RS4 Wheel Refinish Project

[combsatl]

So, earlier this week I purchased a set of replica RS4 wheels off eBay. I knew they were going to be pretty beat up so I planned to refinish them myself. The arrived extremely quickly (shipped on Wednesday and arrived on Friday) and in just awful condition - maybe worse than I thought. How do people not care about their stuff THIS much?

So I called around to a few places and they quoted me anywhere between $50 and $150 to refinish. I decided to go ahead and just do it myself. I made a trip to AdvanceAuto and Walmart to buy primer, paint, clearcoat, bondo, paint thinner, sand paper, etc. I just got the first wheel done and it's pretty good. The clearcoat didn't go on as smooth as I would really like but, honestly, it's not half bad. I did the sanding, primer and bondo, primer (again) and paint last night, let it dry overnight, and clearcoated early this AM. My fiancee complained the house stinks... I painted them in my shop which is under the kitchen in the basement.

So, without further adieu, here is how the first wheel turned out:

As I received them
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWhwoEmBNkI/AAAAAAAAB8s/NHgzjHT78eY/s640/IMG_0676.jpg

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWhwoeJyYJI/AAAAAAAAB8w/3x4Xf43F_Gc/s640/IMG_0675.jpg

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWhwo_rlyaI/AAAAAAAAB80/Krtww3az-dM/s640/IMG_0674.jpg

First coat or Primer (pre-bondo)
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWhwtcH_q7I/AAAAAAAAB9Q/Olbid-tX5lk/s640/IMG_0677.jpg

Bondo
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWhwtNpODhI/AAAAAAAAB88/KD5apUIXb-E/s640/IMG_0678.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWhwxXhd5bI/AAAAAAAAB7c/gSUc-w5tdpw/s640/IMG_0680.jpg

Bondo Sanded
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWhwwHg-WuI/AAAAAAAAB9c/R1gLvjP-IUM/s640/IMG_0681.jpg

Final Primer/Sanded
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWhw0RgQbOI/AAAAAAAAB7g/V-x0GNLT5zE/s640/IMG_0682.jpg

Second coat of paint (Duplicolor Graphite)
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWhw1_l9jjI/AAAAAAAAB9w/1B00fejWPwA/s640/IMG_0684.jpg

First Clearcoat
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWkBqSK8skI/AAAAAAAAB_4/G9jVNcfFkVI/s640/IMG_0686.jpg

Final Clearcoat (maybe fourth or fifth - I lost count lol)
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWkBsXwv6vI/AAAAAAAAB_w/50To3puhZ0s/s640/IMG_0685.jpg

I'm taking the other 3 to the shop to get the tires removed (the tires trashed - cracked, worn.. just awful) and will start on them later this afternoon after it warms up a bit.

[Boxmods360]

very nice job. It looks really good and same color.

[viziers]

Not to down the work and all but bondo was not the thing to use IMO as when you go to mount a tire on it either the tire mounting arm or the tire lip rubbing over the rim lip is going to rip that bondo off even with layers of paint holding it on... Now I may be wrong and I hope it does work for ya. I think the proper way is to grind down the bad parts at the same time and making it even through the whole circumference of the rim lip...



vizi

[combsatl]

Thanks, BoxMods! The paint was really a close match - maybe a bit more metallic but I'm going to be re-doing all of them so it doesn't really matter.

Viziers: I know how it looks but there isn't actually a layer of bondo anywhere. I used my power sander and took the original paint/primer off and then sanded as much metal down as I could without making it uneven. I then cleaned it and used the bondo to fill in the holes that were left. I then sanded it back down to the metal (but leaving bondo in the holes) and re-primed it.

I think it should be OK like that. You?

[hotshot32890]

Wow great work man, how much did you pay for them on ebay?

[combsatl]

Wow great work man, how much did you pay for them on ebay?

Thanks, man! $480 shipped - they're 19x8 with ET35. The seller was a bit dishonest - he listed them with 3 tires and said they were in good quality. All of the tires are either cracked or gouged and are not safe to drive on at all. I might dispute but I had intended on buying 4 new tires anyway so what's the point? Meh.

[viziers]

Yea that should be ok in that case...



vizi

[adwatter]

id get a metal filler instead of bondo. bondo sinks as it dries, even under primer and paint. best thing to do is bondo, let dry, sand, bondo again etc. finished wheel looks great though!

[HamidsVikes]

great job man...

just out of criousity...
how much did the material cost you, and how much time (work time) would you have to spend on each wheel?

