GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

Hey guys,
I have a 2005 vibe with steelies and hubcaps. I have seen a couple people have painted their hubcaps black and wanted to do the same. Wondering if I should sand them first then prime and paint or forget the sanding and just prime and paint? Also wondering how they hold up over time? Does the paint start to chip? Will I have to repaint every now and then? Thanks in advance for the help!

Sand, prime and paint. Duplicolor makes wheel paint which seems to be very durable. If you do an extra fine sanding and a couple of coats of clear over the paint, it will hold up even better.

You could also use Plasti-dip. It stays flexible and is chip resistant. If it needs redoing or you want to change color, it peels off easily. A lot of people use it to paint front grilles etc.

[quote="Raven" You could also use Plasti-dip. It stays flexible and is chip resistant. If it needs redoing or you want to change color, it peels off easily. A lot of people use it to paint front grilles etc.[/quote]

I have plasti-diped all my emblems but have never thought about it for my hubcaps. I have a gravel driveway and have noticed that dust tends to gather more on the plasti-dip than other places so im not sure about using it on my hubcaps but it is an option i guess.

I wish I could repaint 'em silver, age has not been kind... I'd like an original look, so the only thing stopping me is the inability to restore the Pontiac logos.

ColonelPanic wrote:I wish I could repaint 'em silver, age has not been kind... I'd like an original look, so the only thing stopping me is the inability to restore the Pontiac logos.

Did you paint them and now you want to go back? If the paint doesnt hold up well maybe the plasti-dip is the way to go just for the durablilty

Nope, they're still stock and turning yellow from the original finish gradually disappearing over the years.

I think Raven's suggestion for painting w/ the wheel paint would be what I would do should I ever try to paint them.

Since the wheel covers are plastic, you could always use Krylon Fusion. No need for sanding priming, etc. Just clean them and spray a sufficient amount of coats to achieve the look you want.

ColonelPanic wrote:I wish I could repaint 'em silver, age has not been kind... I'd like an original look, so the only thing stopping me is the inability to restore the Pontiac logos.

Contact Ryan at Grafx Werks. I'm sure he could whip up some sort of overlay for the center caps for you .