VZ3 Wheel Repair - Or Any Copper Copper Coloured Wheel

[Loadmaster748]

I remember visiting the local Wheel Works facility last year when I took a wheel from my 370Z into them for a refurb - I unloaded it from the boot of my Leon and as I was doing that, one of their employees walked by and commented "don't ever scuff those wheels", pointing at the Leon's wheels. I didn't respond and thought no more of it, however now I know what he meant.

Having done close to 1000 trouble and damage free miles last week driving to Germany and back, boarding the Eurotunnel at Calais I hit the low kerb with the N/S/F alloy after I was directed upstairs, where the roadway narrows at the crest of the ascent. Bo£$%cks!, to put it mildly.....

So, now I need a refurb or localised smart repair, but my options are less than minimal - nobody, apart from one smart repairer, is willing to give it a go because of the difficulty of matching the copper colour, which I've learnt isn't a paint, but a varnish over the diamond cut face. I've phoned two CUPRA dealers, who say that it can't be refurbed!

Any repair is better than no repair so I've no option but to give this one brave soul a go.

Has anyone any experience of this issue with your copper wheels? Any help or tips appreciated.

 

[Rob66]

Ouch i know what you mean about that curb on the Euro Tunnel.

Have you tried Lepsons, they have a site in Kent and another in the Midlands, may be worth a call,

 

[SRGTD]

@Loadmaster748; supplying a car with alloys that - according to Cupra dealers - can’t be repaired is utter madness. I bet they don’t disclose that to customers when they buy the car!

Having said that, I’d be pretty confident in saying the Cupra dealers are incorrect. As you’ve discovered, the copper colour is a tinted clear coat on the diamond cut face and not all alloy wheel refurbishers will tackle diamond cut alloys with a colour tinted clear coat finish. However, as @Rob66 has suggested, I’d give Lepsons a shout. I’ve not personally used them but they get excellent feedback on many VW forums by those who’ve used them. They’re also reputed to be one of the best - if not THE best - wheel refurb companies in the country, so I’d be surprised if they’re unable to refurbish colour tinted diamond cut alloys back to OEM factory standard.

Please keep this discussion topic updated with how you proceed for the benefit of other forum members in case anyone else is ever unfortunate enough to find themselves in a similar situation to you.

 

[Railwayman]

@Loadmaster748; supplying a car with alloys that - according to Cupra dealers - can’t be repaired is utter madness. I bet they don’t disclose that to customers when they buy the car!

Having said that, I’d be pretty confident in saying the Cupra dealers are incorrect. As you’ve discovered, the copper colour is a tinted clear coat on the diamond cut face and not all alloy wheel refurbishers will tackle diamond cut alloys with a colour tinted clear coat finish. However, as @Rob66 has suggested, I’d give Lepsons a shout. I’ve not personally used them but they get excellent feedback on many VW forums by those who’ve used them. They’re also reputed to be one of the best - if not THE best - wheel refurb companies in the country, so I’d be surprised if they’re unable to refurbish colour tinted diamond cut alloys back to OEM factory standard.

Please keep this discussion topic updated with how you proceed for the benefit of other forum members in case anyone else is ever unfortunate enough to find themselves in a similar situation to you.

I feel your pain! I’ve scuffed two Cupra copper alloys over the past five years and unfortunately it is impossible to re colour them exactly. They can be refurbished but unless you can put up with a colour mismatch (I couldn’t) you have to have both done on the same side. In the end I bit the bullet, bought two extremely expensive replacements and found two more second hand scuffed wheels. I had the scuffed wheel set refurbed (just polished no copper tint) and I now have a copper and silver set of the same wheels. My alloys are originally mk3 versions and were offered in both colours anyway.

 

[Gb330vz3]

I’m currently in talks with the company that attempted to repair mine. Paid the insurance at the dealership for so many repairs in three years.
The repair was rubbish. Removed more material than was needed. Colour match was awful. The guy didn’t ever rotate the wheel to access the damage when he was repairing it. So I’m now pushing for a replacement. Spoken to 3 wheel repair companies and they have said they couldn’t do them. Because of the colour match they’d have to do all 4 also machining the face because they are at 3 different levels. Also because they are forged alloy it can leave a honeycomb type for finish which can be seen through the lacquer apparently. They couldn’t even match the black ffs

 

[Rob66]

Not being able to match SEAT/CUPRA wheels seems to be common.

