Having just washed the car, I have just noticed that two of the alloy wheels appear to have started to look like they have a blister?  Ir doesn't feel raised... Both are on the off side, but the offside rear is worst.   The car is a Sportline with the 19" and not a year old yet. :(. I had the car with the external and internal dealer autoglimed and always use the dealer wash stuff.  These are washed by hand and never had them pressure washed.

 

Anyobe else seen this? 

 

 

Sadly a very common issue with Skoda / VW wheels over the years.

Keywords Briskoda chrome alloy corrosion  or Briskoda Chrome Alloys 'White worm' corrosion.    will bring up the threads..

Edited 19 January, 20206 yr by Roottootemblowinootsoot

Looks like the classic white worm where moisture gets under the clear lacquer applied onto the surface of the diamond cut finish (sorry about the underlining stupid computer) Unfortunately this very common with this type of finish you may struggle to get any joy having them replaced under warranty but worth a go.

As above the same thing happened on my Octavia Scout the dealer said it was the way I cleaned  them but after a bit of of “discussion “ they did replace all four under warranty 

Typical with all VAG products - I've experienced this on every VAG product I've owned ( since 2007 ) although it's always occured on the plastic wheel centre caps. Haven't seen this on their alloys for ages.

I’m still surprised manufacturers persist with these types of wheel which are so susceptible to moisture getting under the lacquer and corroding the alloy,after 3 years ALL my yeti  ORIGAMI wheels (chose the right name there Skoda) were suffering terrible delamination  ,when I booked the car in for a service they looked over the car first and advised me to report it but as a Skoda customer I new they would only pull  out their the book of excuses,I just think if they are going supply these type of wheels they should expect these results.

This isn't just a Skoda / VAG issue, it is an inherent weakness of diamond cut / polished alloy wheels.

 

I've had several replaced under warranty over the years, but it is a design flaw, so it'll always return.

 

Stone chips, especially on the leading edges of the spokes is the usual culprit, and guess where Skoda put the joint between the painted and polished surface i.e. the weakest point?

 

Yep right on the leading edges of the spokes. Plain stupid.

 

Once it is out of warranty / looks terrible / results in the tyres not holding pressure (delete as applicable), then get them refurbished, but fully painted or powder coated, forget the diamond cut.

 

That's why I went for the silver painted Bragas. Diamond cut wheels are a nightmare as the water always gets under the lacquer.

18 minutes ago, Rockinghorse said:

That's why I went for the silver painted Bragas. Diamond cut wheels are a nightmare as the water always gets under the lacquer.

Agree alloys on wife's SEL Karoq still look brand new after 2 winters, 24 months and 23,000 miles of salt trying to attack them.

Sadly looks like I’m in the same boat as others here with Sportline alloy wheel issues. Not impressed they look like this after less than 7mths of ownership. Anyone had any joy with repair or replacement under warranty? 

I've looked at a lot of diamond cut type alloys and it's not just a Skoda problem its a general problem and doesn't matter how expensive the car is, those sharp edges are so vulnerable to what the weather throws at them and as soon as the water can get under the lacquer they are gone in no time.

yes used to be same on the mk iv golf bbs split rims 

and on the polo gti  wheels

12 hours ago, Buzzlightear said:

Sadly looks like I’m in the same boat as others here with Sportline alloy wheel issues. Not impressed they look like this after less than 7mths of ownership. Anyone had any joy with repair or replacement under warranty?

 

Regardless of manufacturer, I've always had them replaced under warranty. There's more than enough evidence out there to make the case it's a manufacturing defect.

 

The only people I had a battle with over this was Ford who didn't imply it was my fault rather kept saying their warranty didn't cover alloy wheels. That may have been a matter of fact but there was still something called sale of goods act ( or at least that's what it was called when I had my Ford ). They sold me a product with a known fault - end of.

 

After much dialogue passing between us, I sent them the repair estimates and said I'd recoup my losses via small claims court. And then hey presto, they still wouldn't admit any liability but replaced both alloys "as a gesture of goodwill".   

Edited 4 March, 20206 yr by Guest

Are you cleaning the car too regularly (more than 4 times a year)? It’s those nasty wonder wheels or corrosive sprays from Halfords that ruin the wheels in my experience.

 

The solution, I never wash my car anymore, leased mine, washed once a year, no damage or paint swirls, job done!

Jedispooner  'The solution, I never wash my car anymore, leased mine, washed once a year, no damage or paint swirls, job done!'

 

I don't see the point of paying out just to have a new car when it looks rubbish most of the time just because you don't wash it.

