Two of the country's largest suppliers of re-manufactured alloy wheels say they support the development of industry standards for such wheels. Speaking at the Collision Industry Conference (CIC) in Las Vegas, Nevada, in November, Roger McClellan, vice president of sales and marketing for Transwheel Corp., said his company believes such standards are an "effective way to promote the industry and ensure the safety and satisfaction of consumers." 

Need standards for wheels

Charlie Hogarty, the former CEO of Keystone Automotive who now serves as a consultant to the company, agreed. "We also believe that standards could be set that would as-sure the shops they were getting wheels from a manufacturer that met all safety standards," Hogarty said. "We have concerns that there are too many low-end operators who don't operate to that standard and have a negative impact on our business - and [the shop's] business - when they repair wheels that really should be scrapped."

Hogarty's and McClellan's comments came during a CIC panel discussion that resulted from concerns raised earlier in the year by New Jersey shop owner Joe Lubrano. He said he has received re- manufactured wheels that he did not feel would be safe to use; indeed, one such wheel failed, although the tire developed a slow leak rather than a blowout. He said the lack of standards for the re-manufacturing of wheels results in added liability for the shop.

"I had an attorney draw up a 'hold harmless agreement,' so that if we use a [re-manufactured] wheel at the shop, either the insurer or the supplier has to be responsible for the liability and hold us exempt," Lubrano said. "No one has ever wanted to sign it. They always want us to accept the liability. If they were willing to accept that liability for their product, that would say quite a bit. But since they won't, that says something else."

Hogarty said such concerns are a key reason shops should buy from reputable suppliers who carry adequate product liability insurance. "In the event of a suit, it's not the shop that will have the deepest pocket," Hogarty said.

Similar standards to those for new wheels

Another participant on the panel, Ken Archibald of Independent Test Services, said his company has conducted wheel testing for the automakers, aftermarket wheel manufacturers, and wheel re-manufacturers. He said the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) has developed industry standards for both OEM and non-OEM wheels, and that similar standards could be developed for re-manufactured wheels provided the suppliers of such wheels are willing to participate in the process.

He said such standards would likely include permanent labeling of the re-manufactured wheels, and would be enforced just as those for new wheels: through regular independent inspections of wheel re-manufacturers processes and products.

Virtually all of the automakers caution against the use of re-manufactured wheels. Ford Motor Company, for example, earlier this year issued updated guidance on wheel recycling, saying it does not approve the use of such wheels if the re-manufacturing process involves "re-machining, re-plating, welding, bending, straightening, reforming or adding new material other than cosmetic coatings."

"They all say don't use them, and all of their dealers use them," Archibald said of the automakers. "It's a matter of what the parent wants and what the child does."

Concerns with ADP estimating system

Also at CIC in Las Vegas, the CIC Estimating Committee tackled a long-standing but complex issue regarding the ADP estimating system. In some instances, ADP's system results in structural or mechanical operations being in-corporated within a body operation. Installing a radiator support, for example, may involve removing and reinstalling the condenser, a mechanical operation.

ADP's system, however, often includes this operation as part of its radiator support body operation. The labor allowance is often higher than CCC's or Mitchell's because it includes the condenser operation. However, with either CCC or Mitchell, the repairer may specify a mechanical rate for the condenser operation.