Help - Rust on steel wheels

[sk8manmike]

I live in colorado, and I think that the salt they throw down in the winter and just the general enviroment have been a big factor in my steel wheels starting to rust.

Does anybody have any advice or a solution to making my wheels look new again? I'd like to fix it before it gets any worse - it's making my yaris look trashy

Below are a couple shots of 3 of my wheels.

[TLyttle]

Yeah, get at them soon! I take mine off, sand the rusty spots, wire brush the rest, and use a quality marine enamel to repaint them.

Alternative is to take them off, take the tires off, and have them sandblasted and powder coated: end of problem for as long s you own the car! Mind you, with all that salt, the wheels may be a lesser problem.

[salmonz]

I swear, the wheel covers are made to scrape. Toyota should issue a recall. Each Yaris I see has the same problem, unless it's right off the dealer lot.

[severous01]

for all the time you'll spend you may as well have the 'coated.

powder is awesome, and you'll never have a problem again.

[husaynkhan]

best thing is to remove the rust and to re paint it

[sk8manmike]

After researching more - I think I'm going to sand and paint with something glossy (I think it ends up looking pretty sharp and then I can get rid of the scrapped up hubs). Any suggestions on pain/primer, and sand paper grit?

[markitect]

You should get some rust converter to spray on after you've sanded off the rust, it will stop any rust you miss from spreading, and leaves you with a flat black surface thats ready to paint without a primer.

[sk8manmike]

Thanks for the tip markitect - thats probably a wise thing to do!

[Revsson]

Originally Posted by markitect

You should get some rust converter to spray on after you've sanded off the rust, it will stop any rust you miss from spreading, and leaves you with a flat black surface thats ready to paint without a primer.

I think my buddy uses a product called Extend Rust Converter by Loctite.
Not sure if it is a spray on or paint on. Then, you can paint over that as
suggested.

[severous01]

ooo ooo ooo....por-15. awesome stuff, you'll never have another rust problem, even in the lug holes. check it out

http://www.por15.com/

they also have an anodizing kit that's called por-10, and you can even anodize chrome to different colors. how cool is that...

[frog13]

I agree,sandblast...powdercoat.Folks often neglect their rims and other out of reach places on their vehicles....take the wheels off at least once a year and clean/wax them as you do the vehicle....brake dust,salt etc are on these surfaces too.

[sk8manmike]

Thanks for all your posts - it's been helpful.
I think I found some stuff on amazon that I'm going to use - it's going to take me a little while to get to it since I'm moving soon, but when I do finish I'll post some pics for sure.

Hopefully this will help other people out, as I'm sure I'm not the only one with this problem.

[birdman]

Remove hubcaps wash steel wheel with soapy water and rinse. Wipe dry and scuff paint and rust with scotchbrite pad and wipe off. Mask off tire with masking tape and newspaper. Spray with Permatex rust reformer. Let cure overnight. Rust will turn black. Spray with satin black exterior enamel and let dry. Done.

[TLyttle]

I quit the masking tape/newspaper thing years ago. Get a strip of aluminum flashing from the lumber yard, a couple of clothespins, and make a permanent (and adjustable) mask. Pics if I am lucky...

I use a lazy susan bearing (buy it from the lumber yard as well) to set the wheel on, so that I can rotate it while spraying; makes a nice, even coat.

[birdman]

Nice!