I would just repair. https://centurionmagrepairs.co.za/
It really wasn't expensive on my 320d 18"s. RUN the forum police are coming
But if you really want new rims, I doubt you need beadlocks. They do look cool though.
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On a recent trip to Gonarezhou while stopped at my overnight stop my TPMS indicated that my right rear tire was losing pressure albeit slowly. I checked for punctures and finding none I decided to pump it up to see what happens. It held pressure for a day but started losing pressure at a faster rate overnight. I decided to remove the wheel and do a more thorough check and found this crack in the rim. While driving the tire was always at 2.5 bar as monitored by the TPMS and there is no evidence of a rock strike or similar which is rather strange. These are the OEM rims on a LC79 and I now have a decision to make regarding replacement.
The cheapest option is to simply replace like with like but there's a nagging doubt about these rims being fit for purpose. I'm not sure if this is a once off or whether others have had any similar experiences? I had the wheels rotated just before the trip and this particular wheel was from front left and I would hope that the guys doing the rotation would have noticed the crack. So my assumption is that this happened during the first 1500km of our trip. I can't recall any serious bumps along the way and other than the causeway crossings there isn't too much rock to contend with in Gonarezhou.
The more expensive option is to replace all 5 rims with steelies and I found this option https://www.errolstyres.co.za/wheels...ck+%28Steel%29. I'm not too sure about the need for a beadlock for my type of travel which is overlanding and the only 4x4 complexity is what comes up en route. Any other suggestions for steelies?
I would just repair. https://centurionmagrepairs.co.za/
It really wasn't expensive on my 320d 18"s. RUN the forum police are coming
But if you really want new rims, I doubt you need beadlocks. They do look cool though.
GWM P Series 4x4 Limited
The only reason for the steel replacement is because I can't work out what caused the crack and conventional wisdom is that steelies are better suited to overlanding than alloys. If I could link it to a specific incident I would be happier fortunately this manifested as a problem right at the end of our trip and I have kitted myself out to do a tire change if needed but that's a pain. I might just pop in and see if the repair guys have a view or not, specifically if they have seen others with similar cracks. Thanks for the link.
As for beadlocks it was interesting that when searched for suitable steel rims on Errols Tires that was the only option that came up for my vehicle. Seems like I will have to school myself on rim specifications to get more options.
For steelies, I’d go for the OEM rims fitted to 105 Cruiser wagons. Expensive but the best.
There is never a right time to do the wrong thing and never a wrong time to do the right thing!
Going off topic.
I like the back ground vehicle also.
To repair, weld with a laser welder.
But yes, those OEM 105 rims are the 5h1t.
LC 78 Troopie 1HD-FTE
+27 zero eight 2 four 95 9252
It's the first time I hear of a 79 series rim crack.
I've got a set of these Dynamic Sunrayasia Soft 8 steelies on my 79. Had them on my 76 as well. Very happy. Main reason for the change was the tyre turning on the OEM alloy at low pressures (SAND).
If I went down to below 0.8 the tire would 'slip' or rotate on the rim a few degrees. This occurred more than once when I did some sand driving. This made the drive back home a hassle due to out of balance wheels.
Since changing to the dynamic steelies that are a tad wider than the alloys I no longer have this issue.
BUT beware the PCD is a tiny bit larger than the alloys. This means that you cannot rely solely on the hub to centre the rim. A star pattern needs to be followed when doing up the nuts. The alloys also get tightened to 131Nm compared to steelies that need 209Nm according to the service manual.
The nut to rim surface area is less on a steelie in comparison to a alloy. So tighten those nuts properly.
Here is a picture on the way back from Nam after doing a Faces trip in April 2024 with said wheels. I have the -50 offset ones at the rear and 0 offset at the front. No spacers. But a lot more effort to do tire rotation.
Last edited by kenskind; 2024/09/25 at 08:48 AM.
OEM rims of all types are probably the best rims made and they get thoroughly checked via X-rays etc.
This looks like a stress fracture, just there is no evidence of a bump or of a stress event. Probably a manufacturing fault that went undetected and metal fatigue set in.
I would have it repaired and continue using the rim without any further worries. Most reputable rim repair shops will check their repairs extensively.
I used to have mag rims modified extensively, e.g. changing offsets, changing PCDs, mag wheels widened and welding up 5 stud holes and redrilling to 4 studs. And then used them on my racing car without ever experiencing even the slightest problem.
