It's time to get the summer tires on, I picked up the car used over the winter and unfortunately the previous owner had a couple decent run-in's with curbs while parking.

I've called the local wheel shop and they charge $170 per wheel to strip them down and resurface the entire wheel. Is anyone aware of an option to just clean up the rim edge? Seems a tad unnecessary to do the entire wheel but I'm not sure the clear coat on the wheels could be touched up nicely after machining the lip...

 

not really worth a 170 per wheel.
I'd rather sell my OEM's and just buy new ones then , and with new tire deals

Unfortunately from what I know just to polish the damaged surface, it may create a different color tone with a bent look, so it's easier for them to just redo the whole thing,
sort of like painting a damaged part of the car, better to just repaint the whole car

 

Alberta Wheel, Goddard Ave NE (behind Golden Acres) quoted me $150.00 per wheel, GST?

I had good results using fine emery cloth to gently sand away the bumps in the paint. This won't work if the damage got through to the metal, but, there's no downside to giving it a try since the only option is to have the rims professionally refinished. Nobody can just "touch up" the rim and have it look OK. The whole wheel has to be repainted.

Canadian Tire sells various colours of silver "touch up" paint but you won't like the results.

 

Was Alberta wheel that quoted me, I've used them before. Seems a waste of money for a bit of curb rash...but I hate the curb rash!

 

just got my wheel fixed at the Jaguar dealer this week. They use a sub who partially deflates the tire, bends it back and sands/refinishes. It looks brand new again. Cost was $130.

 

That's US pricing.

Alberta Wheel's the only game in our town. Even the dealers use him.

 

I've found a few more options, awaiting contact from them...totally useless for anyone outside Calgary though...

Andrej at Mobile wheel repair - 403-861-3582

and another

Alloy Wheel Repair Specialists of Canada | Calgary, Alberta: Servicing Calgary, Alberta

 

Those two links are to the same guy.

 

I pay $50 - $75 per wheel, down here in Atlanta.

 

I have an 02 X-Type that had a bit of road rash on the rims from when I bought the car. I tried an number of things and found that a dremel type tool with a while stone bit worked really well to get rid of the rash. Then I used 600 grit and 2000 grit to smooth out where I had ground them down. They look great. Now all I need is to match the paint to do some minor touch up and they will be like new. I used this same process on my daughters Acura and then sprayed clear coat on them. While they don't look new, they look a LOT better and from ten feet away or when they are moving you can't see anything wrong with them. Otherwise the shop around here wanted $100 per rim. The first picture shows just after I started, hence the smooth spot at the top in the middle of the rash, this is where it was the worst. The next two I just took and as you can see, no road rash. FYI the part at the top in the first pick is where I zoomed in on now at the bottom right.

 

It is important to repaint the bare aluminum to impede corrosion. Aluminum corrosion is only cosmetic but ugly.

 

Ah, thanks for the tip. I will be sure to clean then really well and apply clear coat.

 

I was able to find someone on Ebay that was selling Jaguar rim touch up paint. They were in England. I sanded the spots that needed touching up and have applied the first coat. The paint matches, but I am not happy with the results. I think it has more to do with the brush that came with it though. I have some better brushes to use for the touch up. I will lightly sand those spots again, use the better brush, apply clear coat and post the new pictures here when I am done. I am going to try to get this done this weekend.

 

You might want to try a craft store paint marker. They have a lot of different shades of colors. I'm sure you could find the right gray and touch up any spots.

 

Thanks for the tip. I will keep that in mind.