The simply fact is that the concept of the diamond cut wheel is in itself a design fault. Unless the sharp edges are softened it does not matter how they are painted ( conventional spray or electrostatic powder coat ) the paint will always be half the thickness on those edges which makes it vulnerable to damage. This is because paint pulls back from sharp edges by surface tension and can even leave microscopic flaws. Add to this the abrasion they receive from airflow and grit whilst they are spinning  is a recipe for disaster. If you study diamond cut wheels on any make of car the only ones which bare no scars are those which do not have a sharp edge between the coloured section and the diamond cut surfaces. My friends 2016 Lexus wheels were shot inside 12 months but Lexus were happy to replace them ( in fact whilst the car was in for service they advised him of the problem and assured him they would be replaced ) the only problem was that 18 mths later the new ones looked just as bad. 

@Jedispooner

Actually job not done with the wheels prone to the issue being discussed here.

I had Dark Chrome Gigaro Alloys replaced under warranty but the wheels had to go to the Skoda Dealer to have the tyres changed.

They slightly marked them when on the bead breaker or the Tyre fitting centre they put them to did.

As soon as i had the car home the wheels came off, got washed with tap water and stored in a dry shed. Unheated,

They were suffering white worm by the time i got around to selling them, just the same as New Take Offs that i had stored.

 

Wheels not fit for road use and environmental conditions without corroding in a few months are not fit for purpose.

 

Top wheel not mines thankfully.

2nd one as it came from a Skoda Main Dealership doing a warranty replacement.

(Weights added, weights removed by fitter.)

Ready to start having 'White worm' again.

 

Bottom picture.  That is Job done.  Just the edges to kerb...

 

Edited 7 March, 20206 yr by Roottootemblowinootsoot

Mine have just started going on 3 wheels  on a 2019 karoq sportline with just over 9000 miles covered , it is in for a service this week so have raised the issue and going to try under the warranty hopefully, the back 2 have no curbing damage etc but have just started blistering the front have a bit of curbing but bad blistering nowhere near the curbing though  

Whilst you may be able to argue that the kerbing isn't related to the white-worm, if Skoda UK do agree to replace the alloys under warranty they might still ask you for a contribution to the cost due to betterment.

I learnt some time ago that some of the 'white worm' replacements across VAG may in fact be refurbished wheels?

 

Anyone else hear this?

 

This arose several years ago when there was an 'epidemic' on diamond cut VW Golf GTi rims - it does seem that the problem persists across the VAG group, however fastidious owners are at protecting the finish.

I have now raised my issue with my dealer as my car is going in for first (20k) mile service in a week or so.  They have taken my images and will "see what we can do"....

 

I will update....

It is true that there was a period in time where Skoda were replacing white wormed alloys with refurbished wheels, albeit supposedly 'factory' refurbished wheels.

Car is in for service today and i have raised the issue, i would have picked it up today but they rang me need my car for another day as there is a recall on mine something to do with the pan roof and a possible leak problem , should find out tomorrow if they will replace them , but 9000miles and just over a year old i would say mine are defective .

As I have said before several times, diamond cut wheels are bad news. You only have to walk round any carpark to see no matter what make, it is the concept which is wrong and those sharp edges only serve to reduce the thickness of the lacquer as it pulls back whilst drying. Those same thin edges are exposed to all weathers and road abrasives so they are just 'Bad News'. Fully painted alloys are the way to go every time.

14 hours ago, Rockinghorse said:

As I have said before several times, diamond cut wheels are bad news. You only have to walk round any carpark to see no matter what make, it is the concept which is wrong and those sharp edges only serve to reduce the thickness of the lacquer as it pulls back whilst drying. Those same thin edges are exposed to all weathers and road abrasives so they are just 'Bad News'. Fully painted alloys are the way to go every time.

That maybe so Rockinghorse and I agree, but when they come with the car as standard, and to replace them with something else would cost more..... not much we can do 😞  the only way is for them to replace them with fully painted alloys on all cars.

1 hour ago, DieselDriverVRS said:

That maybe so Rockinghorse and I agree, but when they come with the car as standard, and to replace them with something else would cost more..... not much we can do 😞  the only way is for them to replace them with fully painted alloys on all cars.

 

Which is the reason I've had Diamond cut rims refinished in plain silver on several previous cars. Both sets of Yeti Annapurnas, for instance, were as good as new at 9+ years. I expect to do the same for my 19" Craters in due course - have already obtained a set of 18"  Silver painted Mytikas rims for winter duty.