[Mark JD]

Has anyone on the forum, with the optional chrome wheels, noticed any defects on the chrome spokes? One wheel has a 1/4 inch bubble on the spoke, kind of like a large pimple. Another has a series of these 'pimples' or "bumps', about 5 of them in a row, approx. 3 inches in length. The defects are not on the outside of the spoke but on the inside edges. I tried to take some pics of them but had no luck with the shine of the chrome. They are raised up like little bumps, but not chipped or discolored, still shiny chrome, that's what made the photos so difficult.

We owned our crystal red for about 9 months now and I have noticed this before, but I guess I was just so over-joyed to own this bad boy, I kind of just swept it under the rug.
Should I ask for 2 new wheels? Or is this something I should just deal with, and I am being to picky. They are subtle defects... and no one really notices them, until I point them out and then they say.... "Hmmm, yeah there is something wrong here".

Any thoughts?

 

[glen e]

absolutely you should ask...it's pretty cheap chrome....

 

[mjw930]

absolutely you should ask...it's pretty cheap chrome....

And it's probably an indication of surface contamination under the chrome and will only get worse.

Living on the coast I have a lot of experience with chrome over aluminum, mostly on motorcycle rims but it's the same concept. Whenever the chrome surface layer gets damaged or bubbles up from poor application it's only a matter of time before the aluminum underneath starts to oxidize and eventually the chrome peels. When I first saw the partial application on the C7 I was flabbergasted. IMHO it's only a matter of time before the chrome starts to lift if you live in a salt air environment. I hope I'm wrong.

 

[digitalstingray]

Sad to hear that...mine are perfect, but I ain't holding my breath. I spoke with a wheel vendor to the OEMs who mentioned the C7 wheels come from China, which means the plating is also done in China...not a good thing because the process cannot be 'policed' as readily as one here in the states closer to GM's engineers and Quality personnel. The wheels you got should never have been shipped to Bowling Green, and the tire/wheel assembly operation in the plant should also have flagged the bad wheels by culling them from inventory. By all means go to your dealer and get a warranty claim started. The Wheel Engineer back at the Tech Center needs to see the defects so he can address the problem in the plating line at the Chinese plant. He most likely has already seen something like this before, but he can get a better idea on the extent of the problem by seeing it over and over again.

 

[jsvette]

Mark JD I would certainly ask to have them replaced. When Caddy started the XTS Platinum series in 2013 they had a large number of the chrome spoke wheels that had problems. It was batch related. They replaced them. Best of luck. Keep us informed please. Thanks!

 

[greggshere]

I would definitely have warranty replace them, they should be perfect not bubbled. Mine are all good (knock on wood) except the one I dropped over on my driveway and peened about a dime size mark on one of the spokes while cleaning it. Doh!

 

[Mark JD]

Wow... great info from all of you. Yes Mark we do live 5 miles from the Gulf. Maybe they have gotten worse and that is why I am noticing it more now. I will have my stealership check them out next week.
Thanks all.

 

[elegant]

Good luck Mark. Your dealership will take care of you!

 

[ronkh]

hmmmmmm. got ck mine closer

which dealer?

 

[Mark JD]

hmmmmmm. got ck mine closer

which dealer?

Sunset Chev. (Sarasota)

 

[Mark JD]

Mark JD I would certainly ask to have them replaced. When Caddy started the XTS Platinum series in 2013 they had a large number of the chrome spoke wheels that had problems. It was batch related. They replaced them. Best of luck. Keep us informed please. Thanks!

JS.... the XTS info is very interesting. We just got a 2014 XTS Platinum and wanted the chrome wheels and they said they were not available any longer. Must be due to the 2013 problem..... dealer never said why.

Mark D.

 

[Mark JD]

I would definitely have warranty replace them, they should be perfect not bubbled. Mine are all good (knock on wood) except the one I dropped over on my driveway and peened about a dime size mark on one of the spokes while cleaning it. Doh!

Gregg....
What the heck are you taking your wheels off for to clean them anyway??!!! Are you actually more anal than I am?

 

[glen e]

for a thorough cleaning, wheels should come off about once a year if you don't want brake dust to take it's toll....this is a great time to clean and seal the caliper, the interior wheel area and inspect the components....think about it, you wash and wax your paint to look good and then let crap sit in the wheel well?

no thanks...

 

[Chip]

Mark; Please post up a picture or two of the problem areas.

 

[Buzz]

Maybe this has something to do with the now 3 week old chrome wheel constraint? Maybe a quality issue with the supplier??

 

[greggshere]

Gregg....
What the heck are you taking your wheels off for to clean them anyway??!!! Are you actually more anal than I am?

Mark they were actually REALLY NASTY. I told the dealer not to wash or touch anything in an attempt to clean anything. The wheels had nasty grime in them where the tire mounting goop had run down all in the barrel, then that was like black in color. Then I knew I wanted to seal the barrel somewhat so I put some Blackfire Wetdiamond in them. I took the first one off, rolled it out into the driveway, steadied it and it looked fine. I turned around to walk back into the garage and ***! It fell over onto the face. I was SO Pissed! Needless to say the remaining three were done in the yard under the shade tree.

 

[Mark JD]

Mark; Please post up a picture or two of the problem areas.

Chip...
Read my original post. I can't get a decent photo. I'll try again tomorrow in the garage, no sun.