GMC Yukon Aluminum Rim Help

[mwoolfso]

Hello all, my friend's Yukon needed her tires cleaned badly, which I did with some recent stuff I received from AG this week :-). Here is the problem. One of her tires had some cracked plastic on the rim, which I believe is some form of clearcoat and further makes me believe the rims are aluminum. The water and cleaner got in between the coat and the rim itself. Is it safe to remove the remaining coating and then polish it or does she really need to have another layer of clearcoat put on it? Thanks in advance!

[SeaJay's]

Sounds like the clear is failing which is a long known problem with these rims.

I personally would not attempt to remove all the clear and polish them out unless you feel like buying a replacement for her. I'm not positive if they are clearcoated aluminum or chrome plated and then cleared. Either way those rims are not cheap. I'd have her take it to a rim place and see how it would to get it replaced properly.

[VR8]

I agree. Although some of the clear looks like it would be easily removed, once you start you'll surely run into areas where the clear is nearly impossible to get off. Let a wheel expert take that one.

[mwoolfso]

I agree. Although some of the clear looks like it would be easily removed, once you start you'll surely run into areas where the clear is nearly impossible to get off. Let a wheel expert take that one.

Yep that is exactly what was happening; which made me a bit worried so I stopped and posted my question. Thank you both.

[ScottB]

most GM OEM wheels are indeed clearcoated. While pretty durable they often take on a bit of a milky appearance. Once the clearcoat gives out you can usually tell as flaky and exposed metal often looks brighter intially.

Professional care is often then needed or perhaps it pertains to only 1-2 wheels you can find a take off locally or on Ebay cheaper than repair.