And I'm certain there are tens of thousands of people with factory rims who never have and never will have a problem, and I'm certain there are tens of thousands of people with aftermarket rims who never have and never will have a problem, but the point remains that there HAVE BEEN and WILL BE failures to factory rims :cheers:

I'm in the same boat. These are showing some pitting in the corners after ten years and 87K, it's tempting to try and do something, but the options are just as everyone said...

http://i846.photobucket.com/albums/a...n/DSC02387.jpg

http://i846.photobucket.com/albums/a...n/DSC02385.jpg

That's pretty much what mine are like, they're not horrible and certainly not past the point of redemption, but as they are, after going all Adams on the car, they definately don't add to the cause. Thing is, I love the simplicity of the thin spokes and the overall proportion of the OEM wheels. It could be a long, long winter. Or I could send them out but I don't even know if you can chrome plate aluminum. The car isn't quite a daily driver but it would reduce the care.

Once thin spokes get stoned pitted unless you spend several hundred to get them stripped and recoated you'll need to strip them yourself with aircraft grade stripper (coating is tough) and keep them polished yourself. It's a big job but they'll look better than brand new minus the coating. Just try to stay out of salty environment. If you can do that you just need a few hours of touch up once a year to keep them really nice.

Small, dark pits in corners of spokes
 

My 2001 C5 is a high mileage car and the wheels are really in 99% good condition. From 5-10 feet away they look fine. I would like to do something about these tiny pits which obviously are through the clear coat and oxidizing the aluminum. Can I polish just these local areas and then keep them waxed to "stabilize" the finish? Also, I need to polish the inside of the rims as they have clearly not been maintained. Any preferred polish?

thanks, Tractorjimm

If the clear coat on your factory wheels is getting cloudy, not much you can do to clean it up other than strip it off and re-clear.

Ever one has an opinion and that is great. I had a set of high polished aluminum 5 spoke no clear coat loved them but every time I had to clean them my hands were done for days. had them for 10 years. could not deal with them no longer. sorry if 800 is cheap that is what I got and easy to clean. this is my third set of wheelshttp://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/...psd274aab9.jpg

If you have the time and strong hands strip them you will have a nice set of wheels. This is my car with the old wheels witch I sold after ten years and the guy loves themhttp://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/...ps53808ac7.jpg