I bought a set of black powdercoat with clearcoat ZR1 17x9.5" wheels from AFS on ebay just over a year ago. 3 of the wheels still look like new... I wash and wax the car religiously and it is stored winters. However, one of the wheels is showing a lot of clear coat flaking all over it at random, almost like it had something corrosive spilled on it or something. Looks like crap in any case, but only the one wheel.

I sent them an email with my purchase info and asked if they warranty the finish at all, but was wondering if anyone else has had any trouble with the finish on their AFS wheels? I know they have a good reputatoin and they weren't cheap by any means.

I would expect the finish on wheels like this to last a LOT longer than a year, especially with the car I take of them. I wax the wheels when I wax the car.

Anybody else have trouble with AFS wheels???

Paul 'X'

 

I had a similar experience.
I bent a rim, a rear 17x11 Zr1 and they wanted 400 bucks for a new one.. plus tax etc.
They are being silly.
I asked how much a blemished one was and they said they knock off 25 dollars... 25 dollars!! whoopie.. do i get to buy it for 375 now??!?!? can I? Can I?... what a hose job.
I went online and found the exact same rim for 250 with free shipping..
Yeah.. AFS can bite my lug-nuts.
Avoid wherever possible.

--troy

 

I bought my black ZR1's off eBay from AFS and not only did I get a great deal, but they were incredibly friendly with me as well. I live close by, so I picked them up in person (which may have helped.)

One thing they did make sure to tell me was that with the clearcoat, I had to be very specific about what I touched the wheels with. No brushes, especially wire ones, ultra gentle cleaners, cotton cloth, etc. Perhaps you accidentally used something on the one that damaged it? Not sure, but it was the only thing I could think of. Perhaps you could find a local paintshop to spray it with a new coat of clear for you?

Call them and explain the situation and see what they say.

TMorgan, not to sound like a jerk, but they are a business, and it isn't like they sent you a bent rim, so they would have to break up a set of four to sell you one, which is not their normal way of business........I only know as I tried to buy "one" stock wheel from numerous places and got the run around as well. They only want to sell em in sets, that goes for most places. Sorry you are having troubles with them.

 

I royally fubared the clear coat on my stock Firebird rims in this manner.. I think I used watered down degreaser.. or orange cleaner, or something along those lines.. Huge brainfart

 

Not to get too far off topic but I have found AFS a good company to deal with.
But $400 for one asian knock off wheel is rediculous.

 

??? Did I miss part of this convo?

 

 

Is that in response to my query? I still don't get the "Asian knock-off" part.................AFS is in Canoga Park, CA (Los Angeles) Not sure where the wheels are produced, but they are a helluva lot better then my stock WS6 wheels could ever hope to be.........

 

I've never washed them with anything other than the carwash soap I use on the rest of the car, and I wax them with the same wax I use on the car. Waxing them is OK, right?

 

Each one of my AFS wheels had a "Made in China" sticker on it.

 

Could just be a fluke or a bad clearcoat job on that one wheel........if you haven't abused it, that would be all I can think of. Although, I am not sure what they said about waxing the wheels........

 

Interesting, of course half of everything is made in friggin China or Taiwan these days..................cheap labor. I still don't find the wheels to be cheap knock offs, but that is just my humble opinion.

 

Ended up with a place realitively close in Socal.. Canoga Park is just about as far away as this place was. It was in Riverside.
www.customwheelsmarket.com
Great place, great service, excellent price. $257 for 1 rim.. after tax and shipping.. shipping is FREE!!
VS - AFS ... yeah.. i think Ill NOT pay 400 for the same friggin RIM!

Just my 2cents.

-Troy

 

Sounds like a much better deal, but I didn't see any black ones there. Of course, I only paid $380 total for my 4 AFS wheels on eBay, and I think I am going to bid on an other set to get 11" rears now. Plus it would be nice to have the extra 9.5" wheels as spares so I don't have to go thru that mess of trying to find ONE.

Although, if I just needed ONE, I would definitely look at that place you used.

 

I've had my AFS rims for almost 5 years now and I've had good experience with them.

Last year I found a slight crack in one rim, and even though it was well past any kind of warranty, they ended up replacing the rim free of charge. The only thing I had to pay was the shipping of my cracked rim back to them. They were very cooperative with me.

Just my .02.

Mike