Some corrosion on chrome wheels

J

JPS911

New member
The previous owner of my car didn't seem to take care of the wheels as much as I do. :angry Unfortunately, there are some spots where the chrome is flaking off. Is there any sort of coating I can put on to stop it from going further? It is about $250/wheel :shocked to get them rechromed, and I would rather wait until I upgrade the whole package to 18" wheels & tires (but that is about 3-4 grand and likely some time away!).



Thoughts?:nixweiss
 
To answer your question, I guess a spritz of clear would seal the spots enough to stop rusting. But it sure wouldn't be permanent. Hopefully Forrest will see this thread and chime in.



One thing I can say for sure is that $250/wheel for rechroming is a massive rip off!! For most wheels it costs less than $100 to chrome plate a wheel. Rechroming is a little more work (gotta strip off the old chrome first) but it should not be $250. Shop around. You are in the Chrome Wheel Capital of the Universe. There is a chrome plater on every street corner in the state, along with a hand car wash place, a Nordstrom, and an In N Out. Look in your phone book and I'll bet you see 1500 pages of chrome platers, maybe more.
 
It's too bad the previous owner chromed your wheels. After putting chromed wheels on a Pcar, the previous owner might as well have added curb feelers.:down



Once the chrome starts to peel/flake off there's not much you can do about it. :( Corrosion will try to creap into the area between the chrome plating and the wheel. This will cause the plating to flake off more and more. Keep your wheels clean and dry and hope for the best. Putting some clear paint using a fine brush along the edges of the peeling chrome will help to keep it at bay.
 
Once chrome starts peeling, honestly, it's trash.



You can slow down the peeling by coating the spot (clear lacquer touch-up or clear fingernail polish), but you can't FIX it except by having the wheel rechromed. It peels generally from water getting underneath and centrifigal (sp?) force sends the water under the plating.



Many of the chromers have left SoCal because of all the swell CARB regulations, but you should be able to check around and find someone. $250 seems a little high to me, too.
 
I hope this doesn't seem to far off-topic. (Maybe it belongs in Car Ownership. :nixweiss) I had this problem on my Benz chrome wheels. Except I didn't know it. I all knew was that about four times a year, I'd go out and find the Benz had one flat tire. It wasn't always the same tire: sometimes front, sometimes back, etc. My tire guys kept "fixing" it for free. Finally I took it to somebody else. THey took off the wheels and discovered the chrome on the inside was flaking/corroding ... just like you're discovering. So ... your problem may not just be the cosmetic one you're describing. Just a little $.02.
 
Any thoughts on places, espcially near San Francisco, that could do a Porsche quality rechrome for less than the aforementioned $250/wheel?
 
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