Ever seen anything like this?

[RoadworkUK]

So, midst the usual massive understaffing and telephone chaos at work today, one of my customers comes in and asks if we carry out wheel refurbishments on the premises. I told him that yes, we did, depending on the finish of the wheel. If they're the diamond-cut type alloys on Sport-pack equipped Mercs, they have to be sent away. He went to get the wheel, explaining that the wheel had been damaged when he got a puncture.

 

I was expecting some kerb-type damage to the rim, as if the wheel had been run sans rubber. What I saw was this:

 

 

What the hell is that!? It's about seven inches long and, I assume, was only bent by the force of the impact. I did wonder if it was a stray spike from a police Stinger, but I believe them to be plastic and hollow. I have never, ever seen a spike penetrate the tyre and the wheel before. What an unlucky bastard. Astonishingly, the tyre still holds pressure remarkably well; he only noticed it after a few hundred yard from the rattle as the spike tapped against the caliper. Fark!

[Pete-M]

Modern Mercedes alloy wheels appear to be made from cheese. My local alloy wheel repair chap reckons that 50% of the work he gets is repairing Merc alloys on nearly new cars. Not scuffs, the wheels crack and need proper welded repairs on a regular basis. He does at least a couple of Merc alloys a day.

 

BMW and Audi ones aren't much better.

 

I've never seen one with something actually through the wheel well though, that's impressive.

[explosive-cabbage]

Now that is an impressive puncture.

WTF???

What is it?? Some huge nail or what??

[trigger]

I was thinking it was some kind of pin from a lorry trailer but it might be too long for that, Bloody good effort though.

[explosive-cabbage]

Mercedes design engineer once said:

I recon we could machine the alloys dangerously thin and risk the customer's lives to save a sum total 5.5kg and charge the soon-to-be-deceased customer an extra £25000 for the pleasure of his lightweight alloy package.

[chaseracer]

Wouldn't like to argue with the horse THAT shoe-nail came off...

[Formula Autos]

That's probably a nail from a HILTI gun, which are designed to be fired into steel RSJs and what-not, though only with a gun firing a captive bolt behind it - I'm amazed it's managed to go through the wheel by being run over.

 

If it was HILTI'd into the wheel by an irate builder (say, who hadn't been paid) though, it would make more sense.

[michael1703]

looks too thick to be a nail, could it be a long sds bit?

[Ian Nexus]

Yes looks very much like a SDS hammer breaker bit, I was using one last week, it would go through aluminium easily.

[AeroNautiCal]

That is for air injector in tyre.

They keep this big size because it prevents from air lose. Most of the people among us didn't aware about this job.

 

[DSdriver]

Hi Peter50

I'm guessing that English isn't your first language. How about some pictures of your cars instead?

[crapcarcollector]

I've seen a drill bit through a tyre and that was banging in the inside of the wheel causing a horrible banging noise when driving. spent ages checking bushes and joints...

 

Wrote the wheel off that did, although not quite as catastrophic as yours...

[Morgan84]

I don't think you could achieve that if you tried !!!

 

Just bend it over to miss the calliper,and ass some tyre inflation slime,good for another 6000 miles + !

 

I wouldn't say its unrepairable,but definately would benifit replacement !!

[KruJoe]

..randomness..

Come on guys, does nobody else sense some weirdness here?

He's quite clever for a bot, but we're not yet in danger of them taking over the world.

[RedSparrow]

..randomness..

Come on guys, does nobody else sense some weirdness here?

He's quite clever for a bot, but we're not yet in danger of them taking over the world.

 

Thank you!

I was beginning to loose faith completely. Probably joined to harvest some email addresses etc.

[Cavcraft]

Wait until he gets up to 296 posts in ten days.

[panhard65]

Some years a go we had a customer bring in the wheel off his omega. He got a puncture on the motorway and when we removed what was left of the tyre there was a lump of lorry brake drum in it. It was about 4 inches square and had gone through the tyre and the inside of the wheel rim. He was seriously lucky as he was doing over 70 at the time. What worried me was what happended to the lorry that lost the bit of brake drum on the motorway