96 GTS Wheel Center Caps

[sdaddy]

I bought a 96 B/W GTS and sent it in to the body shop to have the fascia repainted due to scrapes on the bottom. (I know, it is a waste of time and money.) The prior owner had painted the "Sneaky Pete" emblems in the center of the wheel caps blue to match the body, and I asked the body shop if they could remove that. The body shop called me and said when they removed the blue it looked like there was white paint underneath. I am not sure if these wheel centers are just polished aluminum that has been clearcoated or anodized aluminum that has been clearcoated. If they are anodized, the white they are seeing may be the bare aluminum with the anodizing removed by the paint stripper.

Anyone know how the original polished look was achieved on these? If anodized, I may need to have stripped and reanodized. If not, I should just be able to have polished and reclearcoated.

 

[99 R/T 10]

Sounds like the previous owner had a set of white center caps off the 96 RT/10(painted). If they are plastic, just repaint them. If they are metal, you should be able to sandblast and polish, but either way, it will be a pain in the butt.

 

[dave6666]

I don't believe that paint stripper affects anodizing, and if they are only white in the Sneaky Pete emblem area, I think that would have been done by someone besides the factory. Because I thought the white ones were all white, not just the logo.

If they are plastic then the paint stripper can soften the plastic. Better take a looksie at that.

If after the paint stripper has taken it's toll there is still color then yes it could be anodizing, but it would be unlikely that only the center was anodized. If you want to refinish them there are choices, but I would refrain from sandblasting them. That will be difficult to polish back out. The anodizers can strip them if you go back with a clear anodizing, or find a place that can tumble polish them. That may take any remaining color off w/o blasting.

 

[FLX109]

Either that or they were primed in that area before painting

 

[Flash Gordon]

I have the '97 wheels. Previous owner painted mine too. My center caps were just clear coated over polished aluminum. I simply stripped and repolished. Good as new.