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Painted White Hubcaps on a Blizzard Pearl

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Accessories and Modifications' started by Mac Attack, Oct 8, 2010.

  1. Mac Attack

    Mac Attack New Member

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    I've had my first Prius for two weeks now and have done a few things to it. Little things like window tint, powered sub, DDM HID headlights, etc.

    Like most here with the hubcaps, I popped them off to check out the alloys. I liked them, but wondered how they would look painted white.... So, after sanding to rough up the surface, a few coats of white paint for plastics (seems to have a bunch of flexural agents in it), a few coats of clear paint for plastics, five days of curing time, then finally some wet-sanding and wax, tada!

    I think I like it. It was certainly cheap although it took some time to do. With the little brake dust I generate, it hasn't discolored the paint yet, and should last for awhile since I tend to keep the cars clean (my previous daily-driver had white painted wheels so I have some experience with this). Some discoloring is expected over time, but it should hold up for awhile. Before taking it in to service, I'll pop them off myself as I'll probably be a little more careful with them than a technician.

    What do you think? I've considered having the OEM alloys powdercoated white as I think that would look good too, but that's a few hundred $'s. These should hold me for awhile hopefully :)
     

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  2. spiderman

    spiderman wretched

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    Not bad. How about a closer up photo from the side?
     
  3. danvee

    danvee Blizzard Brigadier

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    Interesting look, Mac!

    Just a bit stark, as the car is a pearl and the wheels are pure white, but, from the rear 3/4 view it does look pretty good.
    Did you remove the chrome plated Toyota logos before painting or just mask them?

    Dan
     
  4. therover1991

    therover1991 Junior Member

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    The wheels look great! Good job, definitely something I would do if I had the white.

    A little off topic but you mentioned the DDM HIDs, I ordered them also, and was just wondering where you mounted the ballasts. Thanks.
     
  5. Paul58

    Paul58 Mileage Miser

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    Those look pretty sweet! I have my hub caps sitting in the garage, this might be a cool project... I wonder how hard it would be to match the Blizzard Pearl paint and have them patch the body paint?
     
  6. danvee

    danvee Blizzard Brigadier

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    Not too hard at all, Paul....

    If you have a Hobby Shop near you, see if they have (or can get) Pactra brand Polycarb paint for R/C car bodies. This paint bonds to the plastic beautifully and stays flexible so long as you don't over apply. They do a pearl white that is close enough that the front plate frame I have painted with it looks like I used the factory Blizzard Pearl paint.
    Buy 2 cans of the Pactra white to use as a base coat (should be enough for 4 covers), and 1 can of the pearl should suffice for all 4.
    Prep the covers using whatever method is available and comfortable(prep sol, scuff pads, alcohol, etc). Remember, the better your prep the better the finish.
    I might remove the chromed logos rather than try to mask them.
    After a solid coat of the white, build up enough pearl that they match your car's paint (too much and it goes a bit yellow in certain light).
    After fully curing (2-4 days) you can either a) leave them the sort of matte finish they'll now have, or b) use a few coats of Krylon Triple Thick Clear Glaze (available at Michael's or other craft stores) to give them a nice glossy look and make them easier to keep clean. (the Krylon has UV inhibitors to resist yellowing, and stays flexible as well).

    A bit time consuming, but not hard...:)
     
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  7. Paul58

    Paul58 Mileage Miser

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    Thanks.. Sounds like a great winter project, I'll have plenty of time and they'll be ready for spring... I wonder if this would work for the Fog Light enclosures as well, bet those would look sweet if they matched the body paint!
     
  8. danvee

    danvee Blizzard Brigadier

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    The wheel covers are most likely ABS plastic which will take the paint pretty well, but the fog light enclosures appear to be a softer plastic-maybe PVC or Urethane.
    You'd probably have to go to a Pep Boys or the like and buy a can of Bulldog Adhesion Promoter. This is a spray designed to be used on more flexible materials. Follow the directions exactly and all should be fine. My only concern is that those pieces are so exposed that chipping is a major concern.
    I might try black instead of the pearl white. It'll be easier to touch up.:rolleyes:
     
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  9. Paul58

    Paul58 Mileage Miser

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    Dan,

    I'm not meaning the blanks that came on the car, I have a set of the aftermarket fog light sold by the PC Shop coming, I was thinking of painting the enclosures on those before installing them... I would think they are a harder plastic...
     
  10. danvee

    danvee Blizzard Brigadier

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    Sorry Paul, I did misunderstand.

    I'm not sure what that material is, but I'd still go with the process mentioned above. That area is still subject to a lot of direct impact and would be a lot more durable.

    I did give some thought as to what to do with the "blanks", but I'm not up to the surgery needed to install the fogs (and I don't have a lift or ramps available). The spot mirror idea was OK, but the 2" mirrors are a bit small, and I've not found ones of a proper size.

    Luckily I'm in no hurry....:p
     
  11. macmaster05

    macmaster05 Senor Member

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    OK here's my honest assessment of your painted wheel covers.

    It's certainly a unique look that matches the car, but is far from looking cool since the 15" is just pathetic. I applaud your workmanship though.
     
  12. Mac Attack

    Mac Attack New Member

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    Thanks, I know it's not everyone's cup of tea....

    Here's a better view from the side. As an R/C racer, I had some cans of the Pactra Pearl White sitting around, but wanted something brighter. IMO, I would rather go brighter on the wheels than the car (within reason) because over time (like a year or two), they will eventually permanently darken from pad dust and dirt. The Pactra Pearl may look OK too.

    I used Rust-Oleum Paint For Plastic Indoor/Outdoor, white gloss #248650, and clear #254855. As the instructions say, it is important to let the paint fully cure for at least five days.

    The Toyota emblems were easy to pop off - they are held in by four plastic tabs for each emblem. I just gently pushed them out from the inside of the hubcap.
     

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  13. Mac Attack

    Mac Attack New Member

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    Thanks