recent experience with Exel wheels / wheelmax.com

[sweet3rdgen]

I have owned a set of Exel wheels, which I purchased from wheelmax.com, for about two and a half years. I have, maybe 10,000 miles on them, less than most people put on in a year.

About a month ago, while taking a corner at about 30-35mph, one of the rims "failed" sending me straight towards the curb. Hitting the curb caused two more rims to be damaged and also some damage to my car. Luckily no one was injured. When I came to a stop I discovered the rim that failed was in multiple pieces and the hub of the rim was just that, a hub, nothing more. The tire was seperated from the rim and showed no damage. The rim appeared to have shattered. I have spoken with mechanics that repair rims and they say that they have never seen a rim destroyed that completely. They have said that even rims hitting curbs at high rates of speed do not shatter. they bend, break, crack, but not shatter, unless they are weak in someway. I spoke with a person in a foundry that says he thinks the rim was either poured too cold or double poured.

I contacted wheelmax.com, since they are the distributer of Exel and there is no direct contact address for Exel, and asked them simply for some information on how this could have happened. I was not looking to blame, I was only seeking answers. They ignored me. After multiple emails they finally responded asking for more information. I gave them everything that I knew. Again they sent me no more responses.

I then contacted them saying that I was disappointed with the customer service I have been receiving thru this. They responded with a "you had an accident, the rim was damaged, not our problem" email. Wow! I only asked for information.

I believe you can tell a lot about the quality of a product by the quality of the customer service. Any company that shows so little concern when a product of theirs fails causing an accident amazes me. I would advise people to stay clear of wheelmax.com and Exel wheels. My accident had no injuries, somebody else may not be so lucky.

Pass this along.

[whiterps13]

In regards to the wheel, remember how much you payed for them. Find me one Rays, Work, or SSR wheel that spontaneously imploded and I'll be shocked.

In regards to wheelmax, you know they are a NICO sponsor? Contact Banky and tell him your story, including the fact that your a NICO member.

His member name is 'wheelmax'zerothread/184840

[sweet3rdgen]

Thanks for the heads up. Sponsor or no sponsor, Noone should be treated the way I was.

I will contact Banky. Maybe he will be able to ease my dissatisfaction.

[naed240sx]

You seem to be leaving something out of your story. You have 10,000 miles on your wheels. After this many miles, they woudn't simply fail during cornering on a flat road. Did you hit a pothole? I have no doubt that the wheels are weak, but possibly the city is to blame for poorly maintained roads.

[sweet3rdgen]

I was not leaving that out of my thoughts. I asked wheelmax about that. In fact that was my first question to them, could the wheel have been weakened by poorly maintained roads? still they choose to ignore me and then disrespect me by be so calous.

Even considering wear and tear, wheels should not fail after only 10,000 miles.

[naed240sx]

They can fail in 100 miles if you bit a big enough hole.

[gepeto]

I destroyed a FN01R-C after....5000km maybe...



Yeah rubberbands...got the tires for free with the wheels...should've changed them before I b0rk that...

[whiterps13]

Thanks for the heads up. Sponsor or no sponsor, Noone should be treated the way I was.

I will contact Banky. Maybe he will be able to ease my dissatisfaction.

No doubt. But, they might treat you with more respect if they know your a member of a community where they PAY to advertise.

Good luck with everything.

[94_240sx]

I hear you. I don't think it's a matter of fail or not fail. Any wheel can fail if you hit pot holes hard, but at least wheels shouldn't shatter because it can cause a big accident.

[Jookmasta]

i'd also email greg (azhitman) about this if you have trouble getting in contact with banky............

[sweet3rdgen]

I am with you 94_240sx. Pretty much my view, and the view of everyone I have spoken with is a rim being damaged is one thing, but a rim shattering and causing an accident is another. The picture gepeto shows is what I would expect from a quality rim. But that is still driveable and repairable.

I have sent banky an email, I have yet to hear back from him. I will hold further criticism for a while and give them a chance to respond or continue to ingnore.

[sweet3rdgen]

Well, at one of the other forums I was on I was told told to google "wheelmax sucks" and WOW. I then tried "exel sucks" and a few other variations.

