Here is a tip for those, like me, that live in winter climates.
When I bought my used 2007 Duramax, the previous owner did a poor job rinsing the Mag Chloride from the aluminum rims. All four rims had a fair amount of the "white rust" spots and they looked like crap.
I tried several cleaners and metal polish compounds but nothing would remove the spots.
I did some internet research and I found out that the white rust is corrosion under the clear coat on the aluminum rims. I found a video that showed how to remove the corrosion by using 500 grit sandpaper and very fine steel wool.
I was a little apprehensive at first and I started with a small area. The steel wool easily took off the clear coat and then took off the white stuff. When each rim was free of the white stuff I polished it with a drill, a polishing ball, and a low grit metal polish/protector.
The result is that the rims look almost like new. If you know where the white spots used to be you can still see that the metal is more polished in that spot. It still looks much better than those white Mag Chloride spots all over the rim.
I think the key is to keep the Mag Chloride rinsed off the rims and keeping a good metal polish on the rims to protect them.
:thumb:
When I bought my used 2007 Duramax, the previous owner did a poor job rinsing the Mag Chloride from the aluminum rims. All four rims had a fair amount of the "white rust" spots and they looked like crap.
I tried several cleaners and metal polish compounds but nothing would remove the spots.
I did some internet research and I found out that the white rust is corrosion under the clear coat on the aluminum rims. I found a video that showed how to remove the corrosion by using 500 grit sandpaper and very fine steel wool.
I was a little apprehensive at first and I started with a small area. The steel wool easily took off the clear coat and then took off the white stuff. When each rim was free of the white stuff I polished it with a drill, a polishing ball, and a low grit metal polish/protector.
The result is that the rims look almost like new. If you know where the white spots used to be you can still see that the metal is more polished in that spot. It still looks much better than those white Mag Chloride spots all over the rim.
I think the key is to keep the Mag Chloride rinsed off the rims and keeping a good metal polish on the rims to protect them.
:thumb: