Hi folks,
My 2020 superb sportline 190 wheels are deteriorating. I park by the sea frequently and there are some small dings where the kerb has been hit despite trying hard not to. The worrying thing is the rapid growth of corrosion under the laquer and the laquer flaking off. I use an automatic car wash with wheel scrubbers regularly. Is this normal wear and year to be expected? Should i refurb ASAP, wait until selling or even consider changing the wheels and tyres for higher profile ones? Should i stop using the car wash? I would be interested in others experiences. Only 3 photos due to size....

 

TIA

Mine did that. IMO diamond cut alloys are just a bad idea in general, the laquer really doesn't grab the clean turned metal surface at all well.

 

Depends how much you like the diamond cut finish. I ended up getting all 4 wheels refurbed and painted all over metallic dark grey with no diamond cut. The company that did the work used a standard BMW alloy colour so I could buy touch-up paint in the correct shade. I'll be honest I think I prefer the look to the DC finish anyway and its certainly easier to live with.

I mean, if you are using an automatic car wash which use strong acids, the wheels are going to corrode.

 

kurbing the wheels is not gonna help either as it opens the lacquer up to water ingress.

 

you can refurb in a solid colour if you wanted, this will prevent the lacquer peel in the future but won’t help with any future kurb rash sorry  

Parking by the sea, kerbing and auto car washes. It’s almost like you’re intentionally trying to destroy them.  Seriously though, diamond cut wheels are, as said, not great for longevity. And the three points mentioned above really won’t help that.  

Refurbish them and then get them powder coated to whatever colour you wish, far more resilient than diamond cut wheels. I know, I refurbished my diamond cut and they never lasted and wish that I just went to the powder coat which was cheaper. 
 

Thanks will look at this