So I’m looking at going to an aftermarket wheel in hyper silver or machine finish to tie in with the chrome around the windows. I really like the Rohana RC7 or VMR 807 and my question is would you go to the Lexus dealer and pay a premium to get a four year warranty on the wheels? If I go to the dealer I can always go back to them if there’s any vibrations or if I have any problems with the wheels but I’m paying about a $700 premium. I can order either set of wheels with hubcentric rings and Lugnuts for about $1900 after-tax or I can pay Lexus $2550 and they will warranty the wheels for four years. I would be interested to hear what others think is the best option.

 

That's quite the hefty premium to go with Lexus, but I guess there are a few factors to consider. I would consider; tire sidewall size, durability of the wheel itself, and the quality of the roads you frequent. I think the extra $700 premium brings a lot of peace of mind, especially for 4 years. What would be the cost of replacing one wheel and tire if things were to go wrong, based on some quick mental math with the $1900 you provided, I'd say about $475 per wheel+tire. So even if you were to get two wheels replaced, you've made up for the premium. Another way I'd look at it is the $700 premium is basically another $175 a year which isn't terrible to cover all 4 wheels. I think TireRack wanted $100 per wheel+tire when I got a new set on my old ride and I think that may have only covered a year or two, so you seem to have a great deal on the table in comparison.

That being said, that extra $700 gets you into another tier of wheels. If I were planning to keep the car for at least the 4 years, I'd probably go with Lexus on this one. But I live in CA and our roads are trash. If you lived in Michigan, I'd say for sure pay the premium with those crater sized potholes they have over there from what I heard.

 

Like any warranty in any industry, this isn't a question about protecting you from damage; no contract can have any effect on that. It's about whether it's worth it to you to pay $700 to temporarily eliminate the risk of paying a bill somewhat larger than $700.

Like any insurance policy, you can rest assured that this one is priced in a way that puts the odds in favor of the seller. So any benefit you're likely to realize from this policy is more likely to be psychological rather than financial. How much value do you place on that particular form of security? That's a question only you can answer.

 

If it were me, I would rather purchase 5 rims from a non-dealer. At $1900 for 4, that's around $475 for the 5th rim. If you deduct the cost of the lugnut and hub ring - maybe $460ish. That's still cheaper than the dealership's $650 4 year warranty markup, and you can replace the rim yourself instead of having to wait for it to get repaired or reordered. There may not even be replacements available if/when the damage occurs.
One thing I would recommend is to buy the rims from a local place if possible - like Discount Tire Center. Purchasing it locally could include free lifetime balance & rotation.

 

I like this plan. In particular, the point about the rim being potentially unavailable in the future is an excellent one. I bought aftermarket wheels for my last car, and by the time I sold it, the maker (a large brand) had long since discontinued the wheel. If I'd broken one irreparably, i'd have been screwed for the whole set of four.

 

All good points.. I was thinking of ordering from Fitment Industries or straight from VMR and I’m going to go 19” so I’ll reuse my stock tires until they ware out and then I’ll go to a 245. Either set is about $1650 plus tax and hub rings and lug nuts, well the VMR is actually custom cut for the hub bore.

 

I'm running 20x9 all around. The drive still feels stock and the tires have way more grip since I upgraded to a 245/35/20 Michellin Pilot Sport 4S. Feeling good!