Project $1500 Volvo: A Big Thanks To The B&B As I Seek Your Counsel Again
Between the comments, private messages and emails, you, the readers, sent over 100 comments on how to get the smoke smell out of Project Volvo. Thank you for providing me one of the rare opportunities to harness “crowdsourcing” in a way that isn’t some nebulous social-media pie-in-the-sky frivolity. I’ve made great strides with shampoo and vinegar/water solutions, and will be moving on to coffee grounds and other tactics. In the mean time, something else has caught my attention.
“Are those alloy wheels corroding?” That was the question, asked incredulously, by my father. I let him drive Project Volvo so he could compare the old dog with his shiny new XC60 (he liked the seats a lot). After giving it a once over, he flicked some paint flakes off the rim, and I noticed that after giving the car a good power wash, all four wheels were in a bad state.
The paint is flaking and bubbling, which means I need to do something or risk having them turn to utter crap by January. I don’t want to throw any money into buying new rims, so sanding and painting looks to be the way to go. The question is, should I keep them silver, or do something different. My initial thought was gunmetal, to look slightly more aggressive and to hide the brake dust. If you have a better idea (for re-finishing or for a different color) then let me know in the comments.
More by Derek Kreindler
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Why not powder coat them? Should be able to prep them pretty easily, get the tires dismounted and powder coat them somewhere. It's pretty cheap to do and creates one hell of a long lasting and durable finish. I think sanding and painting, you'll only be coming back to do this every year and perhaps more often.
My roommate used to hit ebay when his tires died. He would buy a set of wheels with good tires already mounted. Then he would sell his old set with the dead tires still on. It worked out to be the same as paying for a new set of tires without mounting and he usually upgraded to a better wheel.
I have a lot of experience with aluminum alloy wheels in a northern climate, as a fellow TO resident. My first (1977) VW Scirocco came with 5 beautiful alloy wheels (full size spare). Ditto the '83 special edition with the GTI bits & Recaros. Here is the score - Alloy wheels should never see any snow. Not one flake. Put on your winter tires with steelies before the snow flies and don't take them off until it is truly gone. Ignore this and you will be plagued by perpetually deflating tires. Re the corrosion, many posters seem to have lost sight of the $1500 purchase budget and the low $ theme. I would tend to go with wire brush and rattle can here, or simply turn a blind eye. BTW, the last car I bought was $1000 CDN. Nonop. It needed a battery. My son has now driven it for 18 months, and it can be described as adequate. Steel wheels, no problems.
When my wife went pothole hunting with my 850 last January, I was able to pick up a junkyard rim via eBay - $50 plus shipping and it was in better shape than the 3 good wheels I already had.