquering, thanks for the detailed reply it gives me some hope with the dealer for warranty work

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They certainly look like diamond cut wheels; if they are, they'll definitely be lacquered, but getting lacquer to stick to aluminium is like trying to stick s**t to rabbit fur. Non lacquered polished/cut alloys can look stunning but are strictly for show cars kept in dehumidified garages.

Persevere with the warranty claim; IMO they should last at least a bit longer than this before failing in this way, and it's certainly down to Fiat to produce a car that's cosmetically durable for the market it's sold into. It's particularly galling when it happens after you've taken such great care not to pick up any kerbing damage.

Good luck with your claim, and I'll keep my fingers (and toes) crossed for you.

jrkitching said:

They certainly look like diamond cut wheels; if they are, they'll definitely be lacquered, but getting lacquer to stick to aluminium is like trying to stick s**t to rabbit fur. Non lacquered polished/cut alloys can look stunning but are strictly for show cars kept in dehumidified garages.

Persevere with the warranty claim; IMO they should last at least a bit longer than this before failing in this way, and it's certainly down to Fiat to produce a car that's cosmetically durable for the market it's sold into. It's particularly galling when it happens after you've taken such great care not to pick up any kerbing damage.

Good luck with your claim, and I'll keep my fingers (and toes) crossed for you.

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Thanks guys I will get it booked in tomorrow and feedback [emoji106]

Have the wheels blasted, and powdercoated, and forget about them ( even in salty winters...).

Peter Pick-Up said:

Have the wheels blasted, and powdercoated, and forget about them ( even in salty winters...).

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Powdercoated finishes are much more durable, and also easier to repair if damaged.

Personally I wouldn't choose diamond cut wheels on any car I planned using every day. That said, when pristine, diamond cut wheels do have the edge when it comes to appearance; it's the effort needed to keep them looking that way that puts me off.

The punto diamond cut wheels.. SPIDER WEBS ..damp under the lacquer..

Had all 4 changed under warranty..
2 different garages.

The replacements have fared no better.

Hardly surprising as they are identical.

Dean500 said:

Hi guys has anyone else had issues with their alloy wheels and the quality of the finish. My car is 2015 500S and still within warranty ..........

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Can't comment on Fiat's policy.

We bought a brand new Renault Clio some years back, and the alloy wheels weren't warrantied the same as the rest of the car. Can't remember the the specific rules, but a year of warranty for the alloys was about it. Could have been less.

The rest of the car had a full three year warranty .......... but not the alloys at all.

Mick.

Hi
Because the inner edge is NOT lacquered that's where the water penetrates I would suggest a smear of silicon grease or Vaseline
I have had a set of Stillo Abarth blades on my Fiorino van and since the refurb they still look like new using this method and also adds removal as the grease stops the wheel sticking to the hub
LUIGI

Mick F said:

Can't comment on Fiat's policy.

We bought a brand new Renault Clio some years back, and the alloy wheels weren't warrantied the same as the rest of the car. Can't remember the the specific rules, but a year of warranty for the alloys was about it. Could have been less.

The rest of the car had a full three year warranty .......... but not the alloys at all.

Mick.

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I want to like the post but dislike Renault's attitude, but we don't have a button for that!

Let's all hope Fiat will do the right thing. C'mon Fiat CS, show us you've got a better warranty policy than Renault!

I had a similar issue with the same wheels.
I managed to contact Fiat just before the warranty expired.
I contacted Fiat Customer Services and found them fantastic to deal with. My problem was the Dealers I chose to go to!
They took ages to sort things out, it took 2 different Aftersales Managers (one left!).
One conversation with an English speaking Italian lady, even involved sharp suited gentlemen, & horses heads, as suggestion to motivate said dealership.
Good job she had a sense of humour!?
I finally had them painted months later. Mine too, were diamond cut, but had them painted silver.



Only for my wife to scuff one a month later

All manufacturers seem to have an issue with diamond cut wheels corroding. I hear BMW changed 20000 last year under warranty! I work for a main dealer and we do at least a set a week, always the diamond cut type.

Hi guys thanks for all the replies, I took the car in to be assessed and they said they’d have to take photos and await a reply from fiat warranty. Once they heard back if they did honour the claim then I would have to book the car in and leave it a week with them and they’d remove the wheel and send them off to be skimmed, wouldn’t consider new wheels. The also advised two of the wheels had two small kerb rash nowhere near this central hub damage and they’d just work around this. It’s would take a couple of weeks to have a courtesy car available for a week period. With all that in mind I have declined to continue due to time, I’ve decided to hand the car back due to neg equity. So I’m having the kerb rash repaired that I have done to two of the wheels and hoping this around the centre will go as wear and tear as I can’t have damaged it with kerbs.

Dean500 said:

I’ve decided to hand the car back due to neg equity. So I’m having the kerb rash repaired that I have done to two of the wheels and hoping this around the centre will go as wear and tear as I can’t have damaged it with kerbs.

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I'll keep all my fingers crossed for you.

Please do come back and tell us how you get on when you hand back the car; it may help others returning a car with a similar issue.

I've owned two cars from new of which both cars had all four wheels replaced under warranty because of premature bubbling, a Mazda MX5 and our current i10. I complained about the i10's wheels because bizarrely, the vehicle was supplied with alloy wheels that had been balanced with hammered on weights on the outside of the rims. The wheels are diamond cut. I even mentioned to our Hyundai dealership how ridiculous I thought it was that anyone would hammer weights onto diamond cut alloy wheels instead of using stick on weights. They agreed and the car was duly returned with the wheels correctly balanced with stick on weights.

My advice is, if you buy your car from new and are having it serviced by a franchised dealership and the wheels prematurely start corroding or bubbling, don't take any carp, insist on replacements whilst under warranty.

There's a serious lacquer peeling issue with the new Mazda 6 almost all fail within the warranty period.

About time they stopped selling diamond cut wheel's in the UK they should all be painted in our climate

Washing a pair of my Punto diamond cut wheels.. I notice no mention of Italy..or any EU marking.. but I did see CHINA.

And Datestamps from early 2012. Bet these were on ALL of the 2012/13/14 twinairs

You can imagine they are producing MANY manufacturers wheels in month.long runs.

All with the same shortlived finish.

As a side note:
I battled to assembled a chinese made steel tube structure.. so much PAINT..it needed force to start assembly.
Then realised the innards were still red.rusty.

No doubt scabby tube was formed and painted...but only the outside got this..