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View Full Version : ALL Wheels rusted solid :-(



Pauls898
19-03-2012, 08:35 PM
I thought today I would just swap over my Front and Rear wheels before I get the Front tryes replaced, so that the new tryes go on the back.
Loosened wheel nuts, jacked up car, could I get the wheel off :zx11: Could I hell!!!! The hub centre was rusted solid, and so were the other three!!!
I telephoned my Audi dealer and said "I thought you take the wheels off for a service?, these wheels haven't been off the car in the last 3 years!!!" I was mad!!!
So the service department aggreed to swap the wheels a round for me......? That was good of them, well if they had bothered to grease the hubs in the first place this would never have happened? Just as well I never go a puncher I would have never got the wheel off at the road side?:zx11:

derekm
19-03-2012, 10:48 PM
Had the tyres replaced on mine recently and the wheels hadnt been off for about a year and the guys at ATS had to give each of them them a hefty whack or two on the inside with fair size rubber mallot to get them off. If your at home and you have same problem jack the car up and try giving them good thump with a block of wood or similar from the back of the wheel. Make sure u hit the rim.
I have also seen me sitting on the ground in front of the wheel while it jacked up and thumping the rim with my foot using all the power in my legs to release the wheel from the hub.

ScottyUK
19-03-2012, 11:00 PM
Sounds like I'll be jacking mine up at the weekend then just to check!

phil miller
19-03-2012, 11:06 PM
welcome to main dealer servicing!

Pauls898
20-03-2012, 12:18 AM
Yep! That's what I thought, everytime I have taken my car to the main dealer for a service they always say, make sure the service book and Wheel removal key is left on the pasenger seat! You natural assume there gona use it and at least remove the wheels to check the brakes etc, not leave them rusted solid!! As I said I don't think these wheels have ever been removed from the car in the 3 years, the center hubs were Red Rusty and bone dry, no signs of any copper grease what's so ever.
Any way at least the Audi main dealer has agreed to remove and swap them over for me, I think they must have felt guilty for not greasing them before! another job they forgot to do in the many services/inspections its had.....?

jakerade
20-03-2012, 08:04 AM
I have found mine rusted on after 6 months if you don't grease the hub - I took my winter wheels off on sunday and the summer set (last on in december) had quite a bit of corrosion on the locating lip that goes over the hub. Bit of sand paper and some copper grease sorted that but definitely one to watch. Rubber mallet is the best option as the wheels do sit tight on the hub

theskyfox
20-03-2012, 09:21 AM
It's not rust, its called Cold welding. Its because you've got an alloy up against steel. The two different metals next to eachother react and you end up with the two semi-corroding to each other. It doesn't even take long to start happening, literally a couple of weeks. The solution is very simple..put some copper slip between the wheel and the hub (NOT on the nuts). You only need a tiny amount, but itl stop that from happening. Im amazed really that Audi don't do that as standard. I've had this happen a few times...not just on Audis either.

-Andrew

jakerade
20-03-2012, 09:45 AM
sorry - rusted was the laymans term - aware of the real reasons!

xtremist
20-03-2012, 10:07 AM
Whenever I get tyres changed, the tyre fitter always moans about how difficult it is to get the wheels off.

I need to swap front to backs at the weekend (and it was serviced a week or 2 ago, with brake fluid change) so I'll soon know if the wheels were off or not.

John140
20-03-2012, 11:08 AM
It's not rust, its called Cold welding. Its because you've got an alloy up against steel. The two different metals next to eachother react and you end up with the two semi-corroding to each other. It doesn't even take long to start happening, literally a couple of weeks. The solution is very simple..put some copper slip between the wheel and the hub (NOT on the nuts). You only need a tiny amount, but itl stop that from happening. Im amazed really that Audi don't do that as standard. I've had this happen a few times...not just on Audis either.

