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GT350R Carbon Fiber Wheel Repair

Tomster

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Some of you may recall that I wound up getting a pebble lodged between my caliper and the drum of my front carbon fiber wheel. Thankfully, the pebble was not big enough to cause any damage to my carbon fiber, however it did put a .009" (yes that is nine thousandths of an inch) groove in my ceramic coating. That groove went down to, but not into my carbon fiber. I tried to have the wheel replaced under warranty. Denied! Now what?

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I reached out to someone at Carbon Revolutions (who cannot be named) and had a long conversation about the issue. It was an interesting discussion because it was explained to me that the ceramic coating was a Ford specification that was derived due to the testing of the brakes to failure. It was explained that Ford would accelerate and use max braking and repeat until the brakes failed due to the heat. That was the reason for the ceramic specification by Ford and that other OEM's do not use the ceramic coating on Carbon Revolutions wheels. I was told that my issue was cosmetic and that I had no reason to be concerned. Furthermore, a potential gouge into the carbon fiber would be acceptable up to a depth of a few millimeters (yes, millimeters). As long as the wheel holds air, it would be fine up to those limits.

I'm thinking, "yea right.... tell that to the guy who may be interested in buying my car". I was told to contact Spyder Composites near Santa Cruz CA. Frank, has worked with Carbon Revolutions employees and engineers and has expertise in carbon fiber repair. His facilities have special equipment, like x-ray inspection, to properly repair carbon fiber structural parts. Although my issue was cosmetic, anybody with any wheel damage should look into repair instead of replacement due to the recent spike in carbon fiber wheel cost (+6,000 MSRP). I texted back and forth with Frank and the repair procedure was explained in detail. I asked if the material being used for repair was ceramic and compatible with the OEM ceramic lining. I was told yes. I was also told that he worked out all the repair procedures and wheel tooling with Carbon Revolutions engineers. That was good enough for me.

So, the good and the bad...….

Anyone who would throw a $6,000 (MSRP) carbon fiber wheel into a cardboard box, ship it across the country UPS ground, and hope for the best probably needs to get their head examined. Below is a photo of the shipping container containing my repaired wheel that came today (complete with someone's footprints who stood on it). I found a suitable shipping container on Ebay that only set me back about a few hundred bucks. I didn't bat an eye buying it because If I ever have to ship a wheel or anything else that is large, this case is IT.

Below is the Pelican 1640 container that I bought on Ebay.
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Here is a photo of the case open with the foam cutout.
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Frank quoted the repair cost to me as "it could be as little as $200 and as high as $400" and the turnaround time would be one week. Well, 3 weeks after the wheel was received by Spyder Composites and almost $400 later, the wheel was on its way back to me. Shipping time from the west coast to the east coast is about 1 week. The wheel was out of my possession for 1 month and 1 week.

Below is the wheel upon opening of the shipping container once I got it back.
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My takeaway from this whole experience is to avoid any damage to your carbon fiber wheels. Repair is costly and by the time you factor in a suitable shipping container, shipping, insurance, repair, down time, etc, you very well may be pushing near $1,000.

JR357 (my newest R) does not have a road hazard/wheel warranty because Ford wont sell me one (surprise!). I don't think its too much of a stretch that carbon fiber wheel damage being replaced under warranty was a heavy liability for the road hazard program.I've learned my lesson and if I don't have a warranty, I would get street wheels for casual use. I recently bought a set of wheels from @50 Deep and I couldn't be happier with them. I don't care who you buy your wheels from, but you may want to have a look at my writeup about the SV902's on JR357.

JR357 sporting Signature SV902's in gloss black
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Even though HR871 (one of my other R's) has a road hazard/wheel warranty, the wheel would have to be structurally damaged to be replaced under my wheel warranty. In case the wheels are damaged and it is deemed a cosmetic issue, a warranty would most likely be denied and I will be going through the process that this thread pertains to (AGAIN).

So, any R owners out there that wind up having some kind of wheel damage now have options. Of course, try a warranty claim. Next, repair is an option. Lastly, wheel replacement is an option, however not very practical.

If any of you have any questions, PM me and I'd be happy to help.
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obspsd

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Thanks for posting this info up for us.
 

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Well done Tom.
 

