Tire leaks - Wheel replacement necessary?

I have a 1995 Accord. The air in two my tires leak out gradually. I have had it looked at a tire place. They say, nothing wrong with the tires but I will need new set of wheels. Is this true?



Thanks for your advice.



Ravi

Are they alloy wheels? Any visible corrosion? Pump them up to 50 PSI and spray some soapy water around the valve stems, a favorite spot for leaks. This can be cleaned up and repaired… So can porous wheels. Tires are removed, wheels cleaned up, the inside of the wheels sprayed with clear lacquer as they were at the factory, allowed to dry, tires reinstalled and balanced. Few shops today are willing to do this kind of work.

Now you know why I don’t favor the cheap alloy wheels on cars. Note: the good alloy wheels used on real race cars cost thousands of dollars each. You did not have this kind of problem with good old steel wheels and with nice wheel covers they look good.

In fact you likely can have the wheels repaired, see Caddyman’s response.

Not always true. Rust at the bead edge can cause a leak just like an alloy wheel. Usually remounting is the answer. The interesting thing about owning alloy wheels for me in the last 20 years since my first car, I have never had a problem. I did however run into a problem with winter steel rims and rust making remounting two wheels needed.