irenesbob

I had an unfortunate situation where I scraped a curb in rain so heavy I could not see the roadway, the curb, the car ahead – nada. It was at like 1 mph, but still there are two rough abraded marks.
I contacted my local AWR and the local guy seemed very nice but two potential negatives:
First, they would have to keep the car for a day or two for the paint to dry and I would need to have them change out the tire with the spare and switch it back when the repair is done. I am concerned they could damage the car if they don’t know how to jack it properly and softly remove the lug nuts. Also, I would have to drive home and back with the spare (45 mile round trip); will that kill the spare?
Secondly, they said they would only do it by repainting the entire wheel to avoid any future issues with the patched area looking different. I worry that if the whole wheel is painted and the paint used doesn’t match the other 3 wheels exactly it is going to look bad.
The charge would be $175, which seems reasonable to me.
I am in Dutchess County NY. Does anyone know of a place that would do it on the car reasonably nearby with just a localized repair and blending repaint of the affected area? If so, does that approach work – I have 29 months left on the lease.
The other option is for me to try the repair myself and (if I can stand it) just live with it. When I leased the car I got a package that allows up to $5K in damages at lease end (including curb rash) that I won’t be assessed for, so I am not overly concerned on the quality of the repair, I just want to be able to look at the car without being disgusted.

snagitseven

Check with your Audi service dept. They often have a wheel repair guy they use. When I needed one repaired, they had me drop the car to service and their guy, who comes in once per week, repaired it at the dealer. Cost was $125 and I got a loaner while it was there overnight.

irenesbob

I checked with my dealer and another nearby and neither offers this service and could not recommend anyone who does it.

snagitseven

That's surprising. You would think they have someone they use for their pre-owneds. Audi certified body shops would need to have someone there pr lined up who works on wheels.

oceanengineer

In Houston you can find companies that are mobile and will repair at your location - not sure of the results. I would have assumed the Audi Service would be the way to go - surprised that they do not have anyone that they know. Possibly body shops that you may have used in the past may be able to recommend someone.

I do not think driving on the spare for 45 miles would be an issue but you will need to make sure it is properly inflated and drive relatively slowly - typically they are limited to 50 mph max.

I have not had to have wheels repaired myself but have seen excellent work done on my friend's car. Depends a bit on the level of damage and the type of finish they need to restore.

irenesbob

At this point I am going to take a crack at sanding and painting it myself. I have done this in the past and it was never noticed at the lease-end inspection. If I do it and I can’t live with the way it looks I will then take the risk at this place. If I can live with it but they spot it at the lease-end inspection in 28 months, I have that protection package so it won’t cost me anything then.
I did take a phot (poor cell phone quality) and am attaching it.

SSA6

I have had good success with Wheel Collision Center in Bath PA - although I live close by. If interested check out their site - they have several options for repair/shipping/replacement, etc..

Fithian

Wheel Collision (Bath) does great work, but takes about a week. Check the alignment when you are finished repairing it. Most dealers do it for free. No charge. Actual alignment is about $200.

DanfZX14

Post some pics when you finish the repair. I'd be interested to see how it came out & I'd like to hear how you went about the repair. Good luck!!!!!

irenesbob

I included one photo of the wheel before repair and two after. They are old cellphone iamges, so not so great. From the distance shot it is easy to not see any damage.
My concern was to achieve an OK look, not perfection since I have the lease wear and tear package that will provide up to $5,000 of damage coverage that I will not be billed for if they do spot the fix I did.
I sanded the rough edges of the roughed up spots, then cleaned the area with alcohol. Next, filled the irregularities with spot putty in a tube (red stuff). After letting it sit for almost 2 days I then sanded the areas with little pieces of wet metal sandpaper, first #400 and then #600. Lastly I covered the area with 2 gently applied layers of silver touch up; not Audi wheel specific paint - just some I got at a regular auto parts store that looked to me like the wheel color. I will let it sit for a week or two, sand again with the #600 paper wet. Then clean and reapply a little more paint. After that sits for 2-3 weeks I plan to apply a few coats of paste wax. Each time I approach the wheel the repair session is only about 10-15 minutes, so overall maybe less than an hour - but lots of waiting in between.
I am satisfied although it is not 100% yet - or maybe never will be.
Because of the crappiness of theimages my 8 year old non-smart phone tales the wheel may not look round, but face to face the liup of the wheel is very normal looking at this point.