Aluminum wheels - slow air leaks

[Fred Munro]

Hi Syl;

I have this problem every winter. I'm using the 15" Ronals from my old '86
5ktq for winter wheels. The road salt attacks the wheel at the lip and the
corrosion creeps under the tire bead, resulting in an air leak. The more
damaged the paint gets, the worse the problem gets. This is what the tire
shops have tried:
1. Sanding the wheel lip and remounting the tire - lasts one season if
you're lucky.
2. Sanding the wheel lip and mounting the tire using bead sealant - lasts 2
seasons
3. Sanding the wheel lip and painting with primer before mounting the tire -
lasts 2 seasons.

In addition, every fall I sand, prime, and paint the corroded spots from the
previous winter.

    As soon as you sand the wheel lip, all is lost - there's no way sealant
or primer can resist the effects of road salt. The wheel will eventually
corrode and leak.

      The only thing I can see that would fix this is to mediablast the
wheels and powder coat them, inside and out.
    As for wheel weights, I only use stick-on weights. The hammer-on weights
always come off at high speed.

Fred Munro
'94 S4

----- Original Message -----
From: "S. Jaworski" <syljay at optonline.net>
To: <quattro at audifans.com>
Sent: Wednesday, March 13, 2002 12:58 AM
Subject: Aluminum wheels - slow air leaks


> keyword: aluminum, wheels, air leak, sealing, corrosion
>
> My wheels are getting long in the tooth(88 5kq) and I've got a slow leak
in
> one wheel.
> The tire is ok. I suspect aluminum corrosion on the inside of the wheel at
> the bead area.
>
> Anybody got some fixes for this?
>
> I thought of removing the tire and wire brushing the wheel insides. Then a
> fine sanding followed by an aluminum primer. Afterward, paint the inside
> with something to seal and protect the aluminum from corrosion.
> Maybe just a fine polish and wax job on the inside?
>
> Anyone got any ideas on this?  My tire guy says this is a common problem
on
> aluminum wheels.
>
> Syl
> 88 5kq
> 90 100q
>
>