I am not the only one with bad to say about WheelMax' customer service or Exel quality. Even scarier is that I am not the only one to have a rim shatter. It seems that almost every forum, from Mazda to GTO to VW to BMW to Acura, all have threads like mine.

Is it possible for one of the mods to check on them and decide if you really want them as a sponsor? This is a respected forum and I would think the safety of the members is important.

[94_240sx]

Googled and you were right. This company sucks...

http://www.google.com/search?h...earch

[whiterps13]

I would definately compile an email for Greg with links to those sites. Thats pretty damn bad, Im sure Greg doesnt want to jeopardize our reputability just to make a few bucks.

Keep us posted.

[240DRFT]

Googled and you were right. This company sucks...

http://www.google.com/search?h...earch

and you guys are just now figuring this out. like 99% of their wheels are cheap no-name brands. They suck.
Modified by 240DRFT at 10:11 AM 9/21/2006

[ddgsxr504]

"i called wanting a set of konig unknowns.. black and silver. they didnt have any so i asked for the gracings .. didnt have none of those either.. so i found a set of rims in bronze i liked.. didnt have those either.. so i searced around on the site and found a similar set of the unknowns and siegens .. i call and wow guess what didnt have those either.. the wm rep asked me what i was looking for and i told him about how they didnt have anything i wanted.. at whcih point he claims i knows he has a set of gracings seigen 17's in stock. i wait.. he looks.. they have them.. so i order them.. 2 weeks later i still dont have rims.. so i call wiht the claim number and everyting asking for a tracking number.. didnt send them.. so i track down the *** that i talked to that siad he was going to ship them off... apperntly when i placed my order they had 12 rims in stock. 4 of those 12 rims where mine.. apperntly they lost 1 rim out of all 12 of those and shipped everyone elses out and didnt bother to tell me they where going to have to order another rim, and make me wait..the representative says "oh we will order one from the factory have it overnited to you and then over nite the rims to your house from here so they will be there in 2 days" a week later guess who still has no rims.. moral of the story is after a month and plus some waiting i finally get my rims and also figure out that i am never doing business wiht wheelsmax.com ever again.

Seems to me that we (NICO) should hit them in their wallet by removing them as a sponsor since they don't like to make customer service their priority.

[94_240sx]

Seems to me that we (NICO) should hit them in their wallet by removing them as a sponsor since they don't like to make customer service their priority.

[mr.zenki]

oh ****, 3 weeks ago i was planning to buy a set of excel wheels from wheelmax. heck, i already paid for it. luckily, wheelmax didnt have any more of that size instock so we agreed to void the transaction.

[sweet3rdgen]

Here are some pics.

the rim (or should I say what is left of it?)

the tire from the rim with no visible damage

what I would expect a rim to look like after a hard curb shot

[AZhitman]

Guys, I'm just getting back from a loooong weekend at an out-of-town event...

Let me touch base with Banky & Co.

Hang loose and stay tuned.

[sweet3rdgen]

Let me touch base with Banky & Co.

Hang loose and stay tuned.

Thank you for getting involved.

When I started this thread, my thought was to let people know, nothing more. I first tried to go thru Wheel Max and show them respect. I only asked for information, nothing more. When the representative for Wheel Max (who I have never named) showed me no respect and showed no concern for my well being and no support for the product sold to me, I decided it was best to inform others. I have had people on other web sites tell me to "sue their asses off". I do not have the money to do that, nor do I have the desire. I do not believe that I would accomplish anything by a law suit. I believe that informing the general public is more important.

I would rather Wheel Max support the products they sell than bad mouth anyone. I do not enjoy doing this. I have had some sponsors and I enjoy support them and helping them. Had Wheel Max offered some support, I would have been very quick to tell everyone good things about them.

Any company can have a mistake, it is how you support that mistake that shows a company's character.

[mr.zenki]

holy ****!!!!! i've never seen a rim that's shattered like that b4

[AmatsuDorifuto]

Wow

That picture can only mean 1 of 3 things:A) Your car has more than 1300 horsepower to the wheels.B) You hit way too many potholesC) The rim was just a cheap p.o.s.

