Question about Fuchs OE finishes

TDS911 · 07-29-2014, 09:26 AM

Through my installer, I had a wheel shop refinish a pair of 16x7 Fuchs to replace the 16x6 fronts on my 89 Carrera. The wheel shop says they have done hundreds of these wheels, won't be a problem.

As far as I can tell, the wheels on my car are all original and in excellent shape. The car has low miles on it and has been very well looked after.

After 8 weeks (double what they quoted), I finally got my 16x7s back from the wheel shop, and they don't match at all to the wheels on my car: the centers have a gloss to them, and the lips have a shine.

They swear to my install shop that they refinish all Fuchs like that and no one has ever complained. They insist that the lips are anodized. They said that they polish the lips first and then anodize them, which seems contradictory to me.

Correct me if I am wrong, but the centers should have absolutely no gloss to them, and the lips should look almost scotch-brited. That's how the factory finished them, right? The original wheels on my car look like that.

GeorgeK · 07-29-2014, 09:42 AM

Pics are worth a thousand words.

But yes, in general, the lips were polished before anodising. By the 80's the rough/smooth treatment of the lips was a thing of the past, and certainly not available on 16" rims.

As for the centers, there were several options available, but they were mostly painted semi-gloss black.

TDS911 · 07-29-2014, 09:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GeorgeK

Pics are worth a thousand words.

But yes, in general, the lips were polished before anodising. By the 80's the rough/smooth treatment of the lips was a thing of the past, and certainly not available on 16" rims.

As for the centers, there were several options available, but they were mostly painted semi-gloss black.

Fair enough. Photos below.

Lips are hard to capture, but they have much more of a shine that my original wheels, and show reflections easily. Lighting conditions were identical for all photos. Centers are now glossy, no two ways about it.

GeorgeK · 07-29-2014, 10:09 AM

The centers are not that shiny in std finish. Semi gloss seems to be the correct amount of shine.
As for the lips, it dépends on 2 things: level of polishing before anodising, and thickness of the anodising. The longer the wheel stays in the bath, the thicker the oxydation layer, the less the shine.
I'd try with a repaint of the center in the correct amount of "matte-ness" for starters. Re-doing the anodising in less shiny finish is a start all over job.

Edit, another detail: there should be no paint in the lug not area. It will crack, sometimes up to the visible paint when mounted, and look like crap, and the torque values will be wrong with the paint disintegrating under the lug nuts.

island911 · 07-29-2014, 10:27 AM

Your original is aged. (blotchy white in the anodize) And as GK points to, the oxidation layer (anodize) thickness is a function of how long/hard the process goes. (read: some refinishers are likely giving this a WAG)

Also, I don't expect that Fuchs brought the lips to a high polish before anodize - perhaps a machine finish, of some degree.

Arne2 · Arne2's Garage

I had mine re-anodized a couple months ago. As you note, it's hard to capture it in a picture, but yours looks about right to me. They should be more glossy than the scotchbrite finish, for sure.

Yes, the black is too glossy, and yes, you should clean the paint out of the lug seats.

911s55 · 07-29-2014, 12:22 PM

16x7 new finish, 16x6 25 years old. If they told you they would match the 25 year old look that seems a bit of a stretch, if they told you they would do them to the factory finish that is very different.

TDS911 · 07-29-2014, 12:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 911s55

16x7 new finish, 16x6 25 years old. If they told you they would match the 25 year old look that seems a bit of a stretch, if they told you they would do them to the factory finish that is very different.

Hence my question: what is OE finish?

Consensus here seems to be that the centers should not be glossy and should match what is currently on my car.

There does not seem to be consensus on the lips, however.

Matte or slightly shiny?

911s55 · 07-29-2014, 01:17 PM

Actually centers are semi gloss, but there are many degrees of that in all paints and powder coats, and every shop's finish is a bit different as well as how shiny they polish the wheel before it is anodized. The point I was implying was not to expect a brand new finish to match one that is 25 years old on anything.

