It has been about one year since I shared my experience changing the color of my wheels using Plasti Dip. The full details about that process can be found in the video article Video: Change Your Wheel Color with Plasti Dip.
Plasti Dip has become a popular coating over the past few years for wheels, and getting traction as a way to change the color of your entire car. The big benefit of Plasti Dip is the ability to peel it off once you get tired of it. That’s great for people like me who are frequently bored with aspects of their car. It also begs the question, “how does it hold up over time?”
One Year Later
So here we are nearly one year since I coated the wheels on my 2004 Honda CRV. I bought this vehicle to use as my winter driver (it has been awesome in the snow!). It is never garaged, so it received a lot of exposure over the past year.
The good: after repeated exposure to snow, salt, high pressure car washes and Michigan roads, the coating has not peeled off.
The bad: the finish has dulled, and due to the grippy/rubbery coating it does not get fully clean. That grippy surface seems to attract the dirt. See the “then and now” pics below:
Now that the weather is improving, I decided to paint my wheels to give it a fresh look.
Removing Plasti Dip
I was pleased to discover the coating was not hard to peel off. In fact, it is oddly satisfying to pull this stretchy material from the wheel.
I did learn, however, that areas of the wheel where I did not apply enough Plasti Dip (mainly on the inside side of the spokes) were hard to remove. Any time you watch a YouTube video on Plasti Dipping wheels, they say to be sure to put it on with heavy coats. Now I know why!
Luckily, those thin areas were easily removed using Mineral Spirits on a paper towel. Just soak a piece of towel with the Mineral Spirits, wipe it across the left over coating and it pretty quickly dissolves away.
At this point you can stop here and enjoy the look of your wheels before they were Plasti Dipped. The wheels should be in the same condition as when you originally “dipped” them. That’s the beauty of Plasti Dip – the wheels only needed to be clean before applying it. They did not need to be sanded, so will be in their original condition.
Stop or Repaint?
My need for constant change means I was not going to leave the wheels as-is. Since I originally coated these wheels, I painted the CRV a different color (I chronicled that process HERE). Those silver wheels don’t go with the Desert Sand paint color.
If you are interested in the process to paint your own wheels, my article Paint Your Own Wheels will walk you through the steps.
I am still experimenting with the new color for the wheels. So far, I am undecided between Champagne Bronze (top pic) or Oil Rubbed Bronze (bottom).
Related Article: I’m Done With Black Wheels!
What do you think? I would love your ideas in the comments at the botom of this page.
Final Thoughts and Questions
Cheap and easy modifications are at the heart of what I promote for young car enthusiasts. That’s why Vehicle Nanny is here — to nurture the automotive interests of budding car enthusiasts.
Let me know your thoughts if you have a favorite from my selections, or one of your own. Please email me at wct.billtaylor@gmail.com, or message me through the Vehicle Nanny Instagram or Facebook pages.
Want to learn more about me? Go to this article: Who’s Your Nanny?