Cruisers Forum
Main Forum => General Discussion => Topic started by: Two Hams in a Can on March 27, 2017, 05:16:47 pm
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The extended valve stems with TPMS sensors attached have been jammed inside the openings in the rear wheel covers due to the covers rotating from the position where the valve stems were formerly protruding through the openings. We thought the shop that put the extensions on didn't put the covers on properly, but we discovered that they were slipping with the wheel rotation. Has anyone else experienced this? I'll try to post pics below. :help
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Unless someone didn't put the wheel covers all the way on, what you say is next to impossible. On the inside of any rear wheel cover are 6 holes that cover the 6 lug nuts. With the lug nuts in those holes... The cover cannot rotate.
But I have seen loose extensions put on valves that will rotate the way your picture shows...to one end of the slot. That is due to poor installation of the extenders.
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I had a similar problem on the rear wheels of our 2016 E450. I reinstalled the covers a couple of times to reposition the valve protruding through the cover but soon shifted back to where the covers had rotated back against the valves. The wheel covers on our PC appear to be made differently than the ones in your photo. Our covers have several small metal spring tabs that are designed to secure the cover to the wheel. I slightly bent the tabs in a direction to resist slippage. In our case the right rear cover was slipping in a clockwise direction and counter clockwise on the left rear. I suspect the covers were slipping during braking but I am not sure. After about a 1,000 miles I can't detect any cover movement relative to the wheel.
I can't really see how your covers are secured to the wheels so i am not sure if what I described has any relevance in your style covers.
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Unless someone didn't put the wheel covers all the way on, what you say is next to impossible. On the inside of any rear wheel cover are 6 holes that cover the 6 lug nuts. With the lug nuts in those holes... The cover cannot rotate.
We were in the shop office when the shop guy said the thing about "wheel covers rotating" and the rig was in the parking lot with the covers inside. I wasn't sure about what was under the covers, but it sure looks like what you say is true. I'll do some trying on tomorrow and see how things are put together.
Our covers have several small metal spring tabs that are designed to secure the cover to the wheel. I slightly bent the tabs in a direction to resist slippage. In our case the right rear cover was slipping in a clockwise direction and counter clockwise on the left rear. I suspect the covers were slipping during braking but I am not sure. After about a 1,000 miles I can't detect any cover movement relative to the wheel. I can't really see how your covers are secured to the wheels so i am not sure if what I described has any relevance in your style covers.
In the third picture there are prongs sticking out of the holes in the cover's edge that should grip the rim.
We bought our PC used and the previous owner had put new tires and metal valve extensions on it last September. The extensions didn't reach far enough to use any TPMS sensors, so I asked this shop near us to replace them with longer extensions. Imagine my surprise when I removed one while adjusting a sensor and found they had just added a second short metal extension to the one already on the tire! Today we went back and all agreed they would redo the whole mess with one long extension on each tire that will reach outboard for easy access...at no additional cost to us. we will address the rotating wheel cover at that time. Thanks for you guys' input. :)(:
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OK. . .after the cold rain let up, I took another hard look at my rear wheel covers with the above comments in mind. . .not good pyho Pic # 1- Looking at the backside of the wheel cover, there are no holes to allow the lug nuts to enter and thus hold the thing in place without rotation. Pic #2- Looking at the front of the cover, this is what stands between said lug nut. Pic #3- Again looking at the backside and around the dish bottom, there's a hole. Pic #4- There are six sets of these spring loaded prongs that hold the cover onto the rim; but obviously cannot prevent rotation of the cover due to the torque.
Does anyone else have this type of wheel cover; and if so, does it cause any valve stem problems? I'm sending all this to Kermit in an email since he would know what can be done. . .I just wanted to share it with you guys in case you have the same issue. :)(:
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I don't have a picture of what I do , I use long tie warps through the holes on the cover and through the holes on the wheels, I use 2 tie warps per wheel wheel, 180 degree apart. holds the wheel cover to the wheel, lose one going down the road. You might give ti a try, wheel try and get some pictures this weekend, as I'm getting ready for a trip to AR in two weeks
Jim
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I don't have a picture of what I do , I use long tie warps through the holes on the cover and through the holes on the wheels, I use 2 tie warps per wheel wheel, 180 degree apart. holds the wheel cover to the wheel, lose one going down the road. You might give ti a try, wheel try and get some pictures this weekend, as I'm getting ready for a trip to AR in two weeks
Jim
Thanks Jim. . .Kermit at Phoenix didn't have a fix so yours sounds like the best. 2o2 :)(:
Edit: Just went out and put cable ties on the wheels. Should hold fast. Thanks again for the tip. tymote
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Two Hams in a Can.....the only thing I would try is to first bend those little springs out some so they get as much grip as possible, I would then clean the heck out of the rims and place some Ulta duty Velcro pads (the felt piece) exaxctly where the spring are and see if that does not give some extra grip enough to hold them in place? My bet is they will continue to "walk" but who knows? Ron G.
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Thanks Ron. Right now the covers are secured with cable ties and will be headed to the shop that messed up our original valve extensions job for a redo. After they finish their work, I'll certainly try your suggestion with cable ties on deck in case they're needed. The rims do need a good cleaning! :)(:
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A little late in joining this conversation, but our relatively new 2100 has had the same problem. Had it to the local ford twice now. They straighten it out and scratch their head. Ours only happens of the passenger side. The Ford dealer suggested I get longer metal, not braided, extensions but I'm afraid that the spinning covers might cause the extensions to leak. So my plan is to get the metal extensions and try the wire tie trick. Thanks for the info. Now I just gotta find the right extensions and a place to install them.
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Hey GARMP, I'm getting ready to put these on my Sprinter http://yourtireshopsupply.com/product/7193/dl1spfr-chrome-duallyvalve-with-front-stems-dl1spfr and I called my local Discount Tire Shop and got the best price on their 4 star out of 5 work. We still use cable ties to hold the wheel covers in place. The link should get you to the model that fits your Ford. :)(:
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Same rotating problem and lost caps on my 2910T. I use 2 big zip ties on them now. Almost 4000 miles this year so far with them still in place.
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Ford owners can solve this issue by switching to the Wheel Masters brand wheel liners that fasten to the wheel studs. http://www.wheelmasters.com/wheeliners.html
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OK wire tie Guys! First off my covers are totally different than the ones in the pics, they only have 4 holes evenly spaced. How much of a pain was it to get the wire tie through the cover and the wheel itself? I'm one of those guys that has a hard time deciding which end of a screwdriver goes where so keep it simple.
Thanks.
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Bob, I make a 90 Degree bend about 6 to 8 inches from the point, then fish the tie rap through both holes, you might have to use a flash light to check between the 2 tires to make sure the tie rap is going through both holes then push it through the next to holes. I also have a pair of 12 inch surgical clamps to help along. Hope this will help you.
Jim
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This is a fairly common problem with the Sprinter wheels. I also use the wire ties however I used ties that are made of stainless steel. They are available at Home Depot and Lowe’s.
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KB, thanks for the info. Our RV was in storage and I was going from memory so, as I am, the worse case scenarios popped into my mind. Couldn't find the stainless steel ties and the 14" ones I have weren't quite long to give me much room to work. Had to buy 24" (much wider than I wanted and nothing in between in the store) and they just fell through the holes. So now at the last minute, we're leaving the a couple of days for three week trip, I decide this has to be done.
At least I can travel feeling better about the covers and will order bolt ones when we get home.
Thanks again to every one.