All,

I'm considering black wheels on my C7. I've seen some conversation about chipping, scratches etc but the thread is kind of old. I've only had silver painted wheels on my Vettes so no experience with black. I know that silver will hide any "damage" better than black. Question is are the black wheels more of a hassle than they are worth (ie frustration).

I'd appreciate any feedback, pros, cons that C7 black wheel owners are willing to share. Would you buy them again etc.

Thanks in advance.

 

The black wheels will scratch, as they are just black gloss clear paint, not a hardened epoxy paint that would have been much better to use like DuPont Imron. The will take some upkeep to remain nice. Blackgloss powder coat is a better option.

 

satin black powder coat below

 

i <3 black wheels and have had them on my last three cars. the BEST thing about black wheels is that your touch-up paint is readily available 24/7 and easy to use.

 

I love the look of my black wheels, but they will need to be powder coated down the road.

If I don't go with wider wheels down the road I will powder coat the OEM wheels.

 

The gloss black wheels look great, but not surprisingly they show brake dust quite readily.
I've noticed recently that as I've gotten over ~2k on the car, some very small chips, mostly on the back wheels.
Agree that if the car was going to be kept long-term, a powdercoated finish may be more durable. However, the aforementioned wouldn't stop me from making the same choice again.
S.

 

How about matte gunmetal?

 

i have a z51 with the stock black wheels. quite frankly, i think they tend to make the car look plainer than it should look. while i like the cyber grey, i am now looking into getting the painted silver stock wheels.[the chrome would probably work well too, but im just not a buyer of chrome wheels] in talking to other cg owners, the stock ones are great looking, and really set off the car. you can see how they look on the cg color thread. i like the black wheels, just not on the cg color--maybe almost all the other colors, actually.

have only had the car out 5 times or so, hence can not speak to the other issues, although given all the snow, they are dirty--i did not opt for the self-cleaning wheel option.

 

Let me know if you have any questions...

 

I love mine in Black. Yes, they show brake dust, but what wheel doesn't? California Car Cover has a little duster made for wheels that works pretty well. 5 minutes and my wheels are clean again.

Forum vendor Gerry @ Custom Wheels for Less can get you just about any type of wheel combination you're looking for.
www.customwheelsforless.com

There are so many amazing choices out there, no matter what you choose, size, width, offset, color, etc., I'm sure will look great. Just have to pick what you like the best and not worry about a little brake dust. Brake dust is part of owning a performance car, so don't let that detour you from getting what you really like.

 

I have The AW Z51 with the stock black wheels . I love the look of the black wheels on the C7. But living in the northeast with all the sand on the roads I'm starting to see fine pitting on the front face of the wheels , and I only have 1,000 miles on car...
Over the winter while the car was took the wheels off and sealed the wheels then put a few coat of wax on them...
Down the road I'm sure I will have them powder coated...

 

I was ready for the black experience. I was a "bling" sort of guy, preferring the traditional chrome look. Wanted to try something new to me and the black look appeals. As said, it also occurred to me that any chips would be fairly easy to repair or hide.

 

Just save your pennies the first year and score you some of those TSW wheels when you need to...damn those things look fine and for a reasonable price too!!!

Anyway, I ordered mine with the black wheels. We will see how it goes...

 

IMO with silver wheels you really can see the style of the wheel, and with black wheels, you really notice the rotors instead of the wheel itself. That's one of the reasons I went with the silver wheels.

 

Black rims are the bomb!

Any rim gets brake dust. Just coat with Rejex and you're done.

GET THE BLACK RIMS!

 

Thanks for the input. Yeah, my reason for asking is I may switch CG w/silver to AW w/black.

 

Obviously it is just a matter of opinion. I prefer wheels that you can see going down the road. I certainly do not criticize people who like them. I love all Corvettes.

 

They hide brake dust and dirt and grease if the dirt is black. Other than that, I'm not a fan of black wheels but many are. So, there must be something good about them.

 

i think that is wise, if you really want the black wheels. actually, scroll through the pictures of cg with black wheels--do they really jump out at you? not to me. (some of the vendors really go out of their way to make a case through some awesome photos, but they will get dirty quickly). actually, to me, since i dont "love" any of the offered colors, the wheels are more important. im more of an accessory guy anyway--to make something really stand out. did the same thing with business suits when they were "in"--bought basic grey and blue solid or pin stripes, and spent my time looking for great shirt and tie combinations.

the white looks very impressive to me with the stock black wheels. after looking at every wheel in the world, btw, i think the stock wheels on the z51 2lt (my car) are as attractive as every one out there, whether in black or painted silver--with one or two exceptions, but they cost in the 8-10k range, and although i can afford it, at some point you just have to say--nope, just aint worth it.

best of luck with whatever you choose. if worse comes to worse, you could always repaint the car, or buy some other wheels. but, choose wisely, grasshopper.

btw, if you can see your alternatives personally, thats the best idea. i should have done that, but didnt want to drive the 100 miles to kerbeck to see them all.

 

I purchased an AW C7 and was also torn between the black and silver wheels. I saw both in person at the museum and in a dealership lot and the gloss finish on black wheels looked gorgeous in person when clean. I was pretty well sold on them until I saw how they looked with just a few miles on them. The brake dust, especially when combined with any moisture took away the gloss and greatly diminished the look of the wheel.

My $.02 is that if you are only an occasional, fair weather driver and are OK with cleaning the wheels every few trips out and keeping them well protected then the black wheels can keep their beauty and are a great choice if you like the look. The brake dust emitted from my Z51 is more than my C6 and on par with my BMW 335i as a reference point. If your car will be a daily driver and you do not plan on washing it weekly, then the gloss of the wheels will be hidden and end up looking dull.

I ended up getting the silver wheels and am very happy with them. They do show the shape of the wheel better than the black. They also show the brake dust, but not as quickly and not as prominently. Swirl marks and scratches will be fairly well hidden as the mile count increases. I drive mine daily as long as it is not wet or salty out and have been happy with the choice. I also think the black wheels look better on the AW coupe than the convertible FWIW. I hope this helps make a more informed decision. Input from this forum and seeing the cars in person really helped me make the best choice for my situation.