wheel coating recommendation

[lopezoscar02]

Hey whats up everyone. I have some new wheels being shipped to me and I would like to coat them before I mount them. They are factory new aftermarket wheels in matte grey color. So I am looking at a ceramic coat that I can put on them to protect and help with the cleaning. I live in south florida. I will be doing it in my house or in my garage. all advice and recommendations welcome.

[Bruno Soares]

Rim, Dlux, C5 are all good coatings. I went with Dlux as it’s more versatile and can be used on plastic and trim as well.

[Mike Phillips]

The toughest wheel coating I've used is the GTechniq C5 Wheel Armor. You can get it here,


GTechniq C5 Wheel Armor 15 ml. (https://www.autogeek.net/gtechniq-c5-wheel-armor.html)



:)

[MarkD51]

There's only one choice IMO, and that's Carpro CQuartz DLX!

It's good to 800F, it doesn't flake, run off, haze, nothing! No downsides that I have found.

I've done two sets of new wheels with it, a pair of 22" Chrome GM Replicas that I once placed on my 4x4 Tahoe,(They're pictured in my avatar) but sold them some 7-8 months later, as I was moving back to the Midwest, and those "street scene" V-Rated Nitto Tires, and purty cruiser Wheels weren't going to cut it through midwest winters out in the boonies.

Went back to standard size, but a little wider, a telephone dial type wheel, Brushed Coated Aluminum, with Black accents, Black Plastic Center Caps, and a fresh set of BFG All Terrain 275/70-16 Tires. Everything got coated in and out.

Yep, both sets were coated in the house, lugs, locks and all.

The only "trickiness" I noted both times with CQ DLX, was the instructions of telling you to apply, then quickly come behind with an MF Towel and wipe. No good!

As soon as I tried that both times, I started getting some bad smearing to the finish, just too tacky it was, stopped that method, and only applied direct the best I could very carefully, and then not touching them with any towels after for a period of 24 hours.

Final wipedown before installing both times was with Carpro Reload, and tires dressed or coated in and out.

The final finish with this method came out the smoothest, and best looking, and also figured why start wiping off a coating right after applying?

Yes, CQuartz for the paint acts a bit different, that you wipe and level immediately after. I didn't like doing this with DLX.

[lopezoscar02]

The toughest wheel coating I've used is the GTechniq C5 Wheel Armor. You can get it here,


GTechniq C5 Wheel Armor 15 ml. (https://www.autogeek.net/gtechniq-c5-wheel-armor.html)



:)


reading the directions seems straight forward.
since the wheels are new, besides wiping them, any other prep work?

[lopezoscar02]

There's only one choice IMO, and that's Carpro CQuartz DLX!

It's good to 800F, it doesn't flake, run off, haze, nothing! No downsides that I have found.

I've done two sets of new wheels with it, a pair of 22" Chrome GM Replicas that I once placed on my 4x4 Tahoe,(They're pictured in my avatar) but sold them some 7-8 months later, as I was moving back to the Midwest, and those "street scene" V-Rated Nitto Tires, and purty cruiser Wheels weren't going to cut it through midwest winters out in the boonies.

Went back to standard size, but a little wider, a telephone dial type wheel, Brushed Coated Aluminum, with Black accents, and a fresh set of BFG All Terrain 275/70-16 Tires.

Yep, both sets were coated in the house, lugs, locks and all.

The only "trickiness" I noted both times with CQ DLX, was the instructions of telling you to apply, then quickly come behind with an MF Towel and wipe. No good!

As soon as I tried that both times, I started getting some bad smearing to the finish, just too tacky it was, stopped that method, and only applied direct the best I could very carefully, and then not touching them with any towels after for a period of 24 hours.

The final finish with this method came out the smoothest, and best looking, and also figured why start wiping off a coating right after applying?

Yes, CQuartz for the paint acts a bit different, that you wipe and level immediately after. I didn't like doing this with DLX.


So Dlux is pretty straight forward as well. Can I apply this in my home no problem? granted my house is not dust free. do you recommend doing two coats?

[MarkD51]

In any case and no doubt with any coating, you want to insure there's no greases or oils present.

I myself used Carpro Eraser, worked well, no problems. In a fix, it is also acceptable to simply make up a bottle of about 10% Iso Alcohol dilution and water, and wipe the wheels down thoroughly in and out.

I don't think you'd hurt a thing by simply mixing 50/50, 70% alcohol and water in a bottle. Even 70% or 90% straight isn't going to take off any factory finishes.

