# New Wheels, polished rim, what to do over winter?!



## Gravy (Nov 17, 2008)

I have just got these wheels:










I am going to seal them for the winter with colly 476, I plan to use them through the winter, but my main concern is the polished rim on the wheel, I dont want this becoming tarnished, is there any measures I can take to avoid them becoming damaged?

Any help is really appreciated.

Thank you


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## Planet Man (Apr 12, 2008)

Whatever you choose for your protection plenty of coats and as soon as the salt goes down on the roads wash and re-apply as soon as you can:thumb:


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## Guest (Oct 20, 2009)

Nice wheels, normally I can't stand non-OEM wheels, but I do like the look of them. Good choice I think.


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## Gravy (Nov 17, 2008)

Thanks guys 

Do you think that the polished lip will be ok, if I give them a quick rinse on the days when the roads are salty? And make sure nothing ever has chance to settle?

Also is wax ok to put on the polished lip?

Will get pics when they are on the car also.


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## Alex_225 (Feb 7, 2008)

Best thing to do mate is try and keep them as clean as you possiblely can. At least once a week.

I have a polished lip on my Lupo rims and now again I'll give it a once over with SRP and then if I can see it's looking dull I'll use some metal polish on them. 

Just keep on top of it and they should be fine. 

Oh and just gonna say, I don't know how well wax bonds to unpainted metal so not sure about protection. I've used Collinite on my wheels but how well it protects the rim itself I'm not sure.


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## THE CHAMP (Aug 1, 2008)

I persoally would not fit those wheels for witer use. Keep those for the better weather


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## alan burnett (Aug 21, 2007)

dont no but if you were to cover thr rim in SILICONE GREASE WOOD that work dont get it on your tyres


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## Ultra (Feb 25, 2006)

keep them in the box and wait till summer, all it takes is a small chip for water to get under the clear coat.


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## Rickeh (Nov 3, 2008)

I have had similar worries with my new wheels. I think the centres are painted and lacquered but the lips are bare metal. I gave them a doing with Meg's NXT Metal Polysh and 3 coats of WSAS which hopefully will provide enough protection. I couldn't find anything about how suitable WSAS is for bare polished metal, maybe Planet Man can advise? Either way i'm sure it's better than nothing.


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## swiftflo (Jul 28, 2008)

Poorboys wheel sealant every time.


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## KKM (Dec 10, 2007)

Save them for Summer!!

:thumb:


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## Rickeh (Nov 3, 2008)

KKM said:


> Save them for Summer!!
> 
> :thumb:


but I just bought them . Must... show... off


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## Planet Man (Apr 12, 2008)

Rickeh said:


> I gave them a doing with Meg's NXT Metal Polysh and 3 coats of WSAS which hopefully will provide enough protection. I couldn't find anything about how suitable WSAS is for bare polished metal, maybe Planet Man can advise? Either way i'm sure it's better than nothing.
> 
> View attachment 10100


It is great for Chrome wheels so I cannot see any issues on polished bare metal:thumb:

As suggested to the OP keep em clean and topped up and even more so when the salt goes down


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## Kriminal (Jan 11, 2007)

Rickeh said:


> but I just bought them . Must... show... off


Too right :thumb: The world could be over by next Summer, so make the most of it now, and stick 'em on 

I've got a polished rim on my BBS rep's, and find that washing them once a week, and applying Poorboy's Wheel Sealant every few weeks keeps them in tip-top fashion through winter.


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## Phil H (May 14, 2006)

Blackfire all metal sealant i layer this on my BMW polished rims also check out Gtechniq C5


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## Gravy (Nov 17, 2008)

Where can I get Blackfire all metal sealant from mate?

For the time being will colly be ok to use on the polished lip?


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## Mirror Finish Details (Aug 21, 2008)

Put Opti Seal on a neighbours wheels and the bare rims last November.

He washed it again in April, he is not really into cars, with all the salt and crap on them and they came up fine. Just a little SRP and another Opti Seal and the looked good all summer.


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## Stew (Jul 9, 2007)

I have wheels with polished lips. I take them off for winter.....

It's not worth the risk if you like your new wheels!


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## Gravy (Nov 17, 2008)

Stew said:


> I have wheels with polished lips. I take them off for winter.....
> 
> It's not worth the risk if you like your new wheels!