This was obviously modified or repaired by top class professional rim repairers.
Whenever I see any brand/model vehicle fitted with non-standard or non-orignal wheel rims, the first thought that comes to mind is that the vehicle was involved in an accident and because of the high price of OEM mags/steel rims, a set of cheaper non-OEM rims were fitted. Then one starts thinking: "What other damage is there under the vehicle? "
Last edited by mvcoller; 2024/09/24 at 09:38 PM.
Malcolm van Coller - retired 2013, West Coast from April 2024.
1. 2008 Nissan Patrol 3.0 TDi GL with front Lokka (Use it mainly for Safari business)
2. 1998 Nissan Patrol 4.5 GRX - stock (Will use it for Safari business)
3. Wife - 2021 Renault Duster 1.5Dci 4x4
Sold: 2010 Nissan Pathfinder 2,5 CDi LE Manual (with front Lokka) -
Sold: 1999 Nissan Terrano 2.7 TDi
Sold: 1995 Nissan Patrol GQ 4.2i Auto
Sold: 1988 Nissan Patrol 2.8 with 5 speed conversion
Sold: 1995 Nissan Sani 3.0 V6 Exec
No issues so far. Balancing is fine and bolts stay put.
Note these are beadlock imitation wheels. Not actual beadlocks. Those are rather difficult to get in LC 5x150 R16. I tried. Tirelife solutions don't import the proper beadlock steel ones any more. I would have preferred to have the rims without these cosmetic bolts. But this was what I can get that is affordable, durable and fits MY specific needs.
My next set of rims will be a imported set of 17" Dirty Life A9304 DT2 with the real beadlock rings. But that requires a new set of tires too along with loosing some sidewall height.
As said by Malcom, I've also had alloy rims modified and repaired from both my Lotus 7 replica and the Porsche 924 race cars without any problems. I have always used Hitech Mag Repair in Alrode, Alberton that have a very professional setup. (011 900 1341)
The crack could have it's origin in a nick in the rim, made by the tire fitment guys on the last tire change. This can cause a stress riser that caused the crack to happen when the material was put under stress, like driving on bad roads.
I'm not a big fan of cheaper light weight aftermarket alloy rims. I have seen such rims break when put under loads that good rims should be able to withstand.
The humble person makes room for progress; the arrogant person believes they’re already there.
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I also think tyre fitment Center during tyre change or from a wheel weight gone wrong .Cruiser rims are strong as far as alloys go.
These tires have not been changed since the car was bought new nor have they needed balancing. So everything is as per original some statistics, total kilometers to date is 23k but due to wheel rotation including the spare that particular wheel has done about 18k. I would guess that about 30% would be off tar maybe 5% on rough terrain.
Must say this is the first time I have heard of a new shape Cruiser rim cracking. On the previous addition OEM alloys on the 70 Series Cruisers it were a common problem.
In person I am against repairing Alloy rims on a 4x4. The moment there is a problem with a tyre I felt that something is compromised. Just hate the idea to be without a spare. I tried importing steel rims from Australia during the covid times but the exporter did not come back to me even after several mails. Think steel rims is the way to go on an overlanding 4x4.
Pity that the 70 Series have a five bolt pattern that limits one`s choices.
It would seem that cracked rims are a bit more common than I thought but mostly on high performance vehicles with low profile tires, high pressure and run flats. So we can eliminate 1 and 3, however on reflection I do recall the TPMS indicating a rise in pressure in the particular wheel from 2.5 to 3 bar while driving off road which was quite high as normally it goes up to 2.8 bar. It's important to add that the temps in Gonarezhou was above 40 degrees C for most of our trip.
I see that the recommended pressure for the Dunlop Grandtrek AT1 is 2.66 bar and 50psi or 3.44 max. So everything was within specification however going forward I will drop rear tire pressure a tad to allow for a heat induced rise. As an aside my front pressure is 2 bar and rises to 2.4 when in use, the temperature rise is also higher in the front than in the rear. I suspect the additional flex in the lower pressure tire adds to the temperature increase and the subsequent increase in pressure will be higher.
The one good thing to come out if this is that it highlights the value of a good TPMS and I am certainly going to lower the alarm for max pressure to about 3 bar as it's possible that I might have missed the pressure going above max.
https://youtu.be/ERScQscjQTQ?si=MAvO2jo_-T6sE6ua
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