Kays C6

It's starting to get that wintery feel and I was wondering about my polished aluminum wheels. They don't have a clear coat do they? The local county/city departments use sand, gravel, salt and chemicals for snow and ice. Although I won't be driving my car when there is snow or ice on the roads, I will be driving it after the snow has melted. I was wondering if the salt and chemicals from the road will damage my wheels? If so, how long after 'exposure' do you have to get the stuff off? Is it better to get a set of plain painted rims and mud/snow tires for the winter? Our 'snow time' usually only lasts about 2 1/2 months. For those of you using your vette as a daily driver, what are you planning to do this winter?

SamsBud

They are clear coated.

iceburgh

To ansmwer your question ... Yes. But if you keep them clean and keep wax on them including the barrels it will help

7 OUT

I wouldn't worry about it. In several years, you might have a good reason to go and get them repolished like TRAYC6 did. Her wheels came out beautiful.

Dana

Corvette Junkie

Yes it will. My 03 has big pits on the inside of the wheel from here it sat in a dealer lot during a northern Indiana winter.

Corvette Junkie

TRAYC6 got chrome wheels.

SteveJ

The biggest problem with salt spray might be what it does to the electrical connectors in the car. Search the C5 tech forum for ground connector problems and you will see what I mean. Many years ago I was involved with testing electrical connectors, and the standard environmental test was a salt spray. I keep our C5 in the garage after the first snow and don't take it out again until a good thunderstorm has cleaned the roads in the spring.

C8-Vette

And the clear coat on the outside and inside of the wheels are powder coated-very tough-Should withstand chemicals- a coat of wax on the shiny side and the inside could not hurt!

bjmcphee

This is going to be my 5th winter in my C5, living in Michigan we get a bit of snow! Anything over 5 inches is a problem as the car turns into a snow plow... but my wheels haven't pitted or anything like that...

I wash it weekly (at least) and make sure I wipe down the wheels each time...

I have a C6 on order and it will become my new daily driver! I have been told by a GM Chassis engineer that the C6 will drive a lot better in the winter than a C5 and I can't wait to try it out!

Kays C6

Thanks for the comments. I usually wash my car after having driven in the 'salt' water and have even had icicles form while washing it - I use big rubber gloves and warm water. The neighbors think we are nuts for hand washing our cars in the winter - they usually hit the automated car wash. Sounds like if I pay close attention to the wheels and get all the salt spray off I should be ok.

Her1stVette2

Glad to hear we're not the only ones! I'm sure our neighbors think we're

ghostRder

My C5 wheels did become pitted, I believe prehaps from using a brush to clean them, GM however did replace them.

ZL1Vette

The best protection against brake dust, dirt, grease, and snow/salt/etc for the wheels is to apply a synthetic sealant.

The best way would be to first coat the wheels with Klasse All-In-One and then apply a coat of Klasse Sealant Glaze (SG). To be really thorough, go back 24 hours later after they've had a chance to bond and apply another layer of SG.

There are other sealants you can apply: Poorboy's EX-P (a resin -- works great!), maybe even Four Star Ultimate Paint Protection (polymer). Considering it's a Vette, I'd spare no expense and use the best -- KLASSE.

It will not only protect the wheels but make cleaning them a dream.