-Andrew

Heres another nice term to describe the above :- "galvanic corrosion". In effect the iron hub and alloy wheel become a battery with road grime rainwater and roadsalt being the electrolyte.
My approach to unsticking wheels like this is to loosen the wheel nuts slightly and drive back and fore in the driveway a few times. I have seen extreme cases of this where people have almost destroyed wheels to get them off.

Oh and another thing, if Audi or any other car manufacturer wanted to be totally geeky, they could put a sacrificial anode made of something like Zinc or Tin in the hub which would take all the corosion away from the alloy wheel and hub, like on a ships hull !

ScottyUK
21-03-2012, 12:13 AM
Errm doesn't copper slip help rather than hinder galvanic corrosion?

jakerade
21-03-2012, 07:53 AM
dunno - but the wheels come off easily enough. Not sure what the longer term effect on the wheel is though

Pauls898
21-03-2012, 01:34 PM
An update, took my car to Audi mail dealer who removed all wheels and cleaned them completely inside and out, greased hubs so hopefully they won't stick again! Had both front tyres replaced with AO (Audi Only) Michelin Primacy HP 245/45/R17 same as factory ones fitted before. I found out what was making my "Wheel bearing" type noise? While the car was up on thier ramps the technican called me though to have a look at the state of the front tyres, not only were they worn more on the inner edges but when you span the wheel a round there were all lumps and bumps all around the wheel, the tread blocks had some how all worn at different heights the the tyre was no longer round lol. The rears were in a simulat state so was advised not to move them to the front as planed otherwise I would still get this wheel bearing type noise a t low speeds, but instead recommended they were replaced as well. I can't afford 4 not at over £200 a corner, so there have to wait a bit longer!! The drive home was smooth and quite once more :-) PS The main dealer did almost match the price per tyre of that of my local discount tyre dealer, balenced and fitted new valves and cleaned and greased the hubs for free on all four wheels!! So you can't get better service than that!!

Eshrules
21-03-2012, 02:05 PM
How much was the alignment? Presumably you've had that done, given such extremely uneven tyre wear?

Pauls898
21-03-2012, 03:08 PM
Yes as they were fitting over £400.00 worth of tyres on the front, I thought I'd better get them to check the wheel alignment using thier 5 point laser tracker system. It turned out to be fine? The only explaination they could give was I was driving too carefully lol, because he said on a car like that they should have been worn out by 16,000, and I had coverred 26,000 on the original factory tyres, so I think in the end they just went like it? The rears really need changing as there going the same way, and small cracks are appearing in the side walls due to their age? So I was recomended not to put those onto the front as it would just produce the same sort of "wheel Bearing" type noise at low speed. :zx11:

Eshrules
21-03-2012, 03:19 PM
If you're running on tyres with weathered and/or cracked sidewalls, you're asking for trouble.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blowout_(tire)

Sam
21-03-2012, 03:41 PM
Had both front tyres replaced with AO (Audi Only) Michelin Primacy HP 245/45/R17 same as factory ones fitted before.

What makes them Audi Only? I see a few sites selling the same tyres online.


While the car was up on thier ramps the technican called me though to have a look at the state of the front tyres, not only were they worn more on the inner edges but when you span the wheel a round there were all lumps and bumps all around the wheel, the tread blocks had some how all worn at different heights the the tyre was no longer round lol.

Had the tyrewall egged?

Uneven wear across the tread is expected and fairly normal but for a tyre to be uneven around the circumference....that's very odd when you consider the only time a tyre is used is when its rolling.

Have you been doing a lot of four wheel lock ups? :approve:

Pauls898
21-03-2012, 06:06 PM
Hi, I just checked the manufacture date from the original tyres and they were 15/08 and 14/08 so thats Week 15 of 2008 and Week 14 of 2008, so those tyres were a year old before the car was registered, the cracks on the rears are only slight, but I shall aim to replace them before next winter. Nope I haven't been doing any four wheel lock ups, I actually drive like an old man, and never race away from the lights or brake hard? I thought managing 26,000 miles out the the front tyres was good going and I still have 3-4mm left on the rears :-)