I was pretty exhausted the other day after an exceptionally long and tiring day of work. In leaving the office late and in a bit of a hurry, I cut too close to the parking kiosk center island in my building and grazed the curb. My left rear 20" Montreal wheel did not like this and I ended up trashing the stainless steel ring (minor scuffs to the alloy, below).

One wheel repair place I called recommended just removing the ring and polishing the alloy since these wheels are extremely difficult to repair correctly. I did not want a mismatched wheel so tried calling several used wheel sources on the web. Found out these are as rare as hen's teeth and was pretty consistently informed that either I or they would need to obtain a wheel from the dealer. So I called the dealer--$1,820 OUCH!

I will be going through my insurance company but at least will be out only the $500 deductible.

I will be much more aware of curbs and potholes from here on out.


Doug

 

Too bad, but we have all been there! I won three stainless steel rings on UK eBay a few weeks ago at £89 each. I only replaced three because the fourth was 95% ok. The new ones are flatter than the OE one, but this is only noticeable by a complete car nerd like me.

The actual wheel is easier to refurbish yourself than you might imagine - I repaired a rim on my BMW 3 Series a few years ago after doing the exact same thing as you - although matching colours could be difficult.

 

I talked with a guy at a local wheel repair shop that I had used in the past. They were magicians at repairing even badly dinged and bent alloy wheels. But even he said that the BBS wheels used on the Jaguars are extremely difficult to repair correctly. They need to be disassembled to install the ring and, according to him, the silicon that is used to adhere the ring is tricky. Moreover, he has found that many of the reconditioned wheels out there do not hold air properly. By the time I obtained a new ring and paid this guy to install it (which he really did not recommend) I would have been several $hundred out of pocket anyway so I might as well go through insurance and end up with a new wheel.


Doug

 

I'm curious how the dealer can get a "new" Montreal wheel since they have been out of production quite awhile now. Maybe he has a NOS cache somewhere. BBS themselves cannot even get all the parts for the Montreal wheel, the drum supply is exhausted and they are the big part that gets damaged, other than the trim rings.

 

When I called the parts department at the local Jaguar dealer, he checked and said they could get a wheel in a few days. Ironically, that same dealership has their own aftermarket/customizing showroom down the street and it turns out that they actually have the wheel I need on display. The body shop that I am dealing with (one of Geico's express centers) says though that the showroom may not want to let the dealer have the wheel--they are negotiating for this now. The worst scenario is that the dealer will need to order but, supposedly, they already know that they can get the wheel in a matter of days.


Doug

 

Wow, sorry to hear that Doug, a real shame!

I know the type of guy you are it'll just bug the hell outta you until its fixed so I hope its soon. If you're anything like me you'll just be mad at yourself and grumpy until it's done!

 

You got that spot on! As soon as it happened I was replaying the incident over and over in my mind, even during the night and into the next day. I have been going in and out of this office building daily for the last 2+ years so there was really no excuse for my hitting the curb. If I had been just a fraction more diligent. . .


Doug

 

Must admit I am surprised at that, I have dis-assembled these wheels dozens of times without issue, I wont deny I have had the odd bolt break but to replace a ring is a max of $300 (£200 in my money)??

 

A parts guy honestly thinking they can get anything is like military intel.
You can order something from jaguar they think they can get and then it comes back to you in a day or 2 as b.o. Backordered, or no eta on delivery. Which meens uhhh, we're trying to locate a manufacturer to build this part for us right now
parts will tell you they can get anything tommorrow, and i know differantly on my end

 

Well luckily I am getting the new wheel put on this morning if all goes well. Apparently the dealership was able to get their showroom down the street to fork over the display wheel (presumably a new wheel).

As to repairing the old wheel, I might see if they let me keep it and, if so, I will store it away for a rainy day. The local wheel specialist sounded like he did not really want anything to do with trying to replace the trim ring, or maybe what he was really indicating was that the cost for him to do it right was probably as high as my deductible for getting a brand new wheel. I have heard that Coventry West will repair those wheels but, again, by the time you figure in the price of the ring, repair, shipping, etc. you are probably in the $500 range.


Doug

 

+1. I just had my BBS Sepangs taken to pieces and refurbished by a non-specialist body shop and they did a superb job with no problems.

 

Just returned from having the new rim installed. It still had a sticker on it saying "display" so I am guessing that I ended up with the last (or one of the last) brand new Montreal wheels in the world.

Now I need to decide what to do with the old wheel. Frankly, the only damage is the steel ring (very minor scuff on the alloy underneath). I can keep it in the garage for an emergency or try to sell it somewhere.


Doug

 

Can you give us a closeup of what the wheel looks like?

 

Finally got around to taking pictures of the wheel and I am (hopefully) attaching the photos. I took a hammer and small block of wood to the bent ring and did the best I could to whack it back into shape. It was bent up almost 90-degrees after the curb impact. It would probably work in a pinch but I will try and run the wheel by the wheel repair guy I spoke with who said he routinely just removes the ring and polishes the alloy underneath.


Doug

 

Sorry to hear that mishap but the images don't look as bad at least they're not beyond repairable

 

Right--the "damage" is purely cosmetic and I will look into either removing or replacing the ring when I get the chance.



Doug

 

ouch, I remember the feeling of self-loathing after I did my wheel at a fast food drive through - them make those turns SO VERY tight and narrow! But, I should have known better, thus I beat myself up over it for a week.

 

I'm getting my new trim ring installed by a local wheel shop tomorrow. I'll let you know of the results.