used rims for snow tires

[drewmo]

I found a set of used aluminum rims that fit my car that I'd like to put my snows on. The rims are a little beat up ... looks like they might have clipped a curb or two at some point. These rims have old tires on them, which are at the end of their lives. This leads me to believe the tires have been on the rims until the owner scrapped the car.

My question is how to determine if the rims are any good. I used a hand pump to get a little air into one of the tires to test for leaks, but I didn't get anywhere near the psi required. I've poured some soapy water around the stem and bead where the tire fits to the rim. Small bubbles appear in both places. Replacing the stem is an easy fix, but what about around the bead? Does this mean the rim is bad, or have I not put enough pressure into the tire for a proper seal?

Anything else I should be looking for?

Going price for all 4 rims is $80. They came off an '01 Volvo wagon and I believe are original to the car.

Thanks, gang!

 

[festerw]

Bead surfaces aren't anything a wire wheel and bead sealer won't fix. A good tire shop will take care of it.

 

[drewmo]

Bead surfaces aren't anything a wire wheel and bead sealer won't fix. A good tire shop will take care of it.

Here are some shots of the damage I'm talking about. Appears the wheel was balanced after the fact, so perhaps it was a non-issue then.

 

[festerw]

That curb rash is nothing to worry about, merely aesthetic unless it's cracked. This picture shows better where the bead mounts.

 

[drewmo]

Great, thanks. Here's one more question ....

My research indicated I was looking for 6.5jx16, which is what these used rims are. When I pulled a wheel off to see if the used one would fit, the tire currently on my car is 7jx16. Are they interchangeable?

The used rim fits the car (center bore and bolts line up) and both the current rims and used rims have 205/16R/55 tires on them.

 

[festerw]

Just a half inch difference in rim width, nothing to be concerned about.

 

[drewmo]

Just a half inch difference in rim width, nothing to be concerned about.

Thanks for the info. Learned more in this short thread than calling around and searching online. Much appreciated.

 

[sportbikerider78]

Feel free to smooth those rough spots out if you are so inclined. When you put the new tires on, it will all balance out with weights.

 

[maple1]

Winters are harsh on alloy wheels, especially in road salt territory. I gave my Pilot alloys a going over this spring - they were a mess. I was considering replacing them all together, but they came out pretty good with a TON of elbow grease on top of a ton of wire/grit wheel action, and polishing. I got used steel wheels for the winters for it a couple three years ago - should have done that when it was new.

I don't see anything to worry about with the ones in the pics above. You could spend some time with them, in between having the old tires taken off & new ones put on, cleaning up the rough spots if you wanted. A sanding disk in a cordless drill, plus some hand sanding and a splash of close-matched spray bomb paint would stop things from digressing. It's mostly about the looks though.

 

[drewmo]

It's mostly about the looks though.

Thanks for the info. As for the looks, you haven't seen the rest of my car.

 

[firefighterjake]

Thanks for the info. As for the looks, you haven't seen the rest of my car.

Win-tah Bee-tah for a cah?

 

[lml999]

Your snow tires may also be narrower than your summers, so a narrower winter rim is good. A half inch, as others have mentioned, won't be significant either way. In other words, fine.

You should be aware that Volvo lug patterns and offsets changed over the years. IIRC, the early FWD cars ('94-'96) were different. You don't mention the year of your car, just that of the donor vehicle.

For more information, join the (broken link removed) mailing list. You'll find a bunch of like-minded individuals there.