So here's my story:
I got a set of Branzach (sp??) Zeo white wheels for xmas. Story from my parents is that they placed an order over the phone with Wheelmax end of Nov. On Dec 1st their credit card was charged the full amount of the wheels and they had heard nothing further from Wheelmax. After several calls and emails back and fourth to them, they got a call about a week and a half before xmas. Apparently Wheelmax only had 2 brand new Zeos in stock, and as the wheels were discountinuted (or something like that still not clear, branzach homepage cannot be found so I think they went out of business) they had two others which they would sell, which had been "mounted on a show room car that had never been driven". Upon offering my parents a $150 discount on these wheel (which is basically a free wheel as they were $139 orginally) they were assured the two "used" wheels were in excellent shape, and my parents accepted.
Christmas comes, I get my wheels and take them over to Mavis the day after xmas to have my Goodyears (which are only about 2 months old) from my S-lites mounted onto the Zeos and installed on the car. $130 later I leave Mavis with a shaking steering wheel. And I mean visably shaking about a half inch each way at about 50-55 mph. I turn around and go back, and they explain that each wheel took a lot of weight and that I should speak to Wheelmax (now it boggles my mind why they would proceed to install rims when they figured out on the first one that something was wrong but whatever, not the point). So I go home and explain the situation to my Dad. He first suggested we rotate tires from front to back to see if it helps...it didn't. Then he as well as other suggested I get the wheels and tires roadforced balanced. Tuesday I go to a Goodyear near me and they roadforce balance the wheels, as well as unseating the tires and spinning them 180 degrees to try and counterbalance the high points in the wheel and tire. They also explain that typical wheels take about .5-1 oz to balance and these wheels were taking almost 6 oz each. If there had been something wrong with the tires, being that it was a Goodyear dealer, they would have told me. No luck, I leave again (this time $140 lighter) still with a shaking steering wheel. I decide the wheels have to go back. Have the tires unmounted AGAIN (at $60-Goodyear gave me a discount as they were very nice and knew the situation) and had my Dad call Wheelmax. Now at this point, wheelmax has already charged my parents the FULL amount for the wheels, promising a $150 credit to their card (for the "used" rims) which they still haven't received.
So my Dad calls Wheelmax on Friday and tells them the situation, explaining that he wants a full refund (of shipping as well) and wants them to send UPS call tags so we don't have to pay to send faulty wheels back. The girl explains that of course she cannot approve this, only the manager can and he isn't in until after the new year. In the mean time my Dad leaves his number with her, and faxes over the three invoices showing that both Mavis and Goodyear have said the wheels took an excessive amount of weight and how much I spent in trying to get this sorted. Getting no where with Wheelmax my Dad calls his creditcard company to see what a charge dispute entails, and is informed he must dispute the charge within 30 days. Now being that his card was charged on the 1st and it is now the 30th, and being that Wheelmax was no help, he starts the dispute claim. Wheelmax wants to be an **** then they can be out the money and the wheels!
And as of yesterday, when the manager was supposed to be back, we got no call from Wheelmax. I am sure there will be a call when they find out about the dispute though.
So basically wheels which should have cost my parents about $400, cost them $550+ and me $340. I really think that the 2 "used" wheels we got were never on a showroom car. That they were probably sold to someone else who had the same problem and sent them back. And then Wheelmax tried to pawn them off on me.
The two "used" wheels had visably been balanced (you could see the sticky stuff from the sticker weights on the wheels). Now why would you balance wheel that are on a car that isn't driven (that should have been my first clue of something wrong)?? The wheels were correctly installed with centering rings and all, so it wasn't something as simple as that. It was just something intrinsically wrong with the wheels.

Bottom line. DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM WHEELMAX.COM!!!

 

snip "Bottom line. DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM WHEELMAX.COM!!!"

I won't.

Earl

 

Sorry...

IMO though, you should be more upset with Goodyear than Wheelmax. If they roadforce balanced the wheels, they would have immediately seen that the wheel was out of round and SHOULD have informed you of this before you ever drove away with them. This would have prevented you from continually spending money trying to balance a damaged wheel.

 

Can't you send them back and have the CC company reverse the charge if they vendor won't refund your money or return messages?

All you are out is shippping back and the balancing charge.

Vince

 

Thats too bad. I agree Goodyear should have told you the wheels couldn't be balanced. However, thats another issue. I use AMEX when dealing online sales. Have a problem and you just call them and they credit your account no questions asked. Its up to the merchant at that point to prove the charges are valid.

 

We could but we need a return authorization. Why should we be out the money to have the wheels shipped to us (which they don't want to reimburse either) and then the money to send them back. There is something wrong with the wheels, we shouldn't be liable to pay for anything. Wheelmax should have tested the wheels before they sent them to us.


As far as Goodyear goes, they were very nice. And they even said the roadforce said zero vibrations. I think the vibrating steering wheel had something to do with the fact that the wheels were taking on so much weight to balance.

 

Call and/or write the credit card co. and challenge the charges. If you explain the issues and that they won't have the wheels picked up/shipped back on their dime (which they should if the product is defective and was misrepresented) then the charge may simply be removed permanently if the vendor does nothing to work with issues to get the contested charges released.

 

That's the stage we are at now, being that we only had 30 days to dispute the charge and that the "manager" from wheelmax is not returning calls.

 

I just looked on their site and they claim to give free shipping in the continental US. We didn't get such a deal, maybe because the order was palced via the phone.