They are going on, if they need a re-furb then they will get one


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## Planet Man (Apr 12, 2008)

Gravy said:


> They are going on, if they need a re-furb then they will get one


Good on ya mate:thumb:


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## goo (Oct 10, 2009)

I used to use a can of product on my freshly-cleaned suspension (springs, struts, etc) which was sprayed on and left a thick, semi-clear coating which could be peeled off when required. It's more of a protective coating than a polish so I guess it wouldn't look too good on wheels ... but maybe just use it on the polished rims during very bad salt days? I'll go find the can in the garage and report back ... 

Failing that, a few coats of Poorboys Wheel Sealant makes the dirt and the brake dust easy to wash off. If I had shiny rims like that, I think I'd wash them on a daily basis during the winter


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## Mirror Finish Details (Aug 21, 2008)

Stew said:


> I have wheels with polished lips. I take them off for winter.....
> 
> It's not worth the risk if you like your new wheels!


It's only a set of wheels, I think people are getting too OCD when they have winter or summer wheels.

You will be having winter and summer cars next, then a spare winter one in case it is going to be a very salty winter or a spare summer one if it's too hot.

Just get em on and use them for what they are designed for.


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## badly_dubbed (Dec 11, 2008)

i run fully polished rims in the summer










running them in winter is asking for trouble, yes the could be refurbed, but why go to all that extra expense when you could leave them off and have a mint unrefurbed set forever?

in the summer months i protect mine with renaissance micro crystalline wax

save them trust me


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## goo (Oct 10, 2009)

Found it! Looks like they've changed the formula slighty as it's now claimed to be clear as opposed to semi-clear. Should be ok with wheels ... my suspension used to look as clean when I removed the coating in the Spring as it was when I sprayed it before the winter.

http://www.eastwood.com/catalog/pro...lear-gloss-bare-metal-aero-11-oz/category/28/

I got mine from the states, but it seems it's now available in the UK:

http://www.frost.co.uk/item_Detail.asp?productID=7939&frostProductName=Eastwoods Clear - Gloss Finish for Bare Metal Surfaces (312g)


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## Gravy (Nov 17, 2008)

I have to put them on, cant resist I'm affraid, if I dont put them on now, il spend all winter looking at them in the garage.

I dont mind washing them every day if I have to 

Thanks for the help guys


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## Phil H (May 14, 2006)

blackfire all metal sealant from polished bliss mate


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## lord melch (Aug 15, 2007)

Put them on - wheels are to be used. Get a few coats of wheel sealant on, and clean once a week. - Oh an post lots of piccies


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## MK1Campaign (Mar 27, 2007)

Take them off and put some other wheels on.


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## badly_dubbed (Dec 11, 2008)

lord melch said:


> Put them on - wheels are to be used. Get a few coats of wheel sealant on, and clean once a week. - Oh an post lots of piccies


correct.

but not polished ones in winter :thumb:

thats what winter rims are for....to be used....in winter


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## JCW85 (Oct 29, 2009)

Like yourself I have the same quandary. I'll either buy a tub of smart wax rim wax and put a couple of layers on or buy a cheap set of winter alloys but need to do something fairly soon with the cold weather approaching!


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## lord melch (Aug 15, 2007)

badly_dubbed said:


> correct.
> 
> but not polished ones in winter :thumb:


Ahh never had polished rims.. Alloy, Steel, CF...all OK in winter
..now Mag/CF not so good in winter but that's a bit off topic



badly_dubbed said:


> thats what winter rims are for....to be used....in winter


Guess that depends where you live also.  Some winters are nicer than other..


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## felondnb (Nov 6, 2009)

The BBS LM replicas have clear coat over the whole wheel - I've had a set on my car for over a year now and the lacquer has started to lift which is how I know!

I'm planning to give them a once-over/polish soon as they have some curbing that needs sorting out.


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## Sandro (Mar 16, 2008)

i bought BBS RMs a few months ago, they aint going near my car until show season  its not worth the hassle and money to run polished wheels in winter, as much as i want to see them 

Even my BBS RAs are getting garaged for winter and im resorting to G60 steel wheels. they're just too much of a pain to clean  haha


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