I have aluminum rims that had a clear coat on them from the factory. I stripped it off a couple years ago and haven’t been able to polish them enough to keep them decent. I drive a lot of highway and I live up north. I want to just paint them a bright silver and be done with it. What do you guys recommend?
I know some will say, “Why would you want to paint aluminum rims, you should polish them, they won’t look good painted.” If you want them not painted, you can come to my place up near NY and polish them every two weeks during the winter. Be my guest. I’d clear coat them, but they have some nicks and whatnot. It probably won’t look that good.
Not worth it.
I would be happy just not having rusty rims.
I don’t mind the dull silver look. But I don’t want them to get so badly corroded, that they’re trashed.
you just have to hit them with mag wheel cleaner every time you wash the car that's all.
Spray on. Walk away for a little while. Come back and give it a little scrub. Rinse off. No big deal.
painting them properly is going to be VERY costly. If you half-ass it, it will end up looking worse believe me.
Ok, can you suggest a product?
oh dude, that was decades ago that I last used it. All I remember is that it was a pretty strong corrosive chemical.
I'm sure there's plenty of them out there.
https://www.napaonline.com/en/p/MCR1458
You might consider Plasti-Dip or having them powder coated if you can get it done reasonably. I'd much prefer getting them powder coated myself since I expect that would be much tougher than plasti-dip....that being said, plasti dip is cheaper and you could to it yourself.
Anyway, if you are going to paint them just make sure you prepare them correctly for the paint or it will likely come off quickly.
what?? are you talking about the vinyl rubber they put on plier handles?
Ha I'm not sure if it is the same thing, but people are doing it, even plasti dipping entire cars. A friend of mine wanted orange wheels so he plasti dipped them and honestly it looked pretty good. I was really surprised.
sounds like a recipe for disaster when moisture gets underneath it. That stuff is good when you need a comfortable grip on something. Not sure it's the best product for painting + sealing
The only issue I have seen from the videos I've watched (and my friends wheels) is that using too little can cause it to be a horrible pain to take off. I've not seen issues with water getting underneath, but you never know.
I’ll second Mark on Plastidip. I can’t speak to it from experience but it is a very popular way to recolor rims, and is a relatively easy DIY project. And there are plastidip wheel kits you can buy that include everything you need.
Sure, it’s not ideal by any means. And I would guess you will have to redo it from time to time as it gets dings and scratches. But as long as you don’t look too close, it will probably suit your needs.
I'm with the other good folks on here do not paint the rims!
I'd say that is another benefit of plastidip, if you do it right you can take it off without too much trouble and you have the original wheel finish underneath.
Hmmm, what if I clean the wheels really good and plastidip them for winter?
sounds like a huge waste of time & money. There's a reason you will never see wheels in a store, or on a new car, with "plastidip" on them.
Bear in mind I've never used it, but saw the results my friend had. I think it would do fine as long as it is applied correctly and not thinly. I've considered doing it to my Golf but I'm at the age where I'm a combination of too lazy and too cheap!
I’m not sure where you guys are, but in the northeast, these states put very corrosive stuff on the roads in the winter. It might be worth plastidipping, if it doesn’t take more than two cans and I can just spray it on and be done with it for about 6 months.
I’m thinking about trying it around October. I was thinking of using clear Plastidip. I also saw Plastidip primmer. Do I need to use the primmer?
It’s your car. Do as you please.
Hey, you know...
I’m with Joe on this one, the polish/paint will last till your next curb rash event & then you’re back with scratched/nicked rims. I’d just leave them alone.
Try this - https://youtu.be/bfRXd3CcNl4
I don’t hit curbs. And how to remove rust??? These are aluminum, not steel.
even if you don't hit curbs. It will get dinged up.
polish will probably work too but ... that's more work than I'd want to do.
😆 yea, that’s why I don’t want to polish them. And in the winter, I’d probably have to do it ever couple weeks. I just don’t have time for that. I’ll try the rim cleaner. Thanks!
Another option is getting them powder coated. Lot's of colors to choose from and a bit more durable than just paint.
When I was a young boy, my father
Took me into the city to get some plasti-dip.
He said, "Son, when you grow up, you'll see
The choices you have made, how ridiculous they look as they crack and fade.
He said, "Will you really do this, Yourself
Will it actually look good, the plans that you have made?
Because one day, you'll realize, that plasti-dip
Is not for everyone, especially not for this,
Bum dumdum dada dum...
All honestly though, if you decide to go the plasti-dip route,
Try these guys^^^^ they make it easy and got YouTube vids and everything lol
If you can get it done like most other people said I would go get them powder coated after maybe cleaning up the scuffs. Plasti-dip is only a good solution for just seeing the color you want and it can be easily removed, as long as you are not like some people who just spray and forget about it till it peeling, then you are fine. It lasts longer than it use to but still not as long as powder coat or a wrap which will be I guess the 3rd option. If you don't care though and just want color, then rust-oleum will do the trick for a year or so from past experiences haha. It will pretty much ruin whatever you paint though, it's impossible to clean it all off unless you use chemicals and sanded it off.
