A road safety expert has highlighted a visual giveaway that it’s time for a tyre or wheel rim replacement. When possible, a rim repair can save you money instead of paying for a new unit.
This driving pro, Cam Woolley, spent 30 years working as a police officer in divisions like highway safety before transitioning to traffic reporting for 13 years.
In a TikTok video filmed for a law firm he’s a safety ambassador for, Diamond & Diamond (@diamond_lawyers), Cam says if your car has steel wheels and you hit a curb or a pothole, the wheel will typically just bend and might not leak air.
Cam adds: “It is possible to repair that [steel] wheel with heat and a hammer; although there are steel wheels cheap enough, you should probably just replace it.”
However, according to this road safety expert, driving with an aluminium wheel is a different situation.
Cam says: “If the crack is on the outside or on the spoke area here [demonstrating in the video], it’s considered structural, and the wheel should not be repaired.
“If the crack is on the inside of the rim, it may be possible to safely repair it.”
Aluminium wheels are a lot more expensive than their steel counterparts.
Cam emphasises that you should only entrust aluminium wheel repairs to someone who is an expert in the field and qualified to use a Tig welder.
This expert can help you confirm whether repairing the aluminium wheel is safe.
