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Reply to "What are the Pros & Cons of Magnesium vs Aluminum Wheels"

Magnesium rims will start to work harden after about ten years, eventually possibly resulting in cracking which, if it gets bad enough, will result in failure. This can be prevented by periodically checking the wheels for cracks (magafluxing does not work so Zyglow dye testing is required to do this), then annealing (stress-relieving) the wheels by baking and then slowly cooling them in a specific way. Cracks, if they are not too bad, can be welded but this takes finding an experience welder who can work with magnesium - good luck with that one. Corrosion is also a very bad problem if the finish on the wheel gets scratched (or if someone repainted the wheel without the required chromate primer to seal it) and moisture is allowed into the porous magnesium. Outgassing is an issue too, but too complex to get into here.

I know of at least one Pantera that was in a very serious crash because a corroded Campy failed.

In terms of durability, it seems to me that would depend on two factors. First, I would expect the mileage would have a bearing on it, and most of our cars are not daily drivers, so I would be surprised if the work hardening rate would not be commensurately low. Second, if a wheel is well maintained, and with any scratches being immediately re-sealed, the corrosion should be limited (although I inspect the hub area for corrosion whenever the wheels are off the car because that is a contact point on which I have observed it is not possible to maintain a perfect seal). In short, if your car is not a daily beater with bad curb rash, I would think you would be safe going for a lot longer than ten years without Zyglow testing and annealing - but this is just my personal opinion which is worth exactly what you are paying for it.

Mike Drew and Jack DeRyke have written about this quite comprehensively here and elsewhere, and I suggest looking that up. Or, if there is enough interest, I can re-post the information.

All this was also explained in the February 2018 POCA Newsletter which is available in the club archives for download.

Last edited by peterh
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