I have American Eagle Alloys AE-186 and have a so-called "super finish" After about a year or so, they don't look so good. I'm not 100% sure what they are made of or if they have a clearcoat or what not but I was wondering what the best way to get them looking better is and what products I should look for. Here are some pics of my worst ones.





Thanks guys.

 

I'd start with just washing them with soapy water and a brush and see if the rims are pitted or stained enough to need something stronger. I'd then use something safe like Simple Green and elbow grease and seeing if that will clean them up before going to the next step. Acids or other chemicals can cause more damage than they fix.

 

I wash them weekly with NXT car wash detergent and alot of elbow grease and have also tried Meguiers cool wheels wheel cleaner and they still look like this. In these pics, they haven't been washed in a couple of days but the truck hasn't been driven since its last wash either.

 

This is what they used to look like...

 

Oh yeah, they need polishing.

 

Ahhhhh.. .the joy's of polished aluminum!! Sucker!! Hope you like polishing, 'cuz your gonna have to do it 3x a year now...

I learned my lesson with polished Al... chrome or bust baby!!

 

Yup, that's exactly what polished aluminum looks like when it starts to oxidize. Although I never let my American Racing polished aluminum wheels get quite that far along, they can be saved. I'd suggest that you'll need a buffer and some decent polish to bring them back though. I use a rotary buffer with foam pads and it takes me about 5 minutes per wheel. Of all of the polishes I've used, a product called Wenol has worked the best at bringing back the "chrome" look. You might consider a sealer called Zoop to seal the wheel after you finished buffing. It slows the oxidation process down. Have fun!

 

F me. how much is one of those buffer doohickies gonna cost me? Will an idiot like myself be able to do this without screwing something up? Can I do it while they are on the truck because I don't think my jack is high enough to get it off the ground. So much for my "super finish"

I'll keep you guys updated.

 

More bad news big guy. You're really going to have to pull the wheels to get them back to their original luster. You can try polishing with them on the truck (like I used to), but I think you'll find that lug nuts and center caps just get in the way. As for the "buffer dohickie, a decent rotary buffer in under 200 bucks with a pad. Yes, this is why plated (chrome) wheels are generally worth the extra money. Don't worry though, I've got my "polish the wheels" drill down to about 1.5 hours - including removal of all four wheels.

 

Trust me I am new....I have driven beaters for ever but I have seemed to have picked up a gem.
https://www.f150online.com/galleries....cfm?gnum=5637

I need to know how to clean the black portions behind the rim. I am not sure it this rim is chrome or aluminum.

 

Shermy - doing it on the truck by hand consumes around 2-4 hours.. I had a complex wheel so I was usually around 3 hours to get my wheels polished. It sucked. And 'super finish', 'luster guarentee', or 'forever brite' slogans are all marketing hype. Sorry buddy!

 

XLT AL,

We'd love to help you with your question, but I can't tell what rims you have from your picture. What do you mean by "Black portions behind the wheels" too?

 

Hoss has the same problems as Sherm. I have the factory rims and they are quite pitted and oxidized. Looks like areas of skin cancer on the rims. Guess I'd better start saving for some aftermarket chrome rims~

 

Hey there. Before you go out and spend your money on one of those 200 dollar things you should try this.
http://www.autobarn.net/05140.html

 

Thanks for the info, I have a set off polished rims from my 2002 new style Explorer that i need to sell. I went and bought it as well as the polish and it worked awesome. The rims are like new, and allmost look like chrome. I should have no problems selling them now.
Trev