Just wondering if anyone else has had a problem with the clear coat coming off AMG rims, the originals? I bought a set of replicas for the 400E in December of 99 and these are still looking brand new. My CLK430 is a 99 and these rims look pretty bad for a 3 year old car. What gives?

Is there any hope of taking this car to a dealer for MB to stand behind them. I bought the car from a friend of my cousin, so it did not come from a dealer. It also has 64,000 miles. I know the guy who owned it prior and he took very good care of the vehicle overall.

I checked into having them "recoated" and there is a good shop in Illinois that would do it for $300 for the set.

What do you think?

Thank you!

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Brian W.

01 S55 AMG Silver
01 CLK55 AMG Silver

A few questions:

1. How often do you clean the wheels, and what do you use?
2. Do you take the car to a car wash or clean it yourself?
3. Is the car driven in the winter? Salt conditions?

Also, do a search in the wheels and tires forum. There's a lot more detailed information there.

I doubt that you will have much luck with MB doing any "goodwill" for you considering the age of the wheels. Not to say that the wear you describe is not premature, just that lately, MB doesn't do much to rectify individual problems these days.

My 30K mile (at the time) SL developed a split on the convertible top window. Hardly expected, considering the pristine condition of the window and top, and the lack of inclement weather in Texas.

Took an MB rep to intervene, and even with that, I still had to eat some of the replacement cost...and of course, it was NOT covered under Starmark .

The dealership will probably not do anything for you on their own. You need to get them to contact an MB rep. The best you can hope for is that they swap out the rims and you would pay for the use of your current rims for three years (kinda like tire warranties). I believe that they will cite wheel abuse and neglect (your inclement Iowa winters and use of caustic salt chemicals on the road) and deny any claim.

I will admit that I have seen pitted rims on vehicles that have endured those conditions, but it usually takes five or more years of that exposure, coupled with the lack of wheel care during that period.

Still, see whether you can make any progress there before you go ahead and spend any money on reconditioning the wheels.

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2009 ML350 (106K) - Family vehicle
2001 CLK430 Cabriolet (80K) - Wife's car
2005 BMW 645CI (138K) - My daily driver
2016 Mustang (32K) - Daughter's car

I've only had the car for a few weeks, so I have not cleaned them personally. But as I stated the gentleman I bought the car from took care of it and used the PS21 wheel cleaner...supposedly. I have no reason to doubt him and I did visit his home and it was pristine.

I feel as though my time would be better spent sending them off and having them redone at this point. For $300 it would cause more aggrivation and consume more than $300 of my time.

It isn't like Germany doesn't see snowfall and inclimate weather. How can a car manufacturer think that clear coat lasting only 3 years is acceptable? G-man, the example of your top is proof enough.

Thanks for your input, because I'm going to the dealer and see what they say!

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Brian W.

01 S55 AMG Silver
01 CLK55 AMG Silver

I've had the wheels on our (Jan) 2000 SLK230k replaced under warranty, no questions asked, no problem, only too willing to help. There was "spidering" under the clear coat on the wheel faces. Basically, moisture had got under the clear coat around the bolt holes and had spread outwards. MB could not have been fairer.

It maybe that your wheels have been refurbished. I've just had mine done. The dealer candidly admitted that clearcoat on the polished rim section of the AMG wheel was liable to lift or sufer from moisture attack about 12 to 24 months after a refurb. I've seen lots of cars on forecourts with this problem.

I had my wheels refurbished and I'm very pleased with the results. $300 seems a bit on the low side, mine were the equivalent of $500 for all four, with a 12 month MB-backed warranty.

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JJ Rodger
2013 G350 Bluetec
1999 SL 500
1993 E300 diesel T
1990 190