[lopezoscar02]

these are the wheels I want to coat


67349

[MarkD51]

So Dlux is pretty straight forward as well. Can I apply this in my home no problem? granted my house is not dust free. do you recommend doing two coats?

No problems with dust, no need to have a NASA clean room, same with CQUartz for Paint.

Sure, you could do two coats 24 hours apart, but I see no need.

Plus, you'll likely go through pretty close to a large bottle of DLX coating 4 wheels in and out. I never applied DLX "cheaply", and have had zero problems, a fantastic product.

Sure wish they had stuff like these coatings 25-35 years ago!

Clean up becomes a heck of a lot easier too, versus simple waxes and sealants, which are pretty much gone in one month's time on wheels that see dirts, water, brake dust crud, and heat.

[Bruno Soares]

these are the wheels I want to coat


67349
Damn, with such complex spoke design this will be a lot of work. Wheels like that are better done with a sprayer but then it would have to be a pro doing it.

[MarkD51]

these are the wheels I want to coat


67349

And exactly why you do want to use a coating! (Of some sort!)

My suggestions will be to take the applicator, which in most cases will be something like the Carpro Velvet Microfiber Sheets.

This one will have to be all fingers, and by hand, no foam blocks basically, unless you want to use such for the outer and inner barrels themselves.

Do all the nooks and crannies first. I likely suggest doing all the backs first, being careful of bleed through to the front of the wheels.

Then coat the front faces last. And as I say, all nooks and crannies first, then the faces of the wheels.

When I say crannies, I mean everything, lug holes also. Wrap the MF Suede Sheet around your finger, dribble the product on and apply.

When those MF Sheets start looking maybe a little bit cruddy as you go, toss it and grab another fresh one and start up where you left off.

[MarkD51]

Future cleanups, I might suggest a nice set of Wheel Woolies, and some soft brushes sourced here. even some small trim paint brushes might work well to good effect to get in those nooks. After a coating, there will be no need for APC's, or other harsh cleaners. Your simple car shampoo that you use on the rest of the vehicle will be adequate.

[The Guz]

So Dlux is pretty straight forward as well. Can I apply this in my home no problem? granted my house is not dust free. do you recommend doing two coats?

Sure you can.

DLUX is pretty straight forward. I have seen a rep mention a second coat can be applied 1 hour later.

Gyeon Rim is a bit easier to work with. A second layer can be applied 4 hours later.

C5 is pretty good. Gyeon Rim and DLUX are better in my experience. Now topping C5 with Exo is even better than C5 as a stand alone.

22ple VM1 is looking to be a solid choice. At 6 months in it is performing better than Rim and C5. A bit expensive but it seems to be a strong performer at this point.

DLUX, C5 and Rim will get you about a year with DLUX having a slight edge.




these are the wheels I want to coat


67349

Get yourself some autofiber coating saver applicators. They are much better than the suede applicators.

[MarkD51]

One big tip I might offer in regards to new aftermarket wheels. I got burned with those 22" Wheels I bought from a supposed reputable seller.

One wheel had a really bad flat spot. So bad, that a number of attempts were tried to somehow re-balance that wheel, and in the end, it wound up having to be stuck in the back to lessen the crazy front end vibrations I got.

My front seats at 40-50mph were shaking like Jody Foster's Little Space Ship in the movie "Contact" when she went warp speed through the worm hole!

Many times, some of these "so called dealers" offer you a warrantee that ended yesterday. Read the fine print. and perhaps haul all wheels first thing down to a local Tire-Wheel Shop, and have them all spun on a balancer machine to see just how true they are? Then go from there.

I sure wish I'd have done that with those 22's.

[lopezoscar02]

And exactly why you do want to use a coating! (Of some sort!)

My suggestions will be to take the applicator, which in most cases will be something like the Carpro Velvet Microfiber Sheets.

This one will have to be all fingers, and by hand, no foam blocks basically, unless you want to use such for the outer and inner barrels themselves.

Do all the nooks and crannies first. I likely suggest doing all the backs first, being careful of bleed through to the front of the wheels.

Then coat the front faces last. And as I say, all nooks and crannies first, then the faces of the wheels.

When I say crannies, I mean everything, lug holes also. Wrap the MF Suede Sheet around your finger, dribble the product on and apply.

When those MF Sheets start looking maybe a little bit cruddy as you go, toss it and grab another fresh one and start up where you left off.


Which applicators do you recommend using?


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