Any way to fix it?

 

post a picture of the damage, also, what area are you in?

 

Hi David, I'm in Toronto.

Should I buy a new rim or just repair this one? I was quoted for $200 and will respray the entire rim. The new rim will costs about $1100.

 

i'd say you just answered your own questions haha. unless you want to buy a 5th and have one as a spare.

 

Assuming you haven't bent the rim and the rim is clear lacquer over aluminum (no paint) , I think you can get the curb rash out yourself with a lot of patience and a little elbow grease. If the rim is painted, forget it, you'll never match the finish. You're better off getting a professional to fix it.

My wife recently curbed a Brabus rim (polished aluminum with clearcoat lacquer) on her MB. The damage was similar to what yours looks like and I repaired it using a mild file, 600, 1000, 2000 wet emery sandpaper. Of course the lacquer where the rash happened is gone but, a little wax now and then keeps the shine perfectly. Her wheel looks 99.99% fine (even from a couple of inches). I didn't remove the tire but went very slowly and carefully so as to not reshape the lip. As you know, I'm also in Toronto and would be happy to give you a hand if you want to have a go at DIY repair.

 

Thanks David and PMS.

I just dropped off my wheel at a local place. The repairer said that they might not be able to repair it because the color is really special. He will get his painter to look at it tomorrow and see.

If nothing works, I will try to sand it down like PMS recommended so it will look less conspicuous. Otherwise, I will bite the bullet and get a new rim.

 

I just got a called from the repairer - no go. Not possible to restore. I plan to get another one from Flyingspares for about $1200. How much do you think I can sell this curbed wheel on Ebay for?

 

Why don't you refinish all 4 wheels in a different silver, so that they all look the same, that would cost a lot less than a new wheel.

You could then look out on Ebay etc for another damaged wheel and have it painted the same colour, you then have an immediate spare if the worst happens again.

 

That color has a lot of different names but I am sure there are people able to paint it around you.

Ask around and ask for "Hyper Silver', 'Hyper Black' , 'chromelook' paint.

Over here many body/wheel shops use this kind of finish to repair. One example :
http://www.velgenexpert.nl/ons-werk-voorbeelden.html
Scroll down and you'll see your finish too.

Or ask them for a painter in your area :
http://chrome-paints.weebly.com/about-us.html

And even still, you can get the damage 90% gone by repairing, masking and then paint with 'chrome paint' in a can. It'll look very close to what you have.

 

Also, $200 is a lot for a wheel refinish/repair.
Normally its $75-$100 per wheel.

 

My Tyre had a puncture and the garage scratched the rim removing the tyre. It was almost impossible getting the colour matched so I had all 4 of my Speed rims powder coated Graphite. They look great and I know I can get the colour if they are ever damaged in the future. I paid £200 for all 4 to be done

 

Thanks all. I got it kind of matched. You can't tell the difference unless you shine it with a flashlight and inspect it within 2 feet.

 

Did you refinish all of them, or just the damaged one?

 

I just refinished the damaged one. I'm happy so far because the damage is not visible while the rim is on the car.

 

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