_M_

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Thanks for sharing @Tomster . I'm assuming you checked clearances after receiving the wheel to make sure all was good?
 
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Tomster

Tomster

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Thanks for sharing @Tomster . I'm assuming you checked clearances after receiving the wheel to make sure all was good?
Clearance issues?
If you have a set of calipers, look and see how thin 9 thou is..... the ceramic coating was restored to OEM spec. 9 thousands of an inch is equivalent to 2 sheets of photocopy paper.

All this fuss over a cosmetic unecessary specification set forth by Ford...... I did all of this because that is the way I maintain my R's. No compromises.

However, the bonus here is that all my R brothers now have a place that is qualified to perform carbon fiber repair. My issue happens to be the most common. This is why I decided to share this information.
 

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_M_

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Clearance issues?
If you have a set of calipers, look and see how thin 9 thou is..... the ceramic coating was restored to OEM spec. 9 thousands of an inch is equivalent to 2 sheets of photocopy paper.
This is what I was asking for, but not clearly.

You may recall I posted I had pebble damage as well, no where near yours, but I still may send it off to them after this season. I just wanted to be sure it comes back to OEM spec and not thicker, ultimately creating the potential for more damage into the coating.
 
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Tomster

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This is what I was asking for, but not clearly.

You may recall I posted I had pebble damage as well, no where near yours, but I still may send it off to them after this season. I just wanted to be sure it comes back to OEM spec and not thicker, ultimately creating the potential for more damage into the coating.
He will restore it back to OEM spec. He doesn't add layers if that's what you are getting at. If I recall correctly, yours was a few isolated patches. He would simply repair the affected area. I suggest you give him a call. Ship it In an appropriate container. You don't have to remove the tire. I did only because it made shipping safer. If you remove the tire, get some track tape and cover the spokes. Get some gorrila tape and protect the edges. Realize you are shipping a 6k wheel. Insure it appropriately.

Edited to add.....

Under all circumstances, I would track tape all exposed paint on the carbon fiber. Nothing happened with mine, but in hindsight, it's a $6,000 wheel. Protect yourself
 

Onyx

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Great information Tom and congratulations on getting the wheel repaired! I hope to never need Spyder Composites but I am glad to know that there is a alternative to a $6k replacement wheel! I also live in the land of pot holes so I have to watch what roads I take.
 
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Tomster

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Here is a pelican 1640 on ebay if this helps anyone. $189 shipped.

Going.... going....
 

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I purchased my 2017 R last year. It had 2,700 miles on it, great condition but one of the front wheels had the same issue. The previous owner never tracked the car but told me about the damage to the wheel and sent me pictures. I then spoke with CR in Vegas and he pretty mush said the same thing. No harm to the wheel, mainly cosmetic as you stated. He also stated the ceramic coating was added to the wheels for added insurance due to the extreme heat. I recently tracked the car and sure enough got another scratch in the ceramic coating. I guess that’s the chance we take any time we drive our cars with the CF wheels on. The car came with a separate set of wheels for the street. I will use the CF wheels for the track only. Thanks Tom for all your in depth information. I will have to repair my wheels some day.
 

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tedj101

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Many thanks for the info Tom. This has been a real public service to the community!

<TED>
 
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Tomster

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Shelby Nick

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That light colored groove was already on the wheel when I bought the car. A pebble just got up in there while he was driving on the street and scratched it. The attached picture is what he sent me. Prior to purchasing though, I spoke with the guy at Carbon Revolutions and he said as long as it didn’t go all the way down to the carbon wheel I was ok. The darker scratch was done about three weeks ago at the bash. Unfortunately with the clearance so small, it will probably happen again the next time I track the car.
 

Dominator961

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That light colored groove was already on the wheel when I bought the car. A pebble just got up in there while he was driving on the street and scratched it. The attached picture is what he sent me. Prior to purchasing though, I spoke with the guy at Carbon Revolutions and he said as long as it didn’t go all the way down to the carbon wheel I was ok. The darker scratch was done about three weeks ago at the bash. Unfortunately with the clearance so small, it will probably happen again the next time I track the car.
Time for AP brakes :crackup:
 

Next Phase

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Frank @ Spyder Comosites repaired my CF wheel also. Pricy fix, but cheaper than a replacement.

I still run my CF wheels on track as my rain set up on MP4S tires.
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