File in Section:
Bulletin No.:

Service Bulletin

Date:

03 - Suspension
07-03-10-015C
May, 2013

WARRANTY ADMINISTRATION
Subject:

General Motors New Vehicle Wheel Warranty Coverage

Models:

2014 and Prior GM Passenger Cars and Light Duty Trucks

This bulletin is being revised to add the 2013-2014 model years and remove the Saab
Warranty Information. Please discard Corporate Bulletin Number 07-03-10-015B.

The General Motors New Vehicle Wheel
Warranty
This bulletin has been issued to clarify warrantable
conditions on GM OEM wheels. It is our intent that this
one document will answer many of the warranty
scenarios you are likely to encounter. Unlike other parts
of the vehicle, wheels encounter various road hazards,
corrosive substances and abuses that may present
questions in both the mind of the customer and the
dealer. Eligible conditions are warranted for the full term
of the New Vehicle Warranty.

Information Sources for Wheel Issues
The following GM Service Bulletins contain information
useful to minimizing possible damage, and reducing
customer concerns that may arise through incorrect
servicing and improper cleaning products.
• #00-03-10-002 – Chemical Staining, Pitting,
Corrosion and/or Spotted Appearance of
Chromed Aluminum Wheels
• #04-03-10-012 – Pitting and Brake Dust on
Chrome Wheels
• #06-03-10-004 – Proper Use of OEM Service
Wheel Weights, Marring and/or Damage Due to
Use of Non-OEM and/or Incorrect Wheel
Weight Installation
• #06-03-10-010 – Information on Proper Wheel
Changing Procedures and Cautions

Copyright 2013 General Motors LLC. All Rights Reserved.

What is NOT Warrantable
GM provides many different styles and finishes for our
passenger car and truck wheels. You will find both steel
and aluminum wheels with painted, polished or chrome
finishes available. While each of these types must meet
GM durability standards for road impacts and finish
appearance, there are conditions that are not
warrantable.
Curb Impact / Scrapes
Wheels that have been damaged through abuse are
not warrantable. Finish scraping and wheel flanges that
have been damaged due to curb impact are not
warrantable.
Bent Wheel Flanges / Cracked Wheels
Bent wheels and cracked wheels due to road hazards
are not warrantable. In many cases bent and cracked
wheels result from driving on low tire air pressure or a
flat tire. Low tire pressures dramatically reduce the
impact protection the wheel has and lowers the
threshold where damage may occur.
Finish Damage / Streaking / Pitting / Corrosion
There are many different types of finish damage
possible, resulting from aggressive cleaning products,
road chemicals, poor tire changing practices, or
manufacturing processes. Some of these are
warrantable while others indicate abuse. See the Finish
Damage sections below, which give examples of the
different types of specific finish concern issues you may
encounter.

Page 2

May, 2013

NON-Warrantable Examples
The following are examples of actual wheels that were
returned to General Motors under the New Vehicle
Warranty and have been analyzed and reviewed.

Bulletin No.: 07-03-10-015C

The photo above illustrates a crack in the wheel from a
road hazard. In addition to the damage seen in the
photo, the flange of the wheel was bent in the same
area. Customer comments may include, vibration, air
loss, or a wheel that cannot be balanced. This is not a
warrantable condition and does not indicate any defect
in the wheel. A Feedback Report was issued on this
wheel.

1985595

The wheel above exhibits typical wheel rim damage on
the inboard flange, caused by a road hazard. Customer
comments may be vibration, air loss, or a wheel that
cannot be balanced. This damage is not warrantable
and a Warranty Parts Center (WPC) Regional
Feedback Report was issued on this wheel. (Most WPC
Regional Feedback Reports result in a chargeback of
the warranty claim to the dealership.)
Important: Customers whose vehicles have sustained
road hazard damage due to poor road surfaces on
county or state roads may have recourse through their
insurance company or through the county or state road
commission. These policies vary by area. Contact your
country or state government to check eligibility.

