For 2005, you could pay $2000 extra to get the GM "high polished" wheels as an option. 'High polished" is usually taken to mean "polished until a mirror shine". In other words, the really well polished aluminum should be very similar to chrome.
Well, GM really missed the boat on this one. The finish was just horrible. Milky, dull, lifeless.
Believe me, that is NOT what a "high polished" finish is supposed to look like.
Click the image for a larger view. If you tried to shave while looking at that surface, you'd cut your head off...
Also, these wheels are clear-coated. That means that the aluminum has been sprayed with a clear top coat, so that you canNOT just polish them up with your Dremmel tool, or your Mother's Powerball, like you could with the bare aluminum wheels on the C5. You do not want to try to strip the clearcoat, polish them, then re-clearcoat. Sure it's possible, but only if you're retired, have a spare set of wheels to use, and have nothing else to do for the several weeks of full time work it would take to do this. Instead, you're better off just cutting your losses, and doing a chrome wheel exchange, or even just buying a set of chrome wheels outright.
It's a shame because polishing aluminum is incredibly easy - The metal is very soft, and if given a BARE aluminum wheel, even the home enthusiast could do much better with a hand drill, sander, buffing wheels, and a Dremmel tool.
Well, fortunately the aftermarket people saw a huge opening here, and provided us with some great, inexpensive ways to ditch those awful stock wheels.
Go to topWell, here is what your wheels could look like. To some people this is subtle - if so, then stay with your stock wheels. But if you're like me, looking at the proud c6 with those stock wheels is like seeing it covered with acne pimples. See below for some comparison pictures!
Here are the shoes your C6 was meant to have:
Click on the left(before) and right(after) images for higher resolution pics. It's difficult for these pictures to do the wheels justice, but the chrome I got from West Coast Corvettes really was fantastic and flawless. Those wheels turned a dull, lifeless part of the car into a showpiece.
There are two ways to get rid of those ugly wheels and set yourself up in some sweet chrome.
With a wheel exchange, you'll recieve the new chromed wheels by delivery. When they arrive, you put them on the car, package your old wheels in the box, and send them to the vendor. West Coast Corvettes is a popular vendor that provides this service, for a total of about $1200 out of your pocket, including the amount you'll have to pay to have the wheels mounted and balanced, and the cost of frieght.
Here's how the costs broke down for my wheel exchange at West Coast Corvettes:
| Wheels | $795 | |
| Two-way Fed Ex shipping | $192 | |
| Mounting, balancing | $270 | *Done at your own dealer |
| Core Charge* | $1600 | * refunded once your original wheels arrive at WCC. |
| Total cost: | $1257 |
You may be able to save some money on mounting and balancing, depending on whom you can find to do it. The problem is that most local garages will not know how to remount your tire sensors, and no local garages in my area can handle a wheel size of 19 inches. Finally, mounting itself is quite difficult because of the thick sidewall inherent to "runflat" tires. So for me, the dealer was the only option. Still, the overall cost is a lot better than the $3000 you'd spend for new chrome wheels at most places.
If you're shopping around for mounting prices, be sure to ask:
This may not be a job for the local hack down the road.
If you do the WCC wheel exchange, you must return the original wheels to WCC within 10 days of when you receive their chrome wheels. This should be easy to accomplish if you use FedEx. But you'll also want to talk with your wheel mounting guy and make sure you can get in right away for the mounting once your WCC chromes arrive. If you do not meet their time table, WCC will not take your old wheels, and will not refund your $1600 core charge.
Go to topI'd recommend that you look at two places before making a committment:
Why pay $1257 to exchange your wheels when you can keep the originals and get a brand new chrome set for $800? That's a good question. I think Corvettes of Houston is definitely worth a look. I cannot vouch for them because I've never bought their product. You might want to go to Corvette forum and ask around before you buy. I can verify that after two years, my chrome from WCC is still perfect. You'd want to make sure that you're not buying a brand of wheel that will have the chrome chipping and flaking off in a few years.
Go to topYou can't just plunk the wheels on the car and forget about them. If you allow brake dust and road salt to lay on the chrome, it will cause pitting and eventual cracking, where the chrome surface just flakes right off the underlying metal. To protect your investment, wash them regularly and 2 or three times a year take the wheels off, wash, dry, and coat them with a good wheel glaze or sealant. You can also use any of your favorite waxes, but standard waxes don't last more than a few weeks. For better durability I'd suggest one of the two products at right:
Go to top| DP Wheel Glaze |  |
| Zaino Z2pro |  |
DP Wheel glaze is a bit harder to apply than Z2, since it forms a haze like a standard wax product. So you'll want to be sure you don't apply it too thickly. It has cleaners in it that will really make the wheels sparkle. Here's a little experiment that I tried:
Here is is picture 1 month later (summer weather) without any washing of the car nor wheels since:
The results:
Just as important was how easily the wheels cleaned up. After a rinse with a hose, a little soapy water from my mitt, then blowing the wheels dry, the appearance is perfect: (ignore the rusty rotors !)
TIPS for DP wheel glaze: