TA Tom

anyone with recommendations on where's a good place to have stock WS6 wheels refurbished? have the usual clear coat compromised and oxidation on wheels.

wonder which may prove more cost effective:
tires pulled off, wheels shipped, and refurbished
vs
purchasing used excellent condition wheels, ideally w/decent condition tires

..needing new tires as well.

wssix99

iTrader: (5)

Most local shops that repair aluminum wheels should be able to do the job. I recently dented 2 of my rims on a monster pothole and took them all in to Wheel-Tech in Highland Park, IL. (http://wheel-tech.com) You can see one of the original dents at 4:00 in this picture - ouch:




They were able to fix the dents and re-finish all my wheels. (I don't remember the price, but it was amazingly less than I would have thought.) Given that the car doesn't have a single piece of polished metal on it, I've never liked the polished rims. So, I had them color match the wheels to my black car and left a polished bead. Wheel-Tech also ground away all of my curb rash on the beads (my new tires have a bead protector, which the OEM's did not) and moved the wheel weights to the inside of the rims. Here is the same wheel after they were done with it:




Final car:

JohnS Z28

iTrader: (1)

^^you NEED to tell me the price because i desperately want black rims on my red camaro, i dont want to spend $500-600 on looks when it can be put into bolt ons+stuff... but depending on the price i would just paint my current ones back.

blackls1ta00

iTrader: (27)

very nice man

HAZ-Matt

iTrader: (8)

I used Wheels America here in Houston to fix a Speedline wheel. That was to get one repaired though, not just re-finished.

wssix99

iTrader: (5)

Just the pure refinishing was $160 a wheel, but... playing with wheels/tires always has add-on costs. (Mount, balance, etc.)


Each bad/bent wheel cost me a total of $285 for the complete service:
- Straighten and re-paint/finish = $225
- Additional charge for factory matched paint = $25
- Remount tire and balance wheel = $35
Total = $285

Each good wheel cost me a total of $220 to refinish:
- Re-paint/finish = $160
- Additional charge for factory matched paint = $25
- Remount tire and balance wheel = $35
Total = $220

Some other points to note:
- I could have saved $100 total for going with a stock paint color instead of the GM body matched color.
- My wheels were oxidized badly to the point where the tires wouldn't hold air. So, they had to be refinished no matter what - or I was at a point where I needed to buy new wheels. (In a sick way, hitting the pothole was a blessing as my insurance company paid for a lot of this.)


So, refinishing the wheels is an affordable luxury - but if your wheels need new tires, are oxidized, or are bent, you'll have to take on a lot of this cost anyway. (If you get new tires, the mount/balance fee is there, etc.) Odds are, any of our cars over 100k miles has at least one bent rim and oxidation is starting to degrade the quality of the bead seal.

IMO - The cost of refinishing and having a wheel with the proper clearances/offset is a bargain compared to what new wheels cost. (add in shipping and mounting/balancing) - And you get to keep the stock hubcaps.

Jr.Samples

How about a 10 dollar can of appliance paint, a scuff pad, and a little hard work?

wssix99

iTrader: (5)

As long as you don't drive the car, they will look great forever!

Jr.Samples

Been on there for 6 months for my daughter who rarely washes the car with no issues. For 10 bucks I think it's a no brainer but hey if you want to pay someone a ton to do it for you that is your call.

wssix99

iTrader: (5)

You put on a clear coat, right? That should give you a lot of durability.

Most of the cost in the wheels above was to straighten them and to take all of the oxidation off that was causing a poor bead seal. The painting was a very small part of the bill.