Can you fix a bent rim?

Question

I wanted to know is it possible to fix an aluminum rim that is bent (not bad, just unuff that it leaks air)
Its the stock rims off a 2004 Mustang GT
A guy at a repair shop said its impossible to fix an aluminum rim if its bent.

Answer 1

sure can but you may not want to;

take a blow oxy acetylene. torch and just light it with no oxy. then coat the the bent part with the black stuff take a rose bud tip and evenly heat the bent part till the black crap starts to burn off. (for aluminum) this is the perfect temp. now bend the rim back. and before the rest of the class says no way. I look out at my 96 Sable and 8 years later it is still working just fine.
The key is that the black soot starts to flake/burn off at the exact same temp that cast aluminum turns into playdoe without melting. you may want to use something else or take it to a guy that does a lot of welding....
YOU CAN DO THIS
will the rim be good as new? nope
will it hold air? YEP
does the repair guy at the shop have a clue? H*ll NO

Just to check things out about aluminum rims
Call any good Motorcycle shop and ask them if they can unbend/true a cast aluminum bike rim
as long as it is NOT for a high performance bike they will say YES
in conclusion
unless you can get that mustang over 140mph and up on two wheels, I would not worry about fixing it
but you will have to re-polish when you are done

Answer 2

Bent Rim Repair

Answer 3

RE:
Can you fix a bent rim?
I wanted to know is it possible to fix an aluminum rim that is bent (not bad, just unuff that it leaks air)
Its the stock rims off a 2004 Mustang GT
A guy at a repair shop said its impossible to fix an aluminum rim if its bent.

Answer 4

The guy at the repair shop is correct. It's not possible to fix a bent aluminum rim. You'll have to replace it.

If you want to avoid the cost of a new rim, you can install an inner tube inside the tire. The tube is what holds the air and it doesn't depend on the rim to provide a good seal.

Answer 5

Absolutely not. A "bent" aluminum rim is a permanent boo boo. Aluminum, as found in wheels are either cast (normal) or forged (high priced spread). Cast aluminum is stiff but brittle. Any attempt to work it (move it around) will result in fracture. It MIGHT take a hit and "bend' once but it is in that condition forever.

Answer 6

Jason, I have a BMW 528i that I bought used for my wife. We had this thing in the shop repetedly for what we thought was road noise & steady shaking between 60 and 75 mph. I finally took the car and replaced the tires, this helped with the road noise and come to find out that when my tire dealer mounted them he had noticed that the wheels had been straitened at some point. the new tires helped 100% but did not correct the shaking and it still had considerable road noise. well after many trips to the tire dealer and to the mechanics I had a BMW dealer check the car and they to said the whells had been corrected at some point and that I needed two new wheels for the simple reason that when you bend any wheel out of round, it willl never be true again beacuse of the proccess that is used in doing this from what understand uses heat and when you add heat and metal you are going to loose a degree of temper in the material, and what you wind up doing is trying to make a tennis ball out of an egg it might look round but its not. So after all that Il asnswer your question in my opinion and my experience no you cannot ...

Answer 7

Due to the type of aluminum used in wheels, if you try to straighten it, the bent piece will break off. Steel wheels, if not bent too badly can be straightened with a special machine.
Best bet: Replace the wheel.

Answer 8

Aluminum wheels can be fixed promise.
These guys are good, but not cheap you will have to compare to see.
http://http://www.mcwheel.com/

http://www.fixarim.com/

I have made wheels for nearly 20 years and can say that you can make an aluminum wheel do just about anything you want with patience.

Answer 9

it's not imposible but it will never be true again so your better off going to a junk yard and geting a new one [if the price seems to high tell the guy your gonna go look at some other junk yards and the'll usually drop there price]

Answer 10

no you cant repair them when they get warped or bent their ruined,you have to replace them,there should be plenty of those around for that car,check the local salvage yards they probably have a few to fit it,good luck with it.