i have a set of anodized volk te-37's. when i took my car to a dealer, they accidentally used some sort of harsh chemical on the rims (not sure what it was) that "tarnished" the finish.

does anyone have a definitive way of getting the finish back to normal? see pictures below.


face of spoke has a white hard residue


notice spots on sides of spoke - they don't rub off


lip of rim has a "lathed" surface - white residue again


another spot near lug nut


more spots near lug nut

i've tried a 1:1 (simplegreen:water) solution; sprayed on dry and let soak for a few mins. however, the residue is still stubborn.

any ideas would be GREATLY appreciated. i've been trying to deal with these stains for several months and still can't seem to find a way to get rid of them.

thanks in advance.

kepani

 

wax?

 

try a clay bar if you have it .. or try some regular dish soap .. looks kinda oily?

edit: or is the "sanded look" the part thats messed up and the shinny parts what they are sup. to look like? .. man .. i would seriously be upset scarface style.. good luck

 

I wouldnt let ANYONE use ANYTHING on my wheels except soap and water. Make them refinish your wheels or buy new ones.

 

They wouldn't take responsibility for what they did?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by whoaitslen2 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I wouldnt let ANYONE use ANYTHING on my wheels except soap and water. Make them refinish your wheels or buy new ones. </TD></TR></TABLE>
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by rodrez &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">They wouldn't take responsibility for what they did?</TD></TR></TABLE>
they aren't willing to pay for it since it wasn't apparent that they did it when i went back.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JDMPROject &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">wax?</TD></TR></TABLE>i used to put light coats of carnauba wax on the rims. however, i'm not sure if the white spots are wax. i'd think that the simple green would have taken care of it.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by .:s h a w n D:. &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">try a clay bar if you have it .. or try some regular dish soap .. looks kinda oily?</TD></TR></TABLE>
actually you're right, there were some "oily" spots from the tire dressing i was using - just spots here and there. the more golden areas are how the rims are supposed to look. i basically used simple green. rinsed it really well. then used dish soap (dawn). still no results.


i have heard to use metal polish, but am worried it will ruin the surface. i'm trying to use the least harsh method first.

kepani

 

brake clean?

 

Oh you know damn well what that white residue is...

 

well i really hate to say this .. but i think the white residue looks like clear coat thats why its not comming off. its dry clear coat residue good luck man

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by .:s h a w n D:. &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">well i really hate to say this .. but i think the white residue looks like clear coat thats why its not comming off. its dry clear coat residue good luck man </TD></TR></TABLE>

That's what it looked like to me too.... although, not easy to tell from pictures.

 

looks like the chemical dulled the clearcoat, or even stripped it

Try using a polish and see what that does... if that doesn't help, you might be SOL

 

what did you take your car to the dealer for? service? Could they have used that acid to clean wheels?

 

From the looks of the picture, it looks like they used mag cleaner. Mag cleaner has hydrofluoric acid, phosphoric acid, and sulfuric acid. The recommended usuage is for : rough cast and machined aluminum wheels. It is not to be used on clear coated and polished wheels. I accidentally sprayed some on my wheels and had the same effects. Works great on the motor!

 

your clear is now ruined, get them to pay for them. dealers should know not to use "wheel cleaner" on clearcoated wheels. it does that every time, it will not come off because it is a chemical reaction with the clearcoat.

good luck

 

i have the same issues on my te-37s bronze as well....ive tried clay bar, meguires polish, simple green and it did not work...The only thing that worked was a bottle of turtle wax rubbing compound I had lying around. Worked like a champ!!!!!

 

dood your ******* nuts.. bring them to small claims court and get some new rims. This is such an easy case. Don't be scurred.

 

i appreciate all the help everyone. sounds like it's dulled clearcoat.

i'm going to try some 3m imperial hand glaze and see if that can restore the finish. if not, then i might look into powder coating them.

again, thanks for all your input!

kepani-who can't thank honda-tech and its members enough.

 

my spokes weren't glossy, just the lips of my bronze te's

and thats bs that they prolly used acid to clean the wheels with!!! I worked at a detail shop and we used some pretty harsh stuff on chrome but less harsh stuff on other wheel finishes.

all of my wheels, just soap and water!!!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by warwagon &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">and thats bs that they prolly used acid to clean the wheels with!!!!</TD></TR></TABLE>
I've worked at 2 dealers and they both used some acid to clean the wheels. Now a detail shop would be different then a dealer wouldn't it?

 

I work at a detailing shop and like other have said, they used some type of acid on it and basically the original finish on those is screwed. Only way to fix it is get them powdercoated. If i were you i would talk to the dealer and if worst comes to worst take them to court and have them buy you a new set. You're never suposed to use acid on anything but silver wheels. Degreaser is fine on colored and chrome wheels but will stain if you leave it on for a long amount of time. At work if its anything but a standard silver wheel or a hub cap, we just go old fashioned and use soap and water. Anyways, they owe you a new set of ReeMZ.

 

If your going to get them powdercoated, get a easy color to match. But man.... It really kills it.

The bronze that volk has is simply amazing.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by B2FiNiTY &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If your going to get them powdercoated, get a easy color to match. But man.... It really kills it.

The bronze that volk has is simply amazing.</TD></TR></TABLE>

i know d. i'd hate to have to resort to powdercoating. i love the bronze color and the texture. i have no idea what color i'd have them done in though.

kepani

 

go rip the dealers *** apart

 

yea take your **** back and tell em to buy u new rims

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 98 (ITR) Theft Recovery &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">From the looks of the picture, it looks like they used mag cleaner. Mag cleaner has hydrofluoric acid, phosphoric acid, and sulfuric acid. The recommended usuage is for : rough cast and machined aluminum wheels. It is not to be used on clear coated and polished wheels. I accidentally sprayed some on my wheels and had the same effects. Works great on the motor! </TD></TR></TABLE>

Wait not on your black volks right??