whalebird

WD could offer up a replacement wheel...NEW, and possibly save face. But 2/3 discount is too little to late. That's enough to be an admission of guilt, and not enough to satisfy a very spooked customer. Damage control is expensive.
Unfortunately, this subject is being debated in every sports car forum on the net. The buyer should have pressed the seller, and WD especially, for a solution before hitting the web. Every step of this sordid mess is has been a poor gamble with foreseeable consequences - mainly bodily harm.
Would you weld a broken control arm? coil/torsion spring? Brake rotor? I just can't imagine that there is any cost benefit analysis that would warrant an attempted repair. Even the time involved in such a repair would pay for a new wheel. Even an insurance company totals your car at 50% market value...which may be the hidden-agenda at the opposite end of this scheme.

pettybird

The worst part isn't that they took a damaged wheel and fixed it. The worst part is that they tried to fix it a second time after it failed the first. As a "reputable and knowledgeable" wheel dealer they should have known better. I would be surprised if legal action wouldn't stick. To claim to be a member of the Porsche community for 10 years and have hundreds of satisfied customers means that they knew better. They sold Joe a product which, based on their admitted experience, they knew should not have been sold. It's the KNOWLEDGE of their negligence which is a sticking in my head.

whalebird

Hell, Exxon has been serving the Porsche community for decades. So has Walmart, Serving the community and product knowledge are light years apart.
I'm not inclined to solve my problems with a lawyer, legal ground or not. A judgement would be for damages incured...which in this case is a busted wheel.
Being in business charges one with the responsibility to serve their market as well as they can. Wheels/tires carry tremendous liability; the smart thing to do is avoid these foreseeable problems, period.
Any legal and ethical merit this dude had is gone because of the interweb broadcast. That's pretty dumb too.

944Ross

I'm not clear, are you saying WD has no merit, or the OP?

azbanks

They've lost any future business I would have given them. I doubt I am the only one who will not think of doing business with them in the future.

the term penny wise, dollar foolish comes to mind here. How much money did they save on this and how much future business did they loose?

2BWise

Got lucky too. I've seen wheels, two separate occasions, do that on the racetrack and fail catastrophically a lap later. The buyer is lucky that the wheel stayed in one piece.

944V8inDFW

I think that mostly applies to the seller of the wheels that had them repaired in the first place.

Who in thier right mind would ever trust thier life on a repaired wheel that had broken spokes. Sounds like the origional seller knew they had questionable wheels and dumped them.

whalebird

I think, any merit the OP had legally is probably lost due to the widespread broadcast. Clearly he has inflicted damages on WD, and as far as any of us know, he may have been able to strike a deal with WD before this (and the multitude of other) threads were opened. Taking it to the street is the last thing he should have done. Maybe my opinion...but I would have pushed for WD and/or the seller to give me a new wheel before pulling the pin.

944Ross

I see your point, but on the other hand, can you believe WD can do anything BUT give him a new wheel now, with their dirty laundry on the street? I wonder too if they had settled off-line, would they have required that he not tell anyone about it as part of the settlement?

How this ends will be real, real interesting...

dgreen78

I PM'd WD in private before making posts. They offered me 2/3 credit towards another set of their wheels and explained to me that they were the victim. I strongly suggested they take my offer of my purchase price I paid for the wheels of $2K so we could put this to rest. They denied it. Keep in mind I did not mention names in my posts.

These were bought for $500, refinished (WELDED UP), then sold for $2800 to Joe. I bought the wheels from Joe for $2K.

$2K to get rid of this mess I think would be the bargain considering the situation they are put in.

Shawn Stanford

What I don't understand is why you went back to WD, when - if I'm reading correctly - you bought the wheels from Joe without knowing they were ever repaired.

It seems like the most WD should have to cover is some portion of the value equivalent to their warranty of the repair. If they gave Joe a transferable repair warranty, then they owe you something. If not, then it sounds like they've already gone out of their way in offering you 2/3.

Joe sold you the pig-in-a-poke; why isn't he on the hook in this? I understand that WD gave him what he considered to be poor service, but that's between him and WD; it has no bearing on his selling the wheels to you.

Would you have purchased those wheels knowing they were twice repaired and that they came with a warranty from the repairer for 2/3 the value?

whalebird

Maybe I missed something, but...the wheel is under warranty according to WD. Just send it back to WD and have them warantee it; AND they offered you 2/3 discount. What more do you want.

I am sympathetic to the OP's situation. I want nothing more than him to be happy and enthusiastic about his car and the community.

I suspect that customer service will be at a snails pace given the conflict at this point.
If I were the OP, I would agree to close and delete all the forum threads started in exchange for a good usable wheel as per WD's issuance of a warranty. Furthermore, if they comply, The OP should start replacement threads for WD's outstanding service. See if that puts a smile on everyones face.

odurandina

as long as they're not..... last Monday, i was walking from our Condo to Aruba's Cafe in Lauderdale by the Sea and noticed a Cayman parked with Lobster Claws. i spent a few moments studying the wheels and thought to myself, 'those are really thin spokes. no way i'd want to be trusting my life to a wheel like that.' odd that this thread was posted the very next day.

944Ross

Fail on the new avatar, Odie... c'mon, you've got a rep to maintain

odurandina

in honor of Doug Bray's fail post, i'm wearing Phan does Gaga for a few days.