I have a scuff on one of my Andromeda Alloys and they are a Satin silver/grey finish, I called 3 companies local to me and as soon as I said SEAT there was a sharp intake of breath and they said I would have to do at least 2 to ensure an identical match on one side. The company I mentioned above Lepsons in Kent said they probably could do it, but as quite a trek i ended up just touching the scuff up with some lacquer and cant really see it. I do now have the paint code for the wheel, which the dealer was able to get from my VIN number (SEAT 1BC) so will get it done at some point.

Hope you get it sorted Gb.

 

[Seriously?]

However, as @Rob66 has suggested, I’d give Lepsons a shout. I’ve not personally used them but they get excellent feedback on many VW forums by those who’ve used them. They’re also reputed to be one of the best - if not THE best - wheel refurb companies in the country, so I’d be surprised if they’re unable to refurbish colour tinted diamond cut alloys back to OEM factory standard.

I had a discussion with the manager at the indie I use for servicing my BMW about wheel refurbs.
They've tried several refurb companies, but always go back to Lepsons. They've found that they are consistently the best quality-wise, but not the cheapest.

 

[SRGTD]

I had a discussion with the manager at the indie I use for servicing my BMW about wheel refurbs.
They've tried several refurb companies, but always go back to Lepsons. They've found that they are consistently the best quality-wise, but not the cheapest.

No, they’re not the cheapest, but then I’m a firm believer of the saying “you get what you pay for”.

Some years ago, Lepsons used to publish their prices on their website but they’ve not done this for some time now - presumably due to factors such as the volatility of energy prices and increasing labour costs. I may be wrong as my memory’s not as good as it used to be but I vaguely remember Lepsons price for the cost of refurbishing an 18” diamond cut alloy around 5 - 6 years ago was in the region of £100 - £120 incl VAT. If that was the correct ballpark price back then, I’d guess the current going rate for a 19” Diamond cut ‘Hailstorm’ alloy with tinted clear coat like @Loadmaster748 ’s might be in the region of £135 - £170 incl VAT.

Off topic (apologies!) and I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again - I dislike diamond cut alloys with a passion! . My current car has them and I’m dreading the day when I need to get new tyres fitted as diamond cut alloys are also quite susceptible to tyre fitter damage, and if it happens I dare say a ‘guilty’ tyre fitter would deny causing the damage. Always get the tyre fitting place to agree the condition of your alloys - and take photos of them - before getting new tyres fitted………….

 

[Loadmaster748]

I’d guess the current going rate for a 19” Diamond cut ‘Hailstorm’ alloy with tinted clear coat like @Loadmaster748 ’s might be in the region of £135 - £170 incl VAT.

I called Lepsons - over £200, and with no guarantee to match the colour. Close, but not exact.

 

[Loadmaster748]

Please keep this discussion topic updated with how you proceed for the benefit of other forum members in case anyone else is ever unfortunate enough to find themselves in a similar situation to you.

Thanks, I will do.

 

[Loadmaster748]

Thanks for all your replies, it certainly shows concern on a subject close to our hearts!

Lepsons Kent have now suggested that I send both the scuffed wheel, plus the O/S/R wheel to enable them to do both, so they match on the one side of the car. I will consider that, but for the moment I'm going to trust in the confidence of a smart repair company who have done their research and say they can do it - we'll see.

Any improvement is welcome from its current appearance and if this doesn't work, I may well take Lepsons up on their offer.

SRGTD above mentioned routine tyre change time and relying on a tyre shop fitter not to do any damage during that process - I've already started worrying about that and I'm nowhere near needing new tyres at this time. Some while back I did ask my local Wheel Works if they'd do tyre changes if I supplied the tyres, unfortunately it's not something they do without a wheel refurb. They would have been ideal, considering that they have to refit tyres onto refurbed wheels and obviously take great care.

 

[Lucas90]

If all else fails you could go all gloss black and not live in fear of curbing them again. They look quite good in my opinion and make the copper calipers pop.

