Community Forums

Gwood · 06-07-2020, 05:47 PM

Hi Folks,

We recently took delivery of our first RV, a 2016 Forest River Sunseeker and I've noticed that the wheel covers are partially blocking the valve stems on the front tires.

From what I can tell, these wheel covers are the Dicore versions discussed in this thread https://www.irv2.com/forums/f87/new-...ls-363641.html

Can I just pry them off and then use a rubber mallet to press them back on such that the hand holes are better centered on the valve stems? I recently purchased a TPMS system and I won't be able to install the sensors without having some more room between the stem and the wheel cover.

twinboat · 06-07-2020, 05:58 PM

If like my 2017 E450, yes pry them off, center the valve better and tap them back on with a rubber mallet.

A few kicks with sneakers works too.

Glennabbott1 · 06-07-2020, 06:35 PM

Yep, take em off and put em back on.

Vintage Iron · 06-07-2020, 07:14 PM

There are a couple styles of wheel covers that are bolted on directly to the studs. The nuts are covered with fake shiny covers on this type. I can't tell from your picture but if you have the bolted on kind, you may have to grind away a little of the cover to get the clearance you need.

Arch Hoagland · 06-07-2020, 07:26 PM

Had the same problem with my covers, finally I put a rotary grinder on my drill and enlarged the hole.

Gwood · 06-07-2020, 09:49 PM

Here's a close up of the cover. There are no dimples or slots on the "lugs" and when I tap on them, they all sound hollow.

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JaytheDJ · 06-08-2020, 04:37 AM

Those are pop off/on style, same as I have. I keep one of these tools in the rig as I can't get my tire gauge on the outside dually stem unless I remove the wheel cover.
Pop them off, line them up and give em a good whack.

Ed_G · 06-08-2020, 09:34 AM

I had an even worse situation for valve stem access with the false wheel covers on the Ford Transit Diesel chassis. That issue was nicely resolved by having Borg solid valve stems installed in place of the near impossible to access factory valve stems.

Gwood · 06-08-2020, 10:26 PM

Thanks for the input. I'm going to try and pop off these covers in the am and then install the the TPMS.

Healeyman · 06-08-2020, 10:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gwood

Can I just pry them off and then use a rubber mallet to press them back on such that the hand holes are better centered on the valve stems?

EXACTLY!

Tim

Gwood · 06-10-2020, 11:28 PM

Quick update.

Got the covers off. After getting the tire pressure monitoring sensors on its clear that I'm going to have to modify these wheel covers later down the line, there's just not enough clearance and it makes it difficult to get the sensors off when I might need to top off the tires.

On top of that, it appears that there's a slow leak on the rear inner passengers side valve stem extension. It's an older plastic/rubber extension and I think it's time is up.

The kicker is that we're due to leave for our first short shake out trip in the am. I'll take a look in the am.

Can I remove the valve stem extension and then see if the tire will hold air? Not sure I'll be able to easily get to it.

Vintage Iron · 06-11-2020, 12:03 AM

You should be able to remove the extension and cap the stem. I have had trouble with valve extenders in the past. My current and best solution so far is to replace the rear valve stems with the long bendable steel type that are mounted to the wheel. I did it when I replaced the tires. Very happy with the results.

Gwood · 06-11-2020, 12:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vintage Iron

You should be able to remove the extension and cap the stem. I have had trouble with valve extenders in the past. My current and best solution so far is to replace the rear valve stems with the long bendable steel type that are mounted to the wheel. I did it when I replaced the tires. Very happy with the results.

We'll see how it goes in the am.

Definitely need another option (and I like the idea of a solid steel or brass valve stem ala the Borgs or something similar) These plastic extensions have got to go. Hard to see these things not failing at some point and I doubt they're designed to have the weight of the sensors on them.

akeagle · 06-11-2020, 01:37 AM

Definitely dismount the wheel covers and remount them with the stem centered in one of the holes. Whoever installed the wheel covers in the first place was either an amateur or in too much of a hurry - or both. Here's another possible solution:

In my case I needed to add stem extensions to mount the sensors for a TPMS and I couldn't find any with the right angle and length to avoid touching the front wheel covers. It was close, but I really didn't want to do any cutting or grinding, so I got a short piece of 1" dowel rod and placed it at the outer edge of the wheel cover hole, and gave it a couple sharp raps with a rubber hammer. That deformed the hole just enough to give proper clearance for the valve stem. Thankfully it doesn't significantly detract from the appearance of the wheel cover.