OT(ish) - refurbing alloy wheels

My venerable vehicle has alloy wheels which have been powder coated,

Redone in about 2008.

A couple or three (maybe 4) years back two of them started failing - air leaking under the coating giving a poor seal to the tyres.

Took them to a local wheel fettler, and amidst much sucking of teeth and "shouldn't fail like that" they re-coated them. Said the previous firm hadn't cleaned the wheels up properly before re-coating them. Acid etch I think.

Anyway, subject to checking with a tyre company, I think I have the same problem - two wheels with a slow leak..

Looking at the state of the wheels (the coating is wearing off 3 of the 4) I reckon that it is one of the new ones plus the third of four old ones which are failing.

So - any idea how long a coating should last, and any recommendations for a national chain (perhaps) who are reliable?

Don't know if the local firm are as good as any other. All I have to go on is the suspicion that of the original 4 one is still good, one is failing, and they are a lot older than the two newer ones, one of which is good and the other failing.

I am judging the age of the wheel treatment by how much has work off.

Also considering looking at scrap alloy wheels of the same size, new alloy wheels of the same size, or even steel wheels.

I would prefer alloy wheels as the car (although old) still looks reasonable. However the cost of a new set of wheels is likely to be more than the resale value of the car. (Then again, so is the cost of 4 tyres and a tank full of petrol).

P Reg Volvo 850R Estate.

205/45 ZR 17 tyres.

5 bolt 7 spoke alloys originally 'graphite'.

Cheers

Dave R

Reply to
David
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In many ways I hate powder coat for the very reason you offer. A small chip or hole, water gets in and then it rusts off in great big slabs ... but stays stuck where it sticks.

If it's steel then it used to be burned off (not allowed now I don't think) as I understand it's not easy to shot blast as the frictions simply melts it back on again. I might be chemically stripped now.

I have also inherited motorbikes with powder coated wheels and what seems like slow punctures and it was air leaking out from under the coating.

The last couple of motorbikes I've refurbished (with alloy tubeless wheels) I've stripped the wheels back to bare ally, acid etch primed and painted and all of them have stayed perfect ever since.

I'm really not sure just how much the problems we see from powder coating coming away from the surface is down to bad prep or simply because it is a 'coat', and not as chemically bonded to the underlying metal as well as a paint might?

All that said, I had the 5 steel wheels on the kitcar re-powder coated because the previous powder coating had left them so badly damaged (surface rusting and pitting). Once the old powder coat was stripped I had them blasted, plated in something and then immediately powder coated (that last bit is important apparently).

Only time will tell how good it is (again).

Ally wheels though, I think I'd look into getting them painted.

Cheers, T i m

Reply to
T i m

I had that.

When I bought the car there was a manufacturer recall out for the wheels, and they redid them - that was in 2000. I had them done again last year for slow leaks, which means the rework lasted almost 15 years.

Andy

Reply to
Vir Campestris

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