Need Opinions. Style 32 BMW Wheels from Cyruline

[m3f_EY84002]

Ok. Need some opinions. Short story is this:



A friend recently bought a 1999 323ic, 5spd, with ~25k mi. Beautiful car. I helped him buy some new Style 32's, which are similar to the stock wheel but bigger. Should be a good look.



This guy Cyruline on eBay had a set of 17's that fit E36. Perfect. Buy them, $1350. It takes 3 weeks to get all 4 wheels to me, he lied about fedex losing the package, I spoke with fedex, they never had it. Anyway, here is his listing, and pics. The next 3 photos are straight from his eBay listing...including the photos of these on various vehicles.



His listing & photos:









This is the color I got....I pictured next to one of my town cars wheels to show how dark it is.





Are these blemishes normal for an OEM, dealer take off wheel? Looks refinished to me. These are my pics...he of course advertised as "perfect condition"







It seems quite evident to me that the color is drastically different than he represented, however he is sticking to the story that it's a lighting issue and my fault. I'm open to people's thoughts here. Am I nuts?



Lastly. so stupid me agreed to send him the money straight PayPal instead of purchasing through the eBay so I am not as protected as I would like. He thinks return shipping is my responsibility. He is just awful to deal with.

[m3f_westopher]

Photos can do mysterious things, although I can tell you this.

A) They have been refinished in what he probably tried to do in a very difficult to match OEM colour.

B) You already have learned to take all buyer protection you can. Anyone who suggests discounts otherwise to purchase out of eBay/paypal is willing to **** you over.

C) These wheels can be found in great shape all day for 400-500 bucks, and in 17x8/17x9 sets.

Overall a shitty transaction, but I'd just keep them and take it as a lesson learned. Fighting with this guy seems like it will end up a losing battle unless paypal/your credit card company steps in.

[m3f_betrezra]

Paypal will protect you. But you are on the hook for return shipping.


Gl

[m3f_Braymond141]

The color of the wheels could be accurate. He is right about the lighting. The pictures shown on some of the cars are not accurate. Anything with a black base coat, as he has shown, is going to be a chrome shadow.



Are the green and blue dots shown in the pics present on the received set?



Yes some of that damage is normal for dealer takeoffs. They had tires on them and removal by incompentent workers leads to edge damages. Does not match his description however. The flaking paint... maybe OE. Don't give BMW too much credit for making nice parts.



I think you're both in the wrong here. You for thinking the color was something else (it is misleading some so I get it). Him for not understanding what "not a single scratch" means.

[m3f_M_Parallel]

Unless the ebay pics were photoshopped to look silver, they are not the same wheels.


There is lighting and then there is just messing around.


Even if they would be the same set, the way they are presented doesn't reflect reality. Enough for an uncorrectly described item claim.

[m3f_Braymond141]

Unless the ebay pics were photoshopped to look silver, they are not the same wheels.


There is lighting and then there is just messing around.


Even if they would be the same set, the way they are presented doesn't reflect reality. Enough for an uncorrectly described item claim.

"Hyper Black" "chrome shadow" coating processes look exactly as shown in the ad and by EY. It would be better to suggest he try to duplicate the lighting used in the ad versus the dark lighting next to a bright silver wheel. I have covered this in the past with powdercoatings. Perspective skews perception greatly.

[m3f_M-technik-3]

I ran them on my M3 and 318Ti. fit great but they are soft and in New England roads are crap so I bent. They are also boat anchors so your suspension has to work harder with the extra weight. I never understood why BMW opted for such heavy cast wheels for the E36.


I have a set of OZ and some Kosei's and D-force so I just switch up when I get bored.

[m3f_EY84002]

It's been one lie and excuse after another. I understand these can be had for less money, we bought from him to avoid the snakes selling misrepresented/bent/fake wheels. Paying a premium was AOK.



Regardless of the color debate, which I will never agree with because I had them out in the bright sun. It's a combination of other things:



-The wheels are not the same wheels that were pictured. His pictured wheels are all one color...face and barrel. These wheels have black barrels and visible tape marks from when they were painted/refinished. The blue/green dots are in the different locations.



-It took 3 weeks to get the wheels when he told me 3 days handling time and FedEx Ground is a 3day ship. He shipped the fronts and backs a week apart...he lied and told me a label fell off the package. I spoke to FedEx myself, they never had the box.



-The wheels weren't shipped in the white boxes pictured, in fact they were just wrapped in garbage bags and put in a master carton. More evidence that he just stages wheels for pictures and sells other ones.



He hasn't done one thing to earn the benefit of the doubt.



