Help & Advice Please: Corroded Alloy Wheels

[Huffheinz]

I just bought a 1998 Ranger XLT 4x4 to use as a weekend chore truck, to haul around a 4-wheeler, get around in the Missouri winters, and to have something for my daughter to drive when she turns 16 next year.

The wheels and tires are in pretty bad shape but I'm not sure what to do about them.

I didn't even know alloy could look like that! The tires are holding pressure fine but they sure are ugly. They are 15x7 with a 5x4.5 bolt pattern.

There is still some tread left on the tires but they are showing some cracking and, if I'm reading the date code correctly, they were manufactured in 2001, which means that it's time for them to go.

The sticker in the door shows factory tires as P235/75R15 SL.
The tires on it are 31x10.50 R15 LT

My questions:
Are these wheels safe to use?
Is there a way to clean them up to look halfway decent?

I'm going to buy four new tires to the factory spec, but not until I figure out what to do with the wheels. I can get new wheels from the local salvage yard, but I'd rather not spend the money if I don't have to. I'm not terribly concerned about the looks.

Any advice anyone has would be appreciated.

-Huffheinz

 

[RonD]

Yes, just replace the tires, I know not cheap.

The wheels look pretty bad, but IMO, not unsafe.
Alloy wheels can be "sandblasted", different "blasting" materials yield different results, but those look pretty far gone to restore, so cleaning and painting may be best option for them.

Outside of sandblasting, citric acid cleans alloy wheels pretty well without hurting material too much.
Off the shelf cleaners can work as well, just read what others have tried.

 

[kimcrwbr1]

Get some Jabsco paint stripper and a pressure washer that will get it down to good aluminum just brush on a heavy coat of stripper and let it sit for about five minutes and blast it off. Be careful of back spray. It took me a few times to remove the old clear coat from the factory that turned brownish white. Just make sure it is good and dry before you apply another coat of stripper. Wear goggles and old clothese.

 

[kimcrwbr1]

Keep an eye on craigs list I paid $75 for a set of 4 B-II wheels and tires and still have the tires on the front. I believe chrysler/jeep has the same bolt pattern?

 

[Kowboy]

I believe that the Jeep wheels will have too much offset and will stick outside of the fenders. Something you may or may not want.

 

[SenorNoob]

Jeep wheels also tend to rub the brake caliper on the front of 4x4's. Not sure if this was still a problem in 98 or not. Always seemed weird to me that it only rubbed when turning. Didn't even cut the paint off all the way around..

That's at least one style to avoid.

 

[MPRanger]

You can just clean the grease, oil, and other stuff off the wheel and plasti-dip them. You don't have to worry about sanding them smooth because the plasti-dip will fill them in.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[SenorNoob]

What about a wire brush? Brushed aluminum is a style now.

 

[truckfan]

+1 on checking craiglist or local junk yard for used rims because cleaning/painting them can be a PITA.