Bill Douglas · 07-29-2014, 01:25 PM

I'd be happy. I think the shop has done a marvelous job. You could try doing a cut and polish on the centers of the old ones if you wanted to. I wouldn't, I'd get out and do some driving and enjoy that beast.

island911 · 07-29-2014, 02:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TDS911

..

There does not seem to be consensus on the lips, however.

Matte or slightly shiny?

Matte first surface, with a machined shine under the clear anodize.

Take a look at old 80's photos if needed.

Steve W · Steve W's Garage

Duplicolor semi gloss or VHT roll bar and chassis semi-gloss (probably the same paint) are a dead on match for the original black finish. It's also what what CCW recommends for their black painted wheels when they need touch up.

island911 · 07-29-2014, 04:47 PM

fwiw, these OE (but old) Fuchs wheels show that slight machined look on the lip.

^ a certain concentric grain to the finish.

Kind of like these fake fuchs . . but not as pronounced.

Bill Douglas · 07-29-2014, 05:09 PM

Another thought...

I use some stuff called Renaissance wax on things. It makes them very shiny. It's used on outdoor statues to protect the bronze from the elements. I use it on guns as a rust protective but it also makes them look like new. Great on antique furniture too. So putting some on the duller paint and also on the duller anodizing might be a quick and easy way to get it more to you liking.

TDS911 · 07-29-2014, 06:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by island911

fwiw, these OE (but old) Fuchs wheels show that slight machined look on the lip.

^ a certain concentric grain to the finish.

Yes! Great photo, that's what my current original wheels look like. And I swear that's what others look like on cars I've seen in person. To me, that is why a manufacturer would anodize vs paint, to achieve that matte finish.

Also, my centers look like that.

But comments here seem to be contrary.

Didn't know there were so many variations out there.

No word back from the refinisher so far.

I wonder of spraying the wheels with a matte clear coat would give them the look. Or if I'll just make my predicament worse.

Right now, the refinished wheels are way too different from the rears, they would look terrible on the car.

Trackrash · Trackrash's Garage

A while back I used some wax on my 30 yo Fuchs. I was surprised at how much more shiny both the black centers and the anodized lips were when done. Note, I used wax with no polish in it (actually I used Meguiare's #20).
In fact, my '78 dated Fuchs were then a good match for my then newly purchased pair.

island911 · 07-29-2014, 09:38 PM

Yep. And some of the cloudiness (on the anodize) will disappear with a coating of petroleum jelly.(Vaseline)

Clear coat paint, I would skip. I would rather they be a bit shiny than peeling paint in a few years. Maybe coat the old lips with Vaseline. ?

TDS911 · 07-30-2014, 04:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by island911

Yep. And some of the cloudiness (on the anodize) will disappear with a coating of petroleum jelly.(Vaseline)

Clear coat paint, I would skip. I would rather they be a bit shiny than peeling paint in a few years. Maybe coat the old lips with Vaseline. ?

Ok, maybe coming at this problem from the other direction is the best course of action.

I had heard about the Vaseline trick before, but was unsure what to apply it to. Only to the lips?

And a coat of auto paint wax on the centers?

I still don't think an OE Fuchs center should be as shiny as what they did, though...

javadog · 07-30-2014, 05:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TDS911

I still don't think an OE Fuchs center should be as shiny as what they did, though...

Maybe not, but it's not as far off as you think. Your older wheels are duller than they were when new.

My suggestion would be to use Vaseline on the old wheels, over the whole wheel. Apply it with your fingers, then buff off the excess. If that doesn't make them look good enough, consider having them refinished to match the other pair.

JR

island911 · 07-30-2014, 07:36 AM

Maybe just the lips...

What I recall is more of a matte black on the centers in the 80's - very close to the first pic / original wheel. With that in mind, I would get the new centers painted right. --Hitting the centers with one coat of satin black (or whatever it is) is easy - especially for the shop.