I have my theories on how he runs his business but I will not speculate and stick to writing the facts I can prove. It's ridiculous. I will get my money back, but I'm pissed because I will likely have to pay the return shipping. It's the principal that someone else's unethical actions will end up costing me money.

[m3f_Braymond141]

It's been one lie and excuse after another. I understand these can be had for less money, we bought from him to avoid the snakes selling misrepresented/bent/fake wheels. Paying a premium was AOK.


Regardless of the color debate, which I will never agree with because I had them out in the bright sun. It's a combination of other things:


-The wheels are not the same wheels that were pictured. His pictured wheels are all one color...face and barrel. These wheels have black barrels and visible tape marks from when they were painted/refinished. The blue/green dots are in the different locations.


-It took 3 weeks to get the wheels when he told me 3 days handling time and FedEx Ground is a 3day ship. He shipped the fronts and backs a week apart...he lied and told me a label fell off the package. I spoke to FedEx myself, they never had the box.


-The wheels weren't shipped in the white boxes pictured, in fact they were just wrapped in garbage bags and put in a master carton. More evidence that he just stages wheels for pictures and sells other ones.


He hasn't done one thing to earn the benefit of the doubt.


I have my theories on how he runs his business but I will not speculate and stick to writing the facts I can prove. It's ridiculous. I will get my money back, but I'm pissed because I will likely have to pay the return shipping. It's the principal that someone else's unethical actions will end up costing me money.

If all that is true then one would have to agree with you. I didn't look last night but as I suspected he's the guy that mirror polishes every junkyard wheel he finds. I hate some of the stuff he sells.


Best of luck getting him to do the right thing.

[m3f_Nate047]

Lesson learned, use PayPal only and go through eBay only.


I got burned recently in an entirely different yet equally frustrating way.

[m3f_NolliM3]

I can affirm that Paypal will reimburse you when you pay the return shipping, and it shows delivered. Take pictures of the rims in the box at the shipper's before you tape it shut and get staff to witness condition before you turn it over to them.

[m3f_humarahumara]

Going through something very similar. Bought an exhaust that was in "excellent" condition. Was banged up like you wouldn't believe. PayPal was no help so I called my credit card company to stop payment to Paypal. I'm gonna fight it as hard as I can. We'll see how it turns out. Hate sellers like this.

[m3f_englishtom1596q]

those are definitely not the same wheels as advertised and have been resprayed (without being cleaned). i would fight hard for your money back

[m3f_Braymond141]

those are definitely not the same wheels as advertised and have been resprayed (without being cleaned). i would fight hard for your money back

https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...y-from-factory



BMW does shit work too.

[m3f_Nipps]

Hey EY,


I work in the factory and aftermarket wheel industry. I am very familiar with factory wheel paint and BMW's shadow chrome AKA hyper black. Hyper black is an extremely hard color to match. Hyper black is a black base coat with a special transparent silver on top of it. Yes, it is very possible to take a picture of the same wheel and have each picture make the finish look different. In my opinion, these are not the same wheels.


You can see full sized pictures still on the item page: http://www.ebay.com/itm/171189156652.


A factory takeoff means that the wheel was removed off of a vehicle for reasons other than being scrapped. A take-off should be in good condition with minor signs of wear, no cracks, and hopefully no bends. A dealer take-off means it was removed by the dealer off of a car with <500 miles. His auction states that they were purchased from overstock or showroom takeoff. Both of these should indicate almost no wear. Yes, it's possible that the wheels get damaged by an incompetent installer, BUT, his ad states "There is not even a single scratch or etc on these wheels.". His ad also states that they've never been painted or refurbished.


Like Braymond said, I have also seen some shitty paint coming out of the factory, but I have never seen an OE wheel that did have a uniform finish; meaning I've never seen a factory wheel with tape marks. I have seen wheels with overspray.


In my opinion, you did not receive that was advertised and should get your money back. Here's how, assuming you purchased on eBay.


First, you'll want to open a case on eBay. Make sure to select "item significantly not as described". The seller will be responsible for return shipping and you will receive a full refund including shipping.


Next, see if the seller is providing a shipping label or if eBay will provide the shipping label.


Ship it back ASAP and watch the tracking info. You should receive a refund once the wheels are returned to the seller. If a refund is not issued by the seller, you can have eBay step in and they will refund you.


It should be as simple. If you did not purchase them on eBay, let me know how you paid and I'll give you info on getting a return processed.


EDIT:


Just saw in the OP you said you paid direct through PayPal. Did you use a credit card, debit card, or bank account?