Dilemma: Polished Vs. Chrome WS6 Wheels

So I'm facing a dilemma [don't we all, lol]. Well I want to purchase a set of 17" WS6 wheels in the near future. But I don't know if I want the polished wheels or the chrome wheels. I like they way both look on a bird. The chrome is just hot, but I also love the more subtle look of the polished wheels on a black car.

I've only found one place that sells WS6 wheels [yet alone chrome ones].
http://www.lakeshorewheelandtire.com/specials/firebird.shtml

The polished ones are about $400 cheaper then the chrome ones. But the chrome one's look so damn sexy.

Decisions decisions.

we just put chrome zo6 rims on my kids camaro. chose these over the cheaper polished rims. i've got polished auto drags on my Grand National, and its a bear to keep them clean and shiney. chrome is much easier.

and its a bear to keep them clean and shiney. chrome is much easier.

Agreed, I had polished Z06 whels on my T/A and they were such a PITA. I will never buy polished wheels again!

But what about chrome peeling off?

ZMAN

A very interesting dilemma indeed. I find that chrome works best on subtle colors like silver, pewter, and abstract colors like black and white (I am on the fence with white...sometimes chrome will work with it, and other times it will not).

Moody, hot and/or intriguing colors will have a harder time with chrome. If you have the hot color and chrome, both will fight for attention, and at times the shine from both surfaces will work against each other because the eye won't know what to focus on first. Polished can shine almost to the gleam of chrome, but more often it will have a more of a muted shine or even a slightly dull to machined look (there are variations of polished surfaces, unlike chrome).

That was one reason I decided to go with a polished rim set with my car. I felt that the color (SOM with a black clearcoated top) and a chrome rim wouldn't work as well together as a more subtle wheel surface.

Bear in mind, that this is only my opinion, and that you will need to see what works for you. The firebird has the advantage that it is a solid color, and will be less distracting with a chrome rim than a two tone paint scheme (like a z28 or an SS).

In 95, the Camaro's got the 1 color. I don't know about the LS1's though, haven't paid much attention.

Z

Polished, simply put, it will never peel off. To polish them get the mothers powerball, it will cut the time down greatly.

I wanted something shinier than my 5 spoke painted rims too.
I heard that chrome can peel, but that polished are a pain to keep clean.

I ended up with polished, and I have to say -I haven't had any trouble keeping them clean. And my car is a daily driver.

Now, they were used rims -but in good (maybe even great) condition. I prepped them at the cost (in time) of about an hour per wheel using various polishing compounds.

Then I put 3 coats of Poorboy's World wheel sealant, and finished with 2 coats of Collinite's No. 845 Insulator wax on top.

That was about 3 months ago. I wash regularly and have only recoated the wheels once since then. So if "being a pain" to keep clean, means washing the car as you normally would, and giving them a light buff (Mother's Power Ball -about 5 minutes a wheel) followed by whatever sealant and/or wax you decide upon, once every 2 months, then I guess they're "a pain". :)

But you may be more of a perfectionist than I am, and/or not have all the "tools" (read: power ball, sealant and wax) that I have bought.

It truly comes down to the rim style, and do you want an overpowering mirror-like shine (chrome), or a shined metal (polished) look on your car.
I'm just saying (for me) keeping up on polishing my wheels is NOT turning out to be as big of a deal as I was concerned about before buying them.

Yup polished are a PITA to keep up...forgot to add that one. Even clearcoated polished like what I have. The clearcoat helps, but the polished surface oxidizes anyway, which will require you to use a special polished metal cleaner such as blue magic or flitz. I suppose in the long run you will get more longevity out of a polished set, but be prepared for some elbow grease.

A tip is to put some wax on top of your wheel after cleaning them, as it will help them stay clean a lot longer.

I was going to put some of that Zoop seal stuff on the wheels either way, chrome or polished.

i have a gold camaro and i am bout to buy zr1 rims in a couple days and i was all for chrome but i have the eagle 077s polished and i think they are a pita to keep clean so idk i am for chrome right now though

black chrome :metal:

black chrome :metal:

Cool, I love black and shadow chrome. If you can get a good set, grab them!

i had a set of polished eagle 077's on my car a long time ago and those were a b*tch to keep clean. i had to polish them constantly to make them look good. i later got 01 ws6 wheels for my car, which are polished. i haven't had a problem w/ them at all. i never polish them and they clean up very nice when i wash my car. i don't think you'll have a problem w/ factory wheels. i think they are coated better than some of the aftermarket wheels.

I bought my Chrome ws6 rims from aaarims or http://www.lakeshorewheelandtire.com I guess they changed names/ownership. In any case I bought my chrome rims back in 2000 I think. The first 8 months I had them they peeled really badly. They had a 2 year finish warranty, but I had to move my tires back over to my allow rims and then ship all the wheels back. They did replace three of the wheels and they re-dipped one of the original rims. I have been using them only in the spring summer now and they have held up well for 4 years now. Chrome definitely looks HOT!! Check out the pics in my sig. For $1,200 thats really not a bad deal for chrome rims. And I am sure they have figured out the peeling issues by now. Also check out the www.tirerack.com, they sell the Sport Edition 6521 - 17x9 - $295 chrome WS6 replica rims. Not sure which rims are of better quality. Good Luck

Chrome is nice looking, but I will tell you that my Chrome SS 10 Spokes are starting to peel and it costs too much to re-chrome them. I will go with polished next time so I dont waste my money.

Yes they are more work, but they arent going just flake off and become bad suddenly. Too me polishing the wheels isnt a big deal, it goes along with every other maintenance thing on my car. Just have to keep up on them.

Good luck man

-Dustin-