Hi everyone,

As the title suggests, my mechanic advised I have two buckled alloys that need replaced and I could use some advice.

Car info

VW Golf MK7 2016 TDI, 205/55 R16 tyres

Questions

- Is it possible that unbalanced wheels may be misattributed to buckled alloys?

- Would swapping front and back wheels be of any use (and if so, how much)?

- Where is a trustworthy place to source new alloys in the UK? Glasgow area preferable.

- Can alloys from eBay be trusted?

- Finally, would 17" alloys comfortably fit on this car? Have seen these sold more commonly than the 16" rims for some reason

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Context

Hit a nasty pothole at about 60mph, passenger side. Got a damper replaced and the handling massively improved. No more dead zone in the centre of the steering wheel, better handling in corners, much more fun overall.

Hit another pothole (30-40mph, driver's side) and the handling immediately changed. Pulling during hard braking, insane road noise at high speeds (>60mph), and maybe a little steering wheel shudder (sorry, not certain).

After a service / timing belt change / suspension check, this is when my main mechanic said the alloys are buckled and causing my problems.

Local tyre place said wheels may just be unbalanced, swapping front / rear wheels might help diagnostically. Just as steps to try before dropping a couple hundred on new alloys.

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Thanks in advance for anyone who takes the time to reply 🙂 and apologies for the long context, I figured too much information is better than too little