Clearcoat or Polished rims??

[Nonprophet]

Taking off the studded tires this weekend, so time for new tires and probably get a new set of rims too. In the past I bought used aluminum wheels that were clearcoated, and after a while the clearcoating would start to come off--though admitedly the wheels were 10+ years old....

Our local dealer has some decent aluminum wheels in both clearcoated and non-clearcoated (polished). I like the look of the polished ones, but A) I'm not real crazy about having to polish them all the time and B) I'm wondering of road dirt/grime/mud won't wind up scratching them and making them look like crap.

I'm not a real mud-bogger these days, but I do spend a fair amount of time on dirt and gravel roads......

Any advice is greatly appreciated !!


NP

 

[Grim Reaper]

Depends on the quality. I have a set of polished on the land tug. Look great when polished but every couple months I'm out there with the Mothers mag polish. I have a set of old OutlawII and where the clear coat is good they look great. Where the clear coat has been damage they have galvanic corrosion lifting the clear coat up. But they are 15 years old and cost me $50. :shrug:

Then I have a rim that has been out behind my house that I found on the road. Its a HD Chevy rim about 4-5 years old. Have no idea what kind of coating it has but it still looks awesome.