wayland1985

Just curious: my 01 SS is sitting in the garage for the winter. It seems the factory wheels aren't holding air, as most of the tires are looking flat.

I love the look of the factory 10spokes, but the original owner has already had them straightened a couple of times... I'm assuming the more you repair them, the weaker they are.

Outside of torque thrusts, I haven't seen any rims that blow me away. Is there a place to buy OEM wheels new?

silverWS.6

iTrader: (1)

Not "OEM" wheels per say but oewheels has most, if not all, OEM styles.

TechCam97

iTrader: (5)

The only OEM style Camaro wheel that they stock is the ZR1. The rest are all Corvette wheels.

Z28 6spd

iTrader: (3)

There was a company called LA wheel & tire on ebay advertising refinished OEM wheels. Looked like quality stuff, but pricey.

demonspeed

iTrader: (7)

I think you'd have better, and more affordable, luck buying used from here, ebay, or craigslist. You could always send them out to be refurbished as well.

wayland1985

My main concern with refurb is that these have already been fixed a few times. I'm not an expert by any means, but my impression is that metal weakens the more it's manipulated. I wonder how many times wheels can be refurbed before they're junk?

unstable Vic

iTrader: (6)

It is my experience with aluminum wheels is that they ALL loose air in cold weather. Secondly, any good tire shop should dismount the wheel and put a brush on rubber sealer on the inside bead part of the rim then remount the tire. This has always solved my leaky wheel problems.

demonspeed

iTrader: (7)

Very true. My low tire pressure light is usually continuously on in the TrailBlazer this time of year -- especially with the sub-zero temps we've had this week! I'm sure science can explain!

NC01TA

I need to ask the obvious. How old are the tires? What's the date code? Anything over 6 years is getting too old and the rubber gets hard. Air loss becomes a real problem on many rims, especially aluminum, and also when the bead has been broken. I've experienced that issue on a Porsche 911 and my current GT. I had a nail in my BFG G-Force tire and had it repaired. Ever since that repair, where the tire was removed from the rim, it leaked. It wasn't the repair as air bubbles were coming from the bead when in the water tank. The rim was fine. The date code on the tires was at that magical 6 year mark and although I had quite a bit of tread left, I bought new tires and the tires have not leaked to this day. That's just the way it is with modern rims and tires. Just make sure it isn't something simple like that before blowing $$ on new rims. Good luck!

leadfoot4

iTrader: (1)

If you feel that rim porosity is causing your leakage issues, you can coat the inside of the rims with a spray on product called GE Glyptal. I believe Eastwoods sells it.

The original application for this stuff was as an electrical insulator, but it was also found to be a good sealant. I worked in the precision optical industry for many years, and we used this stuff to help seal welds and threaded joints in our vacuum chambers.

wayland1985

They are old, so that could be the problem. But at the same time I'd hate to buy 4 tires for the current rims and not be able to use the tires on replacement rims (I'd be tempted to maybe go a little bigger or wider).

NC01TA

It's your call my friend but just remember that old tires can cause serious issues, especially at speed. Don't delay. If they 'pop' or something fails on the inside, it can result in serious damage to your car, never mind your health. Too many stories out there about, "well I thought I could get a little more life out of them".

wayland1985

Totally agree. That's why I'm in the hunt now. She's garaged for the winter, so I want to be ready once the roads are sweeped in the spring.

NC01TA

Glad to hear. Not only that but the last time we visited my old stomping grounds around Quincy, and then Cape Cod, the roads were just brutal. That doesn't help with older tires either.

wayland1985

Haha, yea, they can be bone jarring. I'm still borderline because of them:if I go aftermarket I'm tempted to go to 18" rims for aesthetic reasons. But for all practical reasons I'm leaning towards 17's to have more meat on the rims....