I've never in my 22 years of life seen a rim that horribly damaged, even on cars that have been totalled, flipped over, hit trees, anything.

Simply.. WOW. End.

[Florida240sx]

That wheel has to be a fluke....... That thing is just......well look at it....

[sweet3rdgen]

Wow

That picture can only mean 1 of 3 things:A) Your car has more than 1300 horsepower to the wheels.B) You hit way too many potholesC) The rim was just a cheap p.o.s.

I've never in my 22 years of life seen a rim that horribly damaged, even on cars that have been totalled, flipped over, hit trees, anything.

Simply.. WOW. End.

well to narrow it down

A) no, my maxima is a naturally aspriated VG. I have done some work but as we all know I would be lucky to have 200hp.

B) I don't hit any pot holes if I can help it. It is (was) daily driven so I have had to endure our well (cough) maintained (cough, cough) roads.

C) Obvious? Or maybe defect?

[GhostDriver]

I had an experience in my car in which I nailed curbs several times at once and I got away with chipped tires and a scratched wheels (OE wheels).

Wheels shouldn't fail like that at 35 MPH.

[sweet3rdgen]

I have just received an email from Banky today. If the first person from Wheel Max would have responded as he has, I never would have been encouraged to post my experience in the first place.

Banky was cordial and apologetic. He seemed concerned about the way I was treated and apologized for the other "customer service" persons comment. He informed me that Wheel Max is going thru a change in management and that is why I was not being responded to.

He has said that I should consider that the rims are less expensive than say "Rays" or "Volk" or other high dollar brands. He also says I should consider that the rims do have 10,000 miles on them.

While I do understand these statements I do not agree them. I told Banky to consider that 10,000 miles is only 10 months of the average persons driving and that no one would be happy if their rims only lasted 10 months.

Also, IMO, people purchase these rims because they do not have the funds to purchase a $2000+ set of rims. The safety of the individual should not be at risk because he cannot afford more expensive rims, should it?

I am sure that Banky and I will discuss this more. I personally hope that he can convince me that this was an abhoration and then I hope I can tell you all that I was wrong to speak poorly of Wheel Max and Exel. As of now I am unconvinced. I will keep you all informed
Modified by sweet3rdgen at 1:18 AM 9/22/2006

[sweet3rdgen]

I have been thinking about what Banky said. When he was saying that I should consider that I bought lesser priced rims and that I had 10,000 miles on them.

I have three different ways I am seeing those statements. Please help me with your thoughts.

1) Is Banky telling me that Wheel Max sells Exel rims and they are cheap, crappy rims that are unsafe and do not hold up to normal driving? In which case no one should ever buy them because you get what you pay for and the product they sell is crap and unsafe.

2) My view is that when you purchase less expensive rims you expect to sacrifice finish quality and weight but not safety. My view is that inexpensive rims, like Exel from Wheel Max, will show wear in the appearance much sooner than more expensive rims, weigh more, and maybe bend easier, but I should expect to still be safe from a rim shattering on me.

or

3) 10,000 miles is about 10 months of average driving. After only 10 months my rims, inexpensive or not, should still be safe to have on my car.

Am I way off base with my thinking? Or should I suck it up and think Banky is telling me "you get what you pay for"? Should I think "buy inexpensive rims and risk your life" Is ok business?

I want to give Wheel Max benefit of the doubt and I want to believe they would care about the safety of the customers who purchase their product.

I want to believe that this was a fluke and that Banky and Wheel Max will make some effort to see that I am a satisfied customer.

I want to believe that Banky and Wheel Max would want a reputation of selling quality products at lower prices not unsafe products.

I want to believe that Banky and Wheel Max would want it known that they stand behind the products that they sell and don't just pass it off when something like this happens as "you get what you pay for"

Do any of you think that I am way off base with my thinking?

[sweet3rdgen]

found this tonite

http://www.ripoffreport.com

[whiterps13]

I dont think your off base at all. As a matter of fact you just hit the damn cycle.

You are on base with every point you brought up. You -should- believe every point that you brought up, but a company that doesnt deliver shouldnt be a sponsor of NICO. Let Greg handle the rest.