 

Man'O' Man I thought shiznet like this only happened to me sorry to hear of your troubles, hope it all works out

 

I ordered wheels for my other car from Wheelmax, and had no
problems. They were at my door within a week. One wheel did
arrive with no center cap, but I called them and they shipped me
two that day. I am always leery about ordering from mail-order
companies but they were the only company that had the style of
wheels I was looking for. (Another reason to be suspicious.) I hope
you get this all straightened out - be thankful you paid by credit card
so you can get your money back. Sometimes those companies stall
because they know you only have 30 days to dispute the charges.
Good luck.

 

Tire Rack has a good rep for a reason, there are a lot of *****
out there!

 

That sucks. I've had a similar experience. You should be able to call the credit card company and challenge the charge no problem. They will tell you what category or "reason" it falls under (mine was service not performed, or service not completed, I forget) Yours may be "defective product", etc. Then it would be up to Wheelmax to prove otherwise, which they really can't do. The consumer has the advantage as the Credit Card companies provide some sort of guarantee and do not want to lose the consumer. Then just hold on to the wheels until they send you the ups return labels/postage, and you could also demand the initial postage before you return them if you want to try that (I would), based on the wheels being defective and the free shipping listed. I would even go as far as demanding a credit for the amount spent at Goodyear/Mavis, if you really want to recomp that as well but you would have to deal with Wheelmax again. Doesnt hurt to try. And if they ever give you an answer that you don't like, contact the better business bureau and start a claim (its easy). It'll start being more trouble for Wheelmax than its worth.

 

Unfortunately Tirerack doesn't always have the look/type of wheel that people are looking for. I have ordered tires from them (tirerack) in the past and have been very happy. If they had the style wheel (white, 17 inch double spoke) I was looking for I would have went with them.

 

sorry to hear, Meg. i can only imagine the frustration.

 

thanks, only upside is now I may get an exhaust as a replacement gift.

 

I have also had very good luck with Wheelmax. I would suggest that you give them a chance to make it right. It is only the second day of the new year. Be courteous and as unemotional as possible and I am sure they will make it right. Not a great start to the new year, but it can only get better, right

 

um, imho, i think meg and her dad already gave those fools enough
courtesy and time...

 

I feel we have. We have blatant proof that there is something wrong with the wheels. That apparently is not enough for them. And unfortunately, because they charged the credit car, well ahead of even shipping the wheel (ie over 30 days ago) we had to take action with the credit card. Why should I go through more trouble?? I spent over $300 on this, and I am not asking wheelmax for that money back. They have done NOTHING to extend and olive branch. We called them again today and the woman rudely told my mother that she had told my father the manager wasn't in until today. All she had told my dad when she talked to him on Fri was that she would "be in touch". We all know what that means....
I am not at all being emotional! Why should I extend them any more cureousness then they have done for us (which is none!)

 

And again I would suggest that you give them time. As was stated by you, the manager is just now coming back to work. Give him a chance to make it right. You will always get more satisfaction from any retailer by being the honey instead of the lemon. Granted it has been more than a month, but don't get too upset.

 

I had good luck with Wheelmax too and got my wheels and tires mounted, balanced and shipped nicely.
As for your dilemma I also feel bad for you, but both the Mavis and the Goodyear folks should have told you that the wheels are no good. I don't care how nice and helpful they were, they should have made you aware of a product that shouldn't be used. At my NTB dealership in town they actually take a car for a spin and notice problems before they release the car.
Again sorry Meg and hopefully Wheelmax will deal with you right, but if I were you I would be annoyed with the Mavis and the Goodyear folks.

H

 

Really though, they never should have charged the credit card prior to shipping - as it is, because they did, she had to contest it with the credit card before the 30 period on doing that passed. It really doesn't seem like there was anything else she could do, they could not wait and lose the cc protection just because the manager was on vacation and no-one was covering those responsibilities while they were away.

 

I never said they shouldn't have contested the charges on the credit card. Meg did the right thing there. I am just asking that she give the manager a little time to make good on the problem.

And, I do agree with the fact that the local tire shops should have been a little more forthcoming with the apparent problems they had.

 

Sorry to hear you and your family have been jerked around, Meg.

My brief experience with Wheelmax was one that made me uncomfortable enough not to follow through with a set of wheels/tires I had already decided to buy. It stemmed basically from how I was treated on the phone (rudely, discourteously, callously, and with an unreasonable amount of impatience regarding the few, simple questions I had.)

I opted for a local shop, ordering the wheels directly from the manufacturer. It took the same amount of time, and they verified they were in stock before the full credit card charge happened. (They only charged a small deposit until the wheels actually arrived.)

After hearing both good and bad stories regarding Wheelmax, it seems that there are good people that work for Wheelmax, and there are some that are less so. It appears you got all the bad ones helping (actually not helping) you.

I hope your next experience with a different wheel rep/ retailer makes up for this one.

 

No kidding, that like totally sucks. Your s-lites still work fine though right? I would still look for wheels. I, the typical teenager , changed my mind like a million times b4 I finally got ones I liked. They add alot in terms of looks to the car though. My MCS looks sooo much more aggressive in the summertime, than it does now, to the point where I actually get some ladies wanting a ride, instead of "that's cute!" Try Tire Rack, or something, though I have had a bad experience with one of their employees the rest are awesome. I'd go rims, then exhaust.

Good Luck

Mikey