I have had the tire remounted (2x) and the rim cleaned yet the left front tire continues to lose air pressure.
Rumor has it that the rim is porous and air is lost through the rim and not from around the tire.
2002 VW Passat AWD
I thought I had porous wheels, too, but I took my leaking tires and wheels to a different tire shop and they sealed the beads. No more leaks.
If the wheel is porous you should be able to see air bubbles in a water tank, just like with a leaking tire. Rumor isn’t a good enough reason to believe the wheels are leaking. Make them prove it.
Take the wheel off, spray everything with soapy water, especially the bead and valve areas, and look for bubbles.
Has the valve stem been carefully checked?
Been there, done that, no obvious leak
Tire stem was replaced 2x
Tires have been seen by VW, Tire Kingdom, and two local mechanics (one in VT, one in FL). So I’m grasping at straws, even rumors.
The water tank should show it one way or another.
Has been in the water tank several times along with the soapy treatment. No air loss is evident. Once remounted pressure seems to hold for several days maybe a week and then the air loss starts again.
It seems you’ve tryed everything, perhaps the wheel has gone bad or the tire has a defect in the bead area.
I had a similar very slow leak. The tire shop found some corrosion in the wheel where the valve stem goes. They cleaned it up and put in a new stem and it holds air fine now.
Try mounting a different tire on the “defective” wheel. If that doesn’t work it is time to buy a new wheel, or keep a 12V tire pump in the trunk at all times.
The Craftsman’s tire pump (110 AC) plus extention cord travels where ever we go! Good idea to try a different tire on that rim. That will be the next step.
TKS!
The next time you mess with it, pull the stem and carefully examine the hole it fits into. Any corrosion there spells trouble. Why fight it?? Find a used wheel!
I really hope to find out if anyone else has had this problem with a VW rim and if they did what did they do to fix it before I spend any more $'s. I don’t want to go from one bad rim to another.
A wheel or rim rarely goes bad with out some help from a pothole, or curb. It is possible to have one just be defective. No particular problem with VW. Rule of thumb; the fancier the wheel the more fragile it will be. Good old fashioned steel wheels (with the cheapie plastic wheel covers) are the sturdiest of them all.
If I went with steel I’d have to buy 4 rims to have it look half way decent. Too much $'s.