[arce909]

Looks good!!!

[geekinc]

Nice job!

[combsatl]

Thanks guys!


great job man...

just out of criousity...
how much did the material cost you, and how much time (work time) would you have to spend on each wheel?

Well - I just finished up prepping/painting the other three. I'm going to let them cure overnight and clearcoat them in the AM. Material: I bought 2 cans of primer, 2 cans of paint and 2 cans of clearcoat. They're $6 a can so that's $36. I bought some sand paper which was like $3, paint thinner: $8 and bondo which was maybe $7. So that would be $54ish, if I can count. I spent about 2 hrs on it last night on the one wheel, 4.5 hours today and probably another hour tomorrow.

I think it came out pretty well (I'll post pics of the other wheels in just a bit), and I'm sure a shop designed for wheel repair could have done better, but I really enjoy doing this kind of thing and the satisfaction knowing I put a lot of work into something that came out nice.

[combsatl]

So here's the rest of what I did today. I prepped the remaining three wheels (sanded, washed, bondo, sanded, primed - only one coat this time, yey -, sanded, washed) and painted them. I'm going to let them sit overnight to cure and clearcoat them in the AM.

Here's the type of shit I'm dealing with:
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWlo2wc1lfI/AAAAAAAACAA/ya1NmwRHN6M/s640/IMG_0691.jpg

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWlo4rsMZuI/AAAAAAAACAE/4pYJuSXvld0/s640/IMG_0692.jpg

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWlo78XD-AI/AAAAAAAACAI/Q3q-1xzw5jA/s640/IMG_0690.jpg

Skip ahead a bit (bondo/priming/sanding) and they're ready to be painted
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWlo_isDavI/AAAAAAAACAU/-zGD2dqLdAM/s640/IMG_0700.jpg

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWlo_Y-L1hI/AAAAAAAACAQ/724AsRlQNlY/s640/IMG_0701.jpg

And all painted :) Not perfect but I can live with them.
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWlpCxs53gI/AAAAAAAACAY/eESeolL2-40/s640/IMG_0702.jpg

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWlpFCYKkVI/AAAAAAAACAk/Czv838DxjIQ/s640/IMG_0703.jpg

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWlpF9llj3I/AAAAAAAACAo/pZz1m4qLHEs/s640/IMG_0704.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TWlpHZXUBMI/AAAAAAAACAs/jTu7ooUX9uo/s640/IMG_0705.JPG

[freaksavior]

They look pretty good man. I wouldn't have thought to use bondo, hope that holds out.

[combsatl]

I think they'll be fine. The amount of bondo used was so miniscule.. I mean we're talking about scratch marks that weren't able to be removed with the sander. Nothing structural at all. I did this with a set of wheels for my B6 A4 (the same style wheels on my car now, actually) and drove with them on for almost a year with no issues at all.

[j0hns0nc]

Wow great work! They look amazing. I think you should email the seller and ask for some sort of refund. Maybe 400 flat? See if they're willing to work with you. If not then just leave a negative feedback.

[combsatl]

Yeah - one of the rims is bent (yey) so he's refunding me the price it will take to fix the bend - $100. Can't wait until Wednesday, though, when I have the tires mounted and put the wheels on my car. Hope they ride alright.. lol.

[adwatter]

hey man those came out really nice, and you get points for tackling a job like that. and i agree, how the hell does someone let their wheels get that curbed??

[A4 Centaur]

Good work! I would have used JB weld instead. That stuff would NEVER come up.

[fusionx]

wow insane job! looks great!

[Scorpio]

that look really good..well done.

[eskimopunk]

Wow, great work mate [up]

[cheemn]

I am impressed.......... wish I had someone around like you in NY to do work like that in case I ever curbed my rims. Its soooooo expensive to get rims redone professionally. GOOD JOB!!

[combsatl]

Thanks, guys - I really appreciate it.

It's really not that tough to do.. just tedious. I'll try JB Weld next time I do something like this but I really think bondo will work fine in the small amount I used it. We'll see..

Cheemn - If you do ever curb your wheels, this is really not that difficult to do. The only thing that is a MUST buy is a power sander. I bought a 18v battery powered Black and Decker sander off ebay for like $20 a few years back and use it. It makes the job extremely easy. It's just time consuming but take solace in knowing that if you screw up and get a run or something, you can just let it dry, sand it back down and redo that part. Luckily, no runs for me at all during this entire thing. I was happy, lol.