1985602

The photo above is an example of the over-use of
wheel weights to try to overcome another issue. This
wheel has a bent outboard flange exactly 180° from the
application of 79 1/4oz. (7 gr.) wheel weights! This
condition is both not-warrantable and an example of
incorrect servicing. If a wheel and tire assembly will not
balance, the wheel should be examined and checked
for runout. The associated tire should also be checked
for radial force variation.

1792400
1985592

Chemical staining in most cases results from acid
based cleaners (refer to Figure 1 for an example).

Bulletin No.: 07-03-10-015C

May, 2013

These stains are frequently milky, black, or greenish in
appearance. They result from using cleaning solutions
that contain acids on chrome wheels. Soap and water
is usually sufficient to clean wheels.
If the customer insists on using a wheel cleaner they
should only use one that specifically states that it is
safe for chromed wheels and does not contain anything
in the following list. (Dealers should also survey any
products they use during prep or normal cleaning of
stock units for these chemicals.)
• Ammonium Bifluoride (fluoride source for
dissolution of chrome)
• Hydrofluoric Acid (directly dissolves chrome)
• Hydrochloric Acid (directly dissolves chrome)
• Sodium Dodecylbenzenesulfonic Acid
• Sulfamic Acid
• Phosphoric Acid
• Hydroxyacetic Acid
Notice: Many wheel cleaner instructions advise to
take care to avoid contact with painted surfaces. Most
customers think of painted surfaces as the fenders,
quarter panels and other exterior sheet metal. Many
vehicles have painted brake calipers. Acidic wheel
cleaners may craze, crack, or discolor the paint on the
brake calipers. Damage from wheel cleaners is not
covered under the vehicle new car warranty. Soap and
water applied with a soft brush is usually all that is
required to clean the calipers.
Whenever any wheel cleaner is used, it must be
THOROUGHLY rinsed off of the wheel with clean, clear
water. Special care must be taken to rinse under the
hub cap, balance weights, wheel nuts, lug nut caps,
between the wheel cladding and off the back side of the
wheel. Wheels returned to the Warranty Parts Center
that exhibit damage from wheel cleaners most often
have the damage around and under the wheel weight
where the cleaner was incompletely flushed away.
Notice: Do not use cleaning solutions that contain
hydrofluoric, oxalic and most other acids on chrome
wheels (or any wheels).
If the customer is unsure of the chemical make-up of a
particular wheel cleaner, it should be avoided.
Important:: In some cases when this type of stain is
not too severe, it may be possible to improve the
appearance with certain chrome cleaner/polishes.
Refer to the latest version of Corporate Bulletin
Number 00-03-10-002 for additional information.

Warrantable Issues
Any defects in the finish, balance, or structure of the
wheel resulting from improper manufacture are covered
under the New Vehicle Warranty for the full time and
mileage limits of that warranty. Typical covered finish
issues that you may encounter are:
• Flaky or pitted chrome on the visible wheel
surface indicating poor adhesion of the plating.

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Page 3
Polished or machined aluminum wheels that
exhibit Filiform Corrosion (chalky white lines under
the clear coating) This condition is warrantable,
unless it is caused by incorrect wheel weight
application and use.
Wheel center caps that exhibit similar conditions
to warrantable wheel concerns.
Thin or poor paint finish quality on painted wheels.
Bubbling / Flaking of the paint.
Paint damage incurred during stick-on wheel
weight changes. (See Stick-On Wheel Weight
Paint Damage or Paint Flaking/Peeling Backside
of Wheel)
Flaking or peeling on backside surface of wheel
indicating poor adhesion of the plating (See
Stick-On Wheel Weight Paint Damage or Paint
Flaking/Peeling Backside of Wheel).

1792402

One type of finish concern specific to chromed
aluminum wheels is spotting or what appears as golden
colored pits on the surface (See example above). This
type of finish concern is not the fault of any
manufacturing or durability shortfall. This dissatisfier
results from corrosive road chemicals used for dust
control in some areas. (Calcium Chloride) Wheels with
this type of corrosion may be eligible to be warranted
one time only. Please refer to the latest version
Bulletin Number 00-03-10-002 for additional
information.

