bearJW
Ready to race!
- Location
- San Francisco
So I had to buy new wheels for my car since I hit some severely nasty pot holes around Palm Springs, CA and bent my wheels. My tires were cupping and it was loud.
I should have just bought OEM wheels, but instead went on a well known wheel and tire website to purchase both wheels and tires.
I decided to go from 18" to 17" thinking it'd be a little softer and smoother...
I found a set of OEM looking wheels and bought a wheel and tire package, pre balanced, everything. I was told they'd fit fine by the chat person on the well known Tire and Wheel website.
The installation place installed them but it felt really weird and bad, turns out they needed to be balanced.They balanced the wheels but it felt like my GTI was ruined. It felt very strange and had weird vibrations... turns out they were installed without hubcentric rings.... went to another place to have the rings that the well known place sent put on. Didn't fix anything. Still weird vibrations and a thrumming sound.
At this point I brought the car to the local dealer thinking it was something with the car. Nothing wrong with the wheel bearings or suspension or anything.
Went to a buddy's that has a shop, the hub centric rings needed to be seated in the wheel rather than on the hub. He did this to the back wheels... it still feels funny.
I then contacted ECStuning. They suggested these other hubcentric rings that they say should make everything work.
This has been a huge hassle.
Should I just ditch these wheels and buy a set of used OEM ones?
Any thoughts? Can after market wheels with rings feel as good as wheels that just fit?
I should have just bought OEM wheels, but instead went on a well known wheel and tire website to purchase both wheels and tires.
I decided to go from 18" to 17" thinking it'd be a little softer and smoother...
I found a set of OEM looking wheels and bought a wheel and tire package, pre balanced, everything. I was told they'd fit fine by the chat person on the well known Tire and Wheel website.
The installation place installed them but it felt really weird and bad, turns out they needed to be balanced.They balanced the wheels but it felt like my GTI was ruined. It felt very strange and had weird vibrations... turns out they were installed without hubcentric rings.... went to another place to have the rings that the well known place sent put on. Didn't fix anything. Still weird vibrations and a thrumming sound.
At this point I brought the car to the local dealer thinking it was something with the car. Nothing wrong with the wheel bearings or suspension or anything.
Went to a buddy's that has a shop, the hub centric rings needed to be seated in the wheel rather than on the hub. He did this to the back wheels... it still feels funny.
I then contacted ECStuning. They suggested these other hubcentric rings that they say should make everything work.
This has been a huge hassle.
Should I just ditch these wheels and buy a set of used OEM ones?
Any thoughts? Can after market wheels with rings feel as good as wheels that just fit?
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