Experts please help: Am I being scammed, or just foolish?

[newb]

I've got a 2010 Mazda 3 5-door. I've got a crack in my stock 17" alloy wheel causing a slow leak. It was hidden right under the rim weight. Dealer quoted me "their cost" as being over $500 for a replacement wheel - Before labor/balancing/etc.

I have to check to see if this is covered in my warranty because in my rush I forgot to ask, but in the meantime I've been looking at other options since that seemed high for a single wheel even though I felt it was unlikely I could get 4 new wheels cheaper than one overpriced one.

However, I'm finding some online places selling what they are claiming to be this stock wheel for prices at/under $200. I've got a mind to cancel the order and sort this out on my own somehow, but my mistrust may be unfair. I expect the dealership not to be the cheap option, but I can't ignore this large a discrepancy. Can anyone explain what I might be missing before I talk to the service dept.?

 

[Tyrdstorm]

Dealers always charge way too much for wheels. Most of those stock wheels you see online are probably replicas (usually eBay), but sometimes they're legit OEMs. Check the FS forums, sometimes they have used rims in very good condition for cheap. If I remember correctly, I sold all four of my '09 MS3 rims for $400.00 in excellent shape.

 

[xxxmonoxidechil]

i have to agree. the dealer is probably the most expensive place to get wheels from. and thats not an exaggeration. im being 100% serious.

find out if its a warranty thing or not. if they thinking your going to pay for it. then def go a dif route. you can buy a full set of 4 aftermarket 17's for less then that.

 

[WillD]

Definitely shop around, you can get aftermarket cheaper or find someone selling something OEM used. Keep in mind if you replace all 4 wheels you'll most likely have to pay someone to mount and balance your tires on the wheels.

 

[rsvinylgraphics]

The wheel might be able to be repaired, here is a place I found after a quick online
search.

http://www.wheelsamerica.com/?gclid=CIOi_t_n7asCFQ0CQAodWj4PKg

 

[JP0317]

i have to agree. the dealer is probably the most expensive place to get wheels from. and thats not an exaggeration. im being 100% serious.

find out if its a warranty thing or not. if they're thinking your going to pay for it. then def go a dif route. you can buy a full set of 4 aftermarket 17's for less then that.

^This

 

[newb]

Thanks for the feedback. I'm going to try to get them to warranty the wheel, but it doesn't look promising. The warranty excludes "road hazards" so pretty much it will come down to whether or not the dealer thinks this was a defect or caused by a pothole.

I've called around and that does seem to be the actual price for the wheel from Mazda - so it's Mazda ripping off customers and not the dealer. I'm in a rush to get this done so I'm probably going to pay through the premium if I have to -- but find a local place and have a plan in place if somehow another one breaks. I used to have a guy here in town I practically had to force money for stuff on, and when he retired I don't have anyone local yet... but I guess I've got to look because working with the dealer is clearly going to be too expensive.

It seems that either this was a defect, or the larger wheel / smaller tire look everyone likes is a lot riskier... I've NEVER had to replace a wheel before and I've hit my share of potholes in my old car in its 14 year lifespan. This is the kind of expense I thought I was avoiding by buying a brand new car with a warranty....

 

[WillD]

Look what just popped up over in the FS section: http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?123805215-F-S-2010-Mazda3-Wheels-amp-Tires