Again, thanks guys. Can't wait to get these on my car!!

[kristokes]

Great job! Post pictures when they're mounted on the car [up]

[rowyourown]

cool little project, props for diy man

[combsatl]

Alright, so my tires FINALLY came and I got them mounted. Tonight they go on the car!! WOOO!

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TXZ4ObQqryI/AAAAAAAACCk/LGqqaVI8Xv0/s640/photo.JPG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TXZ4OPbf7mI/AAAAAAAACCg/5Wv8lZ7JlaI/s640/photo-1.JPG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TXZ4OPwvUGI/AAAAAAAACCc/k7_7IHaWoK4/s640/photo-2.JPG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TXZ4OI9wOFI/AAAAAAAACCY/UcZg_Med_pU/s640/photo-3.JPG

[elwigglero]

^^^ Came out great. Good work man.

[event]

I need to do this to my BBS', dey got da rash...

[jriddle11]

Nice work

[combsatl]

Haha, thanks guys. Before I post I want to say something..

I know - More Low, Moar Low, Moare Lo... I know I know I know. I'm working on it. I gotta make moar money before I can go moar low :) Will post in just a few mins.

[billyhoyle]

Wow those wheels were in terrible shape. The previous owner must have been hitting curbs left right and center lol. They look great now though. Nice work!

[combsatl]

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TXa8xoeBDHI/AAAAAAAACDc/wRU4PapjdIs/s640/photo-4.JPG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TXa8s5eYREI/AAAAAAAACDQ/XVETU4S-id0/s640/photo-5.JPG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_L5D_Clmd_9s/TXa8wiYdNtI/AAAAAAAACDY/LuTU5rZ2hpo/s640/photo-6.JPG

[A4A4A4]

Those turned out really nice and really go with the DG. Wheel gap doesn't even look too bad either. Do you know who makes those RS4 reps?

[combsatl]

Those turned out really nice and really go with the DG. Wheel gap doesn't even look too bad either. Do you know who makes those RS4 reps?

Thanks man. I have absolutely no idea who makes them :( Since I bought them on eBay I assume the guy bought them there, too. I think I saw some like this from a seller called Vortex Tuning or something.

They ride pretty nice actually but there's definitely a big difference in going from 17 to 19" wheels. I feel almost every little bump in the road now. Just gotta get used to it I suppose :)

[Slovak84]

Good job dude, the wheels came out great! now springs or coilovers...

[Leo14]

Damn dude you did a pretty good job, I mean they are 10x better than when you got them and they look sweet on your car

[4RingRook]

Persian Rug in the driveway? Stay classy san diego. [>_<]

Needs moar low. Great job man, wheels came out great. They were beat to sheet.

[Mc Suly]

Project turned out great + wheels look great on the car with that color!!

[adwatter]

good color choice on the wheels, they compliment your cars color really nicely. so howd the paint hold up after the tires were mounted?

[Operator]

Alright, so my tires FINALLY came and I got them mounted. Tonight they go on the car!! WOOO!



Tried to read the stickers, but what size tires did you go with. And at stock suspension height it came out well!!!!!

[combsatl]

Thanks everyone :) I'm thrilled with how they came out and I really like the graphite and DG together.


good color choice on the wheels, they compliment your cars color really nicely. so howd the paint hold up after the tires were mounted?

Thanks - I really appreciate it! Actually, the paint held up really well. I didn't notice ANY chips or anything after they put them on. I had Discount Tire do it and they used enough lube to make a gay man jealous (I would assume..?!) to squeeze those tires on but the paint and clear coat looks as I left it.


Tried to read the stickers, but what size tires did you go with. And at stock suspension height it came out well!!!!!

I decided to go with 225/35/19's . Partially because that's what were on the rims when I got them (even though the tires were unusable, they looked to fill the rim up nicely) and because I found those General Exclaim UHP's for $128 a tire. Tire rack rated them really well (fourth overall in their category) and the ride seems nice so far, so I'm happy :)

[aznsap]

what grit and type of sand paper did you use?

[drumnjuny]

hey man those came out really nice, and you get points for tackling a job like that. and i agree, how the hell does someone let their wheels get that curbed??

i've seen some crazy things... took this bad boy on campus in boulder a couple weeks ago, crazy!! seriously impressive work on those rs4 reps

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/222029_1758156884904_1568460099_31651219_1566607_n .jpg