Grubby rusty wheels, what to do?

dnme

Is there anything I can do with these? It's a 98 Corolla that was left in a garage for 2.5 years. Great car, running beautifully but the wheels look dam awful.

andyseadog

not to mention a dog has pissed on it

if it were me, id just lash a can of matte black over them and get some nice toyota hub caps from a breakers.

30-40 quid would do the whole lot and smarten up the car no end!

you'l most likely find if you sand them and do them silver again and dont get it quite right the rust will keep re appearing.

challengemaster

Get some cheap new wheels and decent tyres on it (not nankangs)

dnme

andyseadog wrote: »

not to mention a dog has pissed on it

if it were me, id just lash a can of matte black over them and get some nice toyota hub caps from a breakers.

30-40 quid would do the whole lot and smarten up the car no end!

you'l most likely find if you sand them and do them silver again and dont get it quite right the rust will keep re appearing.

There's already hub caps on em, do you mean replace these or get bigger ones that cover entire wheel? in which case why would I make wheels matte black?

Owen

The only thing that'll fix them is a session with a sandblaster, and a repaint afterwards.

dnme

PaintDoctor wrote: »

The only thing that'll fix them is a session with a sandblaster, and a repaint afterwards.

Are there business's around that use sandblasters that I could call to? Would this be expensive?

dnme

dnme wrote: »

There's already hub caps on em, do you mean replace these or get bigger ones that cover entire wheel? in which case why would I make wheels matte black?

Black wheels look better under full size wheel trims than rusty silver ones

dnme

I dunno!

We went from 40 quid and serious hard work sanding these puppies, to sandblasting. Gotta ask myself, how much do I love this car?

Might keep an eye on adverts fro a cheapo set of 14"ers, often see em there after some young lad blings up his Starlet, Civic or Accord with dazzling and always tasteful (ahem) alloys.

andyseadog

well if you already have hub caps, then it only costs you a fiver for a can of matte black. you'd be surprised what a difference it will make where you can see through the gaps in the hub caps.

sandblasting and re-painting in my opinion on a corolla of that age is madness, unless the car is steeped in sentimental value, or you intend to keep it for a very long time.

although, as you can see, toyota originally intended for those wheels to be shown without hubcaps so maybe restoring them might be somewhat satisfying if you want to do it for the experience.

either way, its just a little surface rust on your wheels, not affecting the performance of the car, they wont rot completely, and seeing as you have hub caps it isint a visual irritation, so erm, yeah

dnme

andyseadog wrote: »

sandblasting and re-painting in my opinion on a corolla of that age is madness, unless the car is steeped in sentimental value, or you intend to keep it for a very long time.

Yea the car was once owned by RoverJames, so it means an awful lot to me

Disclaimer:
The above statement may not be entirely factual

andyseadog

dnme wrote: »

Yea the car was once owned by RoverJames, so it means an awful lot to me

Disclaimer:
The above statement may not be entirely factual

maybe the regulars to boards.ie/motoring might do a prosperity whip round for the car :P

dnme

andyseadog wrote: »

maybe the regulars to boards.ie/motoring might do a prosperity whip round for the car :P

The DNME 4EFE Wheel appeal, has a certain ring to it.

andyseadog

dnme wrote: »

The DNME 4EFE Wheel appeal, has a certain ring to it.

i wonder would the likes of halfords be interested in sponsorship?

CJhaughey

Hammer the flat spots out of the rim, sand back any rusty patches, mask up well and spray with some hammerite smooth finish.
Cheap job and will look miles better than the current state of affairs.
Don't bother sandblasting them just take your time sanding them unless your time is particularly expensive.
I reckon you could do a good job for 30ish paint, paper and masking tape.