hi guys,

warmest greetings to all. i need advice on buying rims/mags for cars in switzerland. how do you call rims in french? what is the normal price range of steel or stock rims(size 15") for a car? what about branded rims/alloys size 15"?

thanks in advance.

Howdy Doc,

Don't forget the tyres too...

There are many online stores. Here is a thread, there are a couple of references on there.

Recommending tyre [or tire] companies (now with TCS review link)

http://www.migrol.ch/default.asp?navig=772

http://www.adamtouring.ch/

Also, search the site, there are more references.

I found alloy rims very expensive in Switzerland and anyway couldn't find ones I liked.

Being a bit mean, I searched around for days (possibly weeks) before finding an online shop in the UK that delivered free in Switzerland and the prices were much better . The free delivery made all the difference, other firms wanted more than the value of the rims to deliver.

I needed big ones so it may not be the same advantage for more ordinary sized wheels and you must be aware you will pay import duty and MwsT at 7.6% (but you won't pay the 17.5% VAT in the UK).

For what it's worth, here's the website.

I was very happy with these guys: http://www.korad.ch/
They are in the Kanton of Aargau (AG) (pretty much in BFE), but I drove out there had them put on brand new alloy rims and great michelin winter tires within a few minutes. The whole ensemble (top of the line Michelins with cool looking alloys) cost me just under 1200 CHF. When you buy rims from outside CH, you have to ensure they will pass CH inspection (or live with the 'fear' of receiving a ticket from a caliper toting policemen with nothing else to do). When I took my car to be inspected (to get CH plates) I had my new rims and tires on, so they wanted to see a piece of paper that Korad had given me which stated that the rims met CH safety standards etc. - because in CH apparently your rims also are listed in your Fahrzeugausweis. Especially with extra wide rims (mine were at the max width allowed in CH), they can become a pain in the ass....

An EU type certificate (certifying that the rims are suitable as replacement parts for the vehicle meeting or exceeding the original parts specification) is sufficient.

My experience here was that I'd bought my car here second hand and when it came to time for the official inspection, I booked the car into the garage for a full service and asked them to take it for the inspection.

I then got a phone call at work about the rims not being on the Fahrzeugausweis (vehicle registration document), so it needed a separate appointment for that. I let the garage handle it all.

sufficient - and vital should the law ever stop you or you have to do the vehicle check (goes for anything else non-standard too like exhaust replacements)

Ype - had a mate left standing on the highway as they took his bike away for having a naughty exhaust .

thanks for the reply guys. i am weighing my options on whether to buy new rims or have my winter tyres installed on my old rims.