Paint defect on diamond cut part of alloy

[Kirky]

I have just noticed a small gloss black mark on the diamond cut part of the alloy under the lacquer. It's towards the centre of the wheel on a spoke and looks like a small bit of paint swarf that has been lacquered over. About 1cm in length and less than a mm in width.
I've only done 700 miles and the car is just 6 weeks old.
Should I take this to a dealer to check out or just live with it?
I'll get some pics up later when I get back home.

 

[Rowan83]

I will wait for the pics to say but from past experience some wheel repairs can make it look worse.

I once had a tyre centre damage my alloy on a brand new Ibiza and they tried to get it fixed.. it looked a mess. In the end I demanded a new alloy direct from SEAT which they agreed to, problem was the 3 month wait from the factory.

 

[LR231998]

Seat replaced my alloy under warranty no quibbles when it was defective (diamond cut was corroding) from brand new from the dealer. Sure they’ll do the same for you.

 

[Kirky]

I'll get some pics up as I'm happy to live with it if it's just cosmetic and won't lead to corrosion. Maybe someone here has seen something similar before. If it is something that could lead to corrosion I'd like to think they'd replace rather than repair like they did with your wheel @LR231998.
How long had you owned the car when you reported the issue?

 

[LR231998]

I'll get some pics up as I'm happy to live with it if it's just cosmetic and won't lead to corrosion. Maybe someone here has seen something similar before. If it is something that could lead to corrosion I'd like to think they'd replace rather than repair like they did with your wheel @LR231998.
How long had you owned the car when you reported the issue?

Couple weeks mate when I noticed it. It was on my MK6 Ibiza FR. They Said it was probably the valeters with the wheel acid lol and replaced. It was Very good service

 

[Kirky]

Couple weeks mate when I noticed it. It was on my MK6 Ibiza FR. They Said it was probably the valeters with the wheel acid lol and replaced. It was Very good service

Thanks for the info. Good to know.

 

[Kirky]

Added photos to the 1st post. A close up and a wider view to get an idea of its relatively small size.

 

[SRGTD]

I had a similar situation with my VW.

I cleaned my car a week after I collected it and found an imperfection in the paint on the nearside sill. It looked as if the sill hadn’t been cleaned / degreased properly before the body shell went into the spray booth at the factory, and there were some small particles of dirt under the paint.

I pointed it out to the dealer and they said to rectify it would require the whole sill to be resprayed, and there was a risk of the new paint not matching the factory paint. As the paint imperfection was small - you probably wouldn’t see it if you didn’t know it was there - I told the dealer I didn’t want the sill resprayed on a brand new car and would rather leave it as it was. I did agree to having the sill resprayed if the imperfection developed into something worse!

Three and a half years later, the imperfection is no different to what it was when I collected my car and I don’t even notice it now.

@Kirky; in your position I’d point out the defect on your wheel to the dealer, and depending on how annoyed / disappointed / OCD you are;

• either ask for the wheel to be replaced

or

• If you’re not too concerned about it just now, get the dealer to note your customer file that there’s a factory defect on the face of one wheel with photo evidence, with the agreement (in writing) that if the wheel corrodes in the area of the defect within the car’s warranty period, Seat will replace it with a brand new wheel.

I’d not want it repaired - as @Rowan83 has said, a repair might result in a wheel with a substandard finish, depending on who the dealer uses for their wheel repairs. As it’s a diamond cut wheel, a full refurb would be necessary as the face of the wheel would need to be re-cut.

 

[Kirky]

I had a similar situation with my VW.

I cleaned my car a week after I collected it and found an imperfection in the paint on the nearside sill. It looked as if the sill hadn’t been cleaned / degreased properly before the body shell went into the spray booth at the factory, and there were some small particles of dirt under the paint.

I pointed it out to the dealer and they said to rectify it would require the whole sill to be resprayed, and there was a risk of the new paint not matching the factory paint. As the paint imperfection was small - you probably wouldn’t see it if you didn’t know it was there - I told the dealer I didn’t want the sill resprayed on a brand new car and would rather leave it as it was. I did agree to having the sill resprayed if the imperfection developed into something worse!

Three and a half years later, the imperfection is no different to what it was when I collected my car and I don’t even notice it now.

@Kirky; in your position I’d point out the defect on your wheel to the dealer, and depending on how annoyed / disappointed / OCD you are;

• either ask for the wheel to be replaced

or

• If you’re not too concerned about it just now, get the dealer to note your customer file that there’s a factory defect on the face of one wheel with photo evidence, with the agreement (in writing) that if the wheel corrodes in the area of the defect within the car’s warranty period, Seat will replace it with a brand new wheel.

I’d not want it repaired - as @Rowan83 has said, a repair might result in a wheel with a substandard finish, depending on who the dealer uses for their wheel repairs. As it’s a diamond cut wheel, a full refurb would be necessary as the face of the wheel would need to be re-cut.

I'm popping in Monday to see what they say. If it's a wheel replacement I'll take that but if it's a repair I will try and get them to make a note of it rather than repair it for the reasons you stated. I think it's a bit of swarf under the lacquer. The picture makes it look indented but it's actually slightly raised.

