Seriously... I don't know how I manage this!

I don't go near curbs, dodge drains and pot holes, yet I managed to scrape two alloys on a driveway on a slightly raised concrete slab .. bearing in mind this was in the middle of the drive way. I'm not talking any curbing or edges.. literally it had cracked and sunk, leaving a edge just high enough to hit the lip of the rim.

Now.. I've just got back from France and found my front passenger wheel curbed nearly all the way round the lip... yet as you all know.. the Frenchies drive on the other side so that wheel would have been no where near a curb and there was two passengers in the car at all times.

Not once did I hit a curb or anything of the sort.

Seriously, what is going on... are my tires so low profile that the rim sits on the tarmac or something?

By the way, I'm not joking... In the past five years I've never curbed any of my cars alloys. I'm so careful to the point where I won't move out of the way of a car if it means getting near the wheels worst nightmare.

Anyone else experienced similar events? Maybe I'm just unlucky??

I honestly have never experienced a car so prone to curbing! The continental sport contact 2 tires are useless! Does the rim protector actually do anything? I dread to think what 35 profile tires would be like!

Do you check your tyre pressures?

Even when they are correct the rims are pretty near the road & edges of pot holes etc.

Adjusting tyre pressures when fully loaded is important.

Cornering, hard, driving faster or just loaded with passengers and luggage the rims are pretty near the road surface and even stones, breaks in the surface and ramps on road works,

things like metal plates that sometimes cover road works or just Steel Works on roads that are sinking in.

Some tyres with more of an overhanging edge like on some XL's give slightly better protection,

and these can help

http://www.alloygato...uk/products.asp

Similar product available in Halfords.

225/35/18 sidewalls are not that much less than 205/40/17

(the tyre make/brand needs comparing sometimes rather than just looking at the numbers.)

35 is 35% of 225 mm, which is the tyre width not the tread width. (aspect ratio)

40 is 40% of 205 mm, which is the tyre width not the tread width.

215/40/17 has a very slightly taller sidewall than 205/40/17

http://kouki.co.uk/u...size-calculator

george

Not much rubber between rim and hard/damaging objects.

It does not need much to get a rim.

V easily done. Before I got rid of my Fabia ended up doing a rather procarious turn in the road in Oxford city centre which i lived to regret. Ended up tapping my front tyre against a kerb on full lock before reversing back to complete the turn; checked the wheel afterwards and had literally kerbed the wheel just where the tyre made contact with the kerb, tyre and rim protector had done nothing to contain it.

First time id kerbed a wheel in ages. I think the design of the vRS alloys mixed with 40 profiles on 17" rims (equivalent of 35's on 18"s i'd say) make them v susceptible to damage.

I had dark chromes on mine and they were such an ass to get smart repaired but made me think about ever having diamond cut wheels on a car again. I have a Octavia vRS Blackline estate now so back to painted rims thankfully.

i hit a pothole the other week and it done exactly the same thing !!.......i have a awnser for you !!

those tyres are **** !!!!!!!

mine was on the dunlops for 8700 miles before being knackerd and in need of change . i bought some pirelli p zeros

and the comparison in tyre quality was immense, the dunlops are so soft on the side walls and centres you can depress them easily

with your thumbs and my pirellis are solid !! they ride and handle so much better , even tho there exspensive they were worth it !

going to do the same on the back next month!!

but seriously its those tires that have caused your damage , just like mine !!!

If you are talking about the Dunlops i have on.

I like them very much and put them on to go and play in the dry.

Soft is fine.

Not bothered about rim damage really with those rims, they get white spider quicker than tyres wear..

The OP has Continental Sport Contact 2's on

He is asking about rim damage.

? Is it P Zero Nero you have fitted?

£86 a tyre from Camskill.

george

Without really noticing having done it, most of mine are kerbed quite noticably (OK, some was done in Germany, in the snow, on summer tyres - not helped by their low kerbs that are still high enough to kerb the alloys without noticing).

I'm not so sure the tyres are wide enough - 215's might offer a bit more protection (or a different brand), but in 70k, I only caught the wheels on the Scirocco once (aquaplaning). These look a mess!

Well tried the Pirelli Zero Nero in 205/40/17 and i can honestly say those tyres are 'pants' in the dry on my vRS compared to Dunlop Sport Maxx in the same size.

There is more rubber on the Pirelli's, because measured side by side they are a slightly bigger tyre,

and they might be good in the wet, but in the dry they are sharn. JMO.

Worst thing is how they pick up small stones then fires them out again.

Anyone with a clicking noise and these tyres fitted needs to check if there is a stone stuck deep into them.

george

Well tried the Pirelli Zero Nero in 205/40/17 and i can honestly say those tyres are 'pants' in the dry on my vRS compared to Dunlop Sport Maxx in the same size.

There is more rubber on the Pirelli's, because measured side by side they are a slightly bigger tyre,

and they might be good in the wet, but in the dry they are sharn. JMO.

Worst thing is how they pick up small stones then fires them out again.

Anyone with a clicking noise and these tyres fitted needs to check if there is a stone stuck deep into them.

george

I didn't rate P Zero Nero's when I had them on my Mk1. They seem to be a very hard compound, and pretty weak in the wet. They do have very stiff sidewalls though.

France...........did you go through the tolls? Easy to catch an alloy as they are quite narrow and you would be trying to get as far over as poss.

Cheers for all your help and posts guys! I think I may just have to wait until they get more curbed and just buy some new replacements for one side. 130 odd quid a alloy isn't to bad I guess. I went through one toll .. (by accident) hehe, but it was pretty wide. I think I may have done it driving on to the ferry as they have wheel guides on the deck, like raised metal that I may of kissed. Crazy narrow but still very frustrating.

I've had Bridgestone potenza's on my last cars with the same profile and the rim protectors seem to be a bit more heavy duty so may try them next.

Anyone tried these,to protect or to cover up existing damage?

http://www.wheelprot...rim-protection/

Also,halfords seem to have a version at £30 a set.

'abovethresh,

have you touched up the rim,? they go bad rather quickly if just left exposed to the air/water.

eg, 'one i prepared earlier'.

Nah I haven't mate, I clean it regularly and haven't noticed any spread of damage but will keep an eye on it.