Wow, 10 pounds of BS in a 5 pound bag.....you really are lucky this didn't go real bad and I don't mean your wallet, good luck and a good lesson passed on. Good post, thanks.

 

Scary, and definitely not cool. The seller / WD / whoever sold you the wheels and lied about the repair needs to make this right.

As for the Kinesis vs Lexani / Asanti thing.. the F110 was produced before Kinesis was purchased. The F110 was made in Japan, by the same plant that produces Champion wheels. The F110 was actually phased out of production (for a few reasons), before Kinesis was purchased. I've heard of the F110 cracking, but not something commonly seen.

Let me know if there's anything I can do to help.

 

WOW!!! After reading the e-mails posted on 6speedonline, I can only say that this ELI from wheel Dynamics is a real scum bag and his company should be put out of business.

It is one thing to exercise bad business manners (not taking the defective wheels back and refunding the customer) but it is absolutely unaccepatable to play with other people's lives. YOU SHOULD NEVER WELD THE SPOKES Of ALUMINUM WHEELS, NEVER!!!

I hope the OP sues this company, not the guy selling the wheels but the company making the illegal repairs on the wheels. They really should stop before someone is seriously injured or dead.

 

I'm amazed at reading no more than kind words of concern in this thread instead of concrete actions being taken so that whoever repaired that wheel (and I don't care who) doesn't repair any other wheels.

Does this mean any yahoo/inbred can open a wheel repair business without any high level training...metallurgy, welding process, etc. or even one with an engineering degree? I hope not!!!!! There is a reason why pipe welders have the certifications that they do.

What was the penetration on those welds? Were they X-rayed?

Many would whistle a different tune if that wheel failure caused the death of their spouse and children in a nearby vehicle.

 

Finally! I would also go after the vendor for not disclosing the repair when asked, which could have changed the mind of the purchaser.

 

I wouldn't even use a welded/repaired wheel as a hose reel.


Andreas

 

I have welded one of my Kinesis wheels because there are no spare parts available. The difference is that the crack was in the barrel, not in the spokes.
The welding was done by one of our certified aluminum welders and I have had no problems with the wheel. I only use it for track duty.

 

Juha - Spare Kinesis parts ARE available, I have them. Spare F110 wheels, however, are not available.

 

This kinda stuff boils my blood. Reading WD's side of the story sealed it for me - you can be sure I will NEVER buy wheels from them.

 

WOW! WD is coming off looking really bad here to me. I will never deal with them. They need to focus on the fact they were very lucky nobody was killed. They ought to furnish the OP with a new set of wheels of his choice and chaulk it up as a cost of doing business.

I had a similar experience happen to me with some HRE wheels I purchsed used off of Craigslist. Two spokes cracked in the mesh portion of the right rear wheel (HRE model 540).

I initially figured I was lucky it didn't happen at speed (no accident, injury, etc..) and chaulked it up to being screwed by buying old used wheels. They were mint looking and had never been "repaired", but what could I do?

What I did is take my cracked wheel over to HRE and they imediately offered to make it right (mind you I bought these used off of Craigslist). Instead of trying to repair the wheels and re-use any portion of them, they sawed all four wheel centers in half and trashed them. I was told to pick the size, style, fit and finish of a brand new set of wheels (currently on my car) for a VERY reasonable and fair cost.

My $0.02 : HRE is a standup outfit with good business sense and even better customer service. There are a lot of cool, multi-piece, formerly-very-expensive-when-new, wheels on the used marketplace, BUT buyer beware. You better check them out VERY carefully.

 

You're famous!

http://jalopnik.com/#!5785821/porsch...el+spoke-break

 

"BUT buyer beware. You better check them out VERY carefully."

Never buy a set of used wheels with the tires mounted up...you won't be able to see any potential damage, and or repairs. I found this out the hard way.

Ask the buyer if the wheels have been damaged and subsequently repaired.

Always have them spun up to see if they are straight and true.

Buy from people you know will take them back if they turn out badly.

And, once you have these sparkling wheels, be sure to inspect them for cracks from time to time. A wheel failure can be ugly...

 

The chick in the pictures on WD's website is NOT hot.

 

I purchased a set of (hopefully) new replica MY02 wheels from Wheel Dynamics about a year ago. No problems with the transaction. However, after reading the thread on 6speed I will NOT be doing business with them again.

I think 6speed (and IB) handled the situation the best they could, I applaud them for it. Only wish it was resolved for the OP.

 

...purchased a set of "new replica MY02 wheels"

Guys, used MY 2002 996 wheels are available, if you look around, for from $1,200 to $1,500 a set. Assuming they are straight and true, we know they were made by BBS and they passed Porsche quality standards.

In fact I just bought my 3rd set for $1,200...my first two were about the same price. Pay a little more and get the peace of mind that factory wheels provide...I would think.

Never attempt to save on parachutes, condoms, tires and wheels. Failure of any and all can be life altering.