You misjudged a curb while parking, and now one wheel has a silver gash along its edge. Or a pothole left a shake in the steering at highway speed, or a tire keeps going flat and the tire shop says the rim is cracked.
So how much does wheel repair cost? At wheel repair shops in Texas, California and New Jersey, fixing curb rash costs $85 to $225 a wheel, straightening a bent wheel $75 to $350, and repairing a small crack $85 to $250.
Owners paid $110 a wheel to have a bent Corvette wheel straightened and $170 to have a cracked one welded, while dealers quoted $900 to $938.50 for a new wheel.
In this guide I will show you what the shops charge, what owners paid, when a wheel should be replaced and not repaired, and what makes the price go up.
What Wheel Repair Shops Charge
Here are the prices per wheel from four shops, checked October 16, 2026:
RimSpec, with shops around Dallas-Fort Worth, fixes most damage for $85 a wheel and charges $15 more when the tire is still on a bent wheel. You can also mail it a wheel, plus shipping.
The Wheel Rim Group in Whippany, New Jersey, straightens or welds the inner barrel for $135, in one to one and a half hours. It charges $35 to $75 to take the tire off, put it back and balance it.
Its full remanufacture, straightened and refinished, is $229 for a single color or diamond-cut wheel, $250 for a polished one and $300 or more for a two or three piece wheel.
Best Wheel Repair in Anaheim prices a bent wheel by the damage. It charges $75 to $125 for a minor bend on the inner lip, $125 to $200 for a moderate one and $200 to $350 for a severe bend on the face.
It adds $200 for curb rash refinishing, welds one or two cracks for $200, and charges $40 to take the tire off and balance it again.
For mobile repair at your home, SoCal Auto Touch Up in Orange County advertises curb rash repair at $139 a rim for a limited time.
What Owners Paid
Here are the wheel repair bills I found from owners, with the date each was posted:
- A dealer offered two new front wheels for a 2017 Corvette for about $1,800. The owner had both straightened instead for $110 each, filed in October 2018.
- A wheel repair shop fixed three badly bent wheels and one slightly bent wheel of a 2017 Corvette for $400 in all, filed in May 2019.
- Welding a cracked, leaking rim on a 2019 Corvette cost $170, and the leak came back, filed in October 2020.
- A shop in northern New Jersey quoted $175 a wheel, or $700 for all four, to fix curb rash on the 21 inch wheels of a Model Y Performance, in May 2023.
- A Tesla owner was quoted $200 to repair and repaint a curbed front wheel, in June 2024.
- A Chevrolet dealer wanted $900 each to replace two cracked rear wheels of a 2017 Corvette Grand Sport, and offered to pay half, filed in November 2023.
- After GM turned down a warranty claim for a cracked rim on a 2020 Equinox, the dealer offered a new one for $938.50, filed in September 2022.
So owners paid or were quoted $110 to $200 a wheel for straightening, welding or curb rash, $400 for four bent wheels, and $900 to $938.50 for a new wheel from a dealer.
Repair or Replace the Wheel?
Curb rash on the edge or the face of the wheel is cosmetic, and every shop above refinishes it. GM allows that kind of work too, as long as the damage can be sanded or polished off.
Bends and cracks are where the shops and the carmakers part ways. GM’s bulletin says it does not endorse any repair that involves welding, bending, straightening or re-machining a wheel, and Subaru’s says the same.
GM’s older bulletin tells its dealers to discard a cracked wheel and never to repair a wheel with a bent rim flange. GM’s 2024 bulletin also stopped refinishing painted aluminum wheels under warranty.
The Austin shop welds only small cracks in the barrel that are not structural, and says a structural crack is usually not safe to repair. It replaces a wheel that shows bluing or signs of overheating.
The 2019 Corvette above shows the risk. Its welded rim started leaking again, and another Corvette owner had a repaired rim crack a second time next to the repair.
My advice: repair curb rash and a slight bend in the inner barrel, and replace a wheel with a crack near a spoke or a bend in the face.
What Makes Wheel Repair Cost More
The size of the wheel is the first thing. Best Wheel Repair adds $25 to $50 for every 2 inches above 18 inches, and the Model Y’s 21 inch wheels above were quoted at $175 each.
The finish is the second. The Austin shop adds $50 to $150 for diamond-cut, two-tone or powder coated wheels, and The Wheel Rim Group charges $300 or more for a two or three piece wheel.
GM does not recommend plating a chrome wheel again. If you want a chrome finish anyway, I priced it in my chrome rims guide.
The tire is the third. Taking it off, putting it back and balancing it adds $15 at RimSpec for a bent wheel, $40 at Best Wheel Repair and $35 to $75 at The Wheel Rim Group, so ask if the quote includes it.
Signs Your Wheel Needs Repair
The Austin shop lists the signs of a bent or cracked wheel. A shake in the steering wheel at 55 to 70 mph, a slow leak that needs topping up often, a tire pressure warning or a pull to one side can all point to one.
Several Corvette and Equinox owners above found their cracked wheels only after a tire kept losing air. If a tire goes soft again after a patch, ask the shop to check the rim.
Wheel Repair Questions You Might Have
How much does it cost to repair a wheel?
At wheel repair shops in Texas, California and New Jersey, curb rash costs $85 to $225 a wheel, straightening a bent wheel $75 to $350 and repairing a small crack $85 to $250.
How much does it cost to fix curb rash on a rim?
An Austin shop charges $125 to $200 a wheel, a mobile service in Orange County $139 a rim and a shop in Anaheim $200. A Model Y owner was quoted $175 a wheel for 21 inch wheels.
Can a bent rim be fixed?
Most bends in the inner barrel can be straightened, for $100 to $160 in Austin and $135 in New Jersey. GM and Subaru do not endorse straightening, and a wheel bent at the face or the flange should be replaced.
Is it worth repairing a cracked rim?
Only a small crack in the barrel, and not near a spoke. A 2019 Corvette’s welded rim leaked again, and GM tells its dealers to discard a cracked wheel.
How much is a new wheel from the dealer?
Owners were quoted $900 a wheel for a 2017 Corvette Grand Sport and $938.50 for a 2020 Equinox, several times the price of a repair.
Where These Prices Come From
- Luxury Auto Works, Rim Repair (updated August 28, 2026) and Wheel Repair (February 13, 2026), Austin, Texas.
- RimSpec, Wheel Rim Repair Pricing, Grand Prairie, Texas; The Wheel Rim Group, Prices, Whippany, New Jersey; Best Wheel Repair, Bent Wheel Repair Cost (April 2026), Anaheim, California; SoCal Auto Touch Up, Services, Orange County, California.
- GM bulletins 17-NA-052 (April 2024) and 99-08-51-007F (February 2014), and Subaru 05-54-13 (April 2013), on NHTSA’s website.
- Owners’ posts on Tesla Motors Club and owner complaints to NHTSA, linked above, plus a 2016 Corvette owner’s report of a repaired rim that cracked again (July 2021). All read October 16, 2026.
I hope this helps you decide whether to fix that wheel or replace it, and what to pay. If you have any questions, you can email me at costcheckr@gmail.com.
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