 

[SRGTD]

If all else fails you could go all gloss black and not live in fear of curbing them again. They look quite good in my opinion and make the copper calipers pop. View attachment 54382

I agree they do look good and there’s none of the issues associated with diamond cut alloys. However, if a car is leased under a PCH or bought under a PCP, you would need to consider the terms of the PCH / PCP contract(s) to see if such a change is allowed;

• PCH; the car is owned by the finance company and under the terms of the lease agreement, modifications (changing the finish / colour of the alloys would be classed as a modification) might not be permitted or if they are, permission of the lease company would be needed first. It’s also likely that the car needs to be returned back to factory spec at the end of the lease term, involving the additional cost of getting the alloys refinished in the original black / copper diamond cut finish.
• PCP; similar considerations apply to those under a PCH, although there may be a bit more flexibility if you exercise the right to make the balloon payment and keep the car at the end of the contract term.

My advice though - for what it’s worth - would be to always check the small print of the PCH / PCP contract and get permission of the finance company before making any modifications, and also consider if there are any insurance implications.

 

[Lucas90]

Good point! PCP you probably would be okay as long as you paid the final payment to own the car. PCH I doubt they would let modifications. Always worth checking though.

 

[Loadmaster748]

If all else fails you could go all gloss black and not live in fear of curbing them again. They look quite good in my opinion and make the copper calipers pop. View attachment 54382

Agreed, this would be a good way to approach the problem and normally I might go down this route, however:

1. An all black wheel tends to hide the detail of the wheel's design, with the exception of simple multispoke designs.

2. CUPRA's Hailstorm design is, in my opinion, one of the best designs I've seen in a long time and with the copper accents looks so good against the car. So in this case, they will stay as they are.

 

[Loadmaster748]

I agree they do look good and there’s none of the issues associated with diamond cut alloys. However, if a car is leased under a PCH or bought under a PCP, you would need to consider the terms of the PCH / PCP contract(s) to see if such a change is allowed;

• PCH; the car is owned by the finance company and under the terms of the lease agreement, modifications (changing the finish / colour of the alloys would be classed as a modification) might not be permitted or if they are, permission of the lease company would be needed first. It’s also likely that the car needs to be returned back to factory spec at the end of the lease term, involving the additional cost of getting the alloys refinished in the original black / copper diamond cut finish.
• PCP; similar considerations apply to those under a PCH, although there may be a bit more flexibility if you exercise the right to make the balloon payment and keep the car at the end of the contract term.

My advice though - for what it’s worth - would be to always check the small print of the PCH / PCP contract and get permission of the finance company before making any modifications, and also consider if there are any insurance implications.

Fortunately I own the car outright so the world's my oyster, so to speak. My part exchange took care of two thirds of the cost so I just topped it up to the haggled price.

I still want to keep it OEM when I comes to the wheels, although I must admit to looking around at aftermarket styles!

 

[Gb330vz3]

I’m currently in talks with the company that attempted to repair mine. Paid the insurance at the dealership for so many repairs in three years.
The repair was rubbish. Removed more material than was needed. Colour match was awful. The guy didn’t ever rotate the wheel to access the damage when he was repairing it. So I’m now pushing for a replacement. Spoken to 3 wheel repair companies and they have said they couldn’t do them. Because of the colour match they’d have to do all 4 also machining the face because they are at 3 different levels. Also because they are forged alloy it can leave a honeycomb type for finish which can be seen through the lacquer apparently. They couldn’t even match the black ffs

So update,
Dwv who attempted to repair the wheels have sent a manager and a regional manager out to look at the job in an attempt to rectify.. 20 mins in they rang and said they absolutely cannot match that colour so they have paid for me to have all 4 fully redone at a wheel repair specialist of my choice.. decision is now, go all original or replace the black parts with a dark gunmetal metallic Matt/satin. Still keeping the copper obviously

 

[Rob66]

That

So update,
Dwv who attempted to repair the wheels have sent a manager and a regional manager out to look at the job in an attempt to rectify.. 20 mins in they rang and said they absolutely cannot match that colour so they have paid for me to have all 4 fully redone at a wheel repair specialist of my choice.. decision is now, go all original or replace the black parts with a dark gunmetal metallic Matt/satin. Still keeping the copper obviously

Sounds like great service from DWV.