 

[Rowan83]

That would annoy me but I am pretty anal about stuff like that. Take it to SEAT and see what they say.

 

[JonnyG]

Yeah ... very disappointing on a new car but I wouldn't accept a repair (machine polish and re-lacquer ?). For me it would have to be either a new alloy under warranty or just live with it. What I don't like the look of is that it is raised slightly either side which suggests it may get worse over time.

 

[Peller]

Looks like a crack underneath the lacquer, but as we know a pic can be deceiving. Hopefully it's just paint. As the OP stated if it's just paint you could live with it.

If it was my wheel I would take it back and let the dealer examine it.

Hope the OP gets a good result, keep us updated.

Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk

 

[Lmbarrett83]

I have just noticed a small gloss black mark on the diamond cut part of the alloy under the lacquer. It's towards the centre of the wheel on a spoke and looks like a small bit of paint swarf that has been lacquered over. About 1cm in length and less than a mm in width.
I've only done 700 miles and the car is just 6 weeks old.
Should I take this to a dealer to check out or just live with it?
I'll get some pics up later when I get back home.
View attachment 9774 View attachment 9775

I’d go to the dealer. I had a diamond cut alloy replaced by the dealer after 2 years. Once
they confirmed the wheel hadn’t been damaged/repaired they ordered new.





Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[SRGTD]

Looks like a crack underneath the lacquer, but as we know a pic can be deceiving. Hopefully it's just paint. As the OP stated if it's just paint you could live with it.

If it was my wheel I would take it back and let the dealer examine it.

Hope the OP gets a good result, keep us updated.

Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk

Yes, it does look like a crack. It shouldn’t be paint. The way the diamond cut finish is achieved on these wheels;

• Entire wheel is painted / powder coated black
• The paint / powder coat on the face of the wheel is then removed by cutting back the wheel face using a diamond cutting tool on a lathe.

Other possibilities;

• a piece of swarf that hasn’t been cleaned off the face of the wheel prior to the protective lacquer coat being applied
• an imperfection in the cast that’s been used to manufacture the wheel.

The strange thing is that if you look closely at the first picture, there seems to be a slight bulge in the surface of the wheel around the defect that the owner @Kirky has noticed / commented on in post #9. I’d expect any such imperfections to be removed by the diamond tipped cutting tool when the face of the wheel is cut back to shiny metal.

@Kirky; please keep us updated once you’ve been to see the dealer tomorrow.

 

[Dizz]

I had my 290 delivered last week and it had a small paint defect on the rear spoiler (about 5mm). I don't know whether it is worth taking it to the dealer or getting a DA polisher on it.

 

[Kirky]

I had my 290 delivered last week and it had a small paint defect on the rear spoiler (about 5mm). I don't know whether it is worth taking it to the dealer or getting a DA polisher on it.

It's annoying. It all depends on the hassle involved getting it resolved and if it's worth it. I'd say taking it to a local dealer just to see what they say is worth while. Then work out from what they say if it's worth the effort. They may just offer to replace it. I'm hoping this is what they decide with my wheel when I ring them tomorrow to book it in for a check.

 

[Kirky]

I’d go to the dealer. I had a diamond cut alloy replaced by the dealer after 2 years. Once
they confirmed the wheel hadn’t been damaged/repaired they ordered new.





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Thanks for this info. This is great news as mine is only 6 weeks old. I did pop round into the dealer late yesterday but service dept was closed, however the two SEAT employees who worked there said it should be no problem as it's clearly a manufacturing defect. So looking good.

 

[Dizz]

To be honest I got them to note it when it was delivered and because I live miles from a dealer I am not going to bother. I am going to clean it properly next weekend and will see if I can polish it out or at least improve it. It is one of those that you only notice because you know it is there!

 

[Kirky]

To be honest I got them to note it when it was delivered and because I live miles from a dealer I am not going to bother. I am going to clean it properly next weekend and will see if I can polish it out or at least improve it. It is one of those that you only notice because you know it is there!

Cosmetically mine doesn't bother me either. I'm worried that it will get worse due to the slight raise in the lacquer. The fact that diamond cut wheels are notorious for corrosion without any extra help is what worries me.

 

[RUM4MO]

I suppose the issue here is that that wheel should not have been allowed to "escape" the wheel manufacturer's production plant, also if SEAT goods incoming QC were doing their job they would have rejected it.

So, option (!) having that single drag of black paint getting trapped under the lacquer is okay by SEAT and so I'd not expect them to replace it and so a local dealer would just "do something" else with it if agreeing to replace.
(2) having that visual defect renders it not fit for sale, and SEAT will cover replacement.
(3) SEAT needed these wheels to maximise output of these cars so they were willing to take a chance to authorise the local dealers to sort that out after the sale.

I'd be a bit annoyed if any of my cars ended up being handed over with any visual defects, just shows that that dealer is being slack/sloppy and has been caught out. Having said that, if my dealer was just going to try to "better/improve" any small paint defect, I'd be getting alarmed enough to just settle for a cash adjustment if that could be forced out of them - as it is only you that is being expected to put up with this small defect.