Preparing Wheel(s) for Warranty Return
The wheels returned to General Motors for warranty
coverage are evaluated by a team made up of
representatives from Engineering, GM Service, Quality,
and the manufacturing OE Wheel Suppliers. During
review of returned wheels, a finite amount of time is
available to evaluate each wheel. It may benefit your
dealership to observe the following guidelines for
returning wheels.

Page 4

May, 2013
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2030261

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Please mark the defect in the wheel. You may use
a paint pen, grease marker or tape off the area.
Many times the Repair Order is not clear as to the
reported concern. Simply circling the area of
concern on the wheel is sufficient.
Clean the wheel if it is overly dirty. It is not required
that the wheel be polished or detailed. Returned
wheels covered over with dirt/mud create the
possibility of overlooking a cosmetic flaw that was
the subject of the wheel return, creating a possible
Feedback Report.
Treat the wheel with care before packing for
return. Dismounted wheel rims can be scratched
and bent easily if abused before packing. This
type of damage can mimic road/curb damage
creating a possible Feedback Report.

Removal of Stick-On Adhesive Backed Wheel
Weights
Many “flangeless” design wheels require the use of
stick-on or adhesive backed wheel weights. Improper
removal of the wheel weights (on chrome plated
wheels) may peel, scratch or flake the paint on the
interior surface of the wheel. Normally this is of no
concern, but on some vehicles with wheels that are of a
very open design, the interior of the wheel may be a
visible surface. Here are tips to aid the removal of these
weights.
• Use ONLY Plastic tools for removal of the wheel
weights. The best tools to use are commercially
available plastic putty knives or a plastic
accusative trim removal tool. Use the tapered end
of the tool to remove the wheel weight. These
plastic tools are delicate on the painted surfaces
serving to “push” the adhesive off the surface
rather than scraping.

Bulletin No.: 07-03-10-015C
Any adhesive left on the wheel may be cleaned
with an automotive adhesive remover such as 3M
General Purpose Adhesive Remover #08984 or
equivalent.
In most cases you will not encounter any difficulty
with OEM painted aluminum wheels. Fully painted
wheels have a robust paint application process
that cannot be matched and duplicated. Chromed
aluminum wheels have an air dry paint applied to
the back side of the wheel, which is applied over a
chromed surface. If a chromed aluminum wheel
paint on the interior of the wheel peels, refer to the
section below.

Stick-On Wheel Weight Paint Damage or Paint
Flaking/Peeling Backside of Wheel (Chromed
Aluminum Wheels)
Under no circumstances should the wheel be replaced
for this type of damage. Damage caused by improper
removal, metal tool scrapes and gouges should not be
submitted. If you encounter a wheel where the paint
has peeled, you may repaint the backside of the wheel.
GM currently uses two all-purpose colors to paint the
inside of the wheel area. Both colors are a flat paint
available in a very light silver or dark silver. Follow all
manufacturers instructions when refinishing and refer to
the GM Labor Time Guide for Material Allowances
noting the warranty information below.

Aluminum Wheel Paint Codes
Description

Paint Code

Light Silver Metallic

WA-303L

Dark Silver Metallic

WAEQ715Q

Warranty Information
Use the following Labor Operation when repairing a
vehicle under warranty.
You are allowed to claim ONE-HALF the total amount of
allowable time and materials as only the back side of
the wheel is being repainted in this operation.
Labor
Operation

1445854

Labor
Time

Description
Wheels, Aluminum - Color/
Clear Coat - One

GM bulletins are intended for use by professional technicians, NOT a "do-it-yourselfer". They are written to inform these
technicians of conditions that may occur on some vehicles, or to provide information that could assist in the proper
service of a vehicle. Properly trained technicians have the equipment, tools, safety instructions, and know-how to do a
job properly and safely. If a condition is described, DO NOT assume that the bulletin applies to your vehicle, or that your
vehicle will have that condition. See your GM dealer for information on whether your vehicle may benefit from the
information.

Use
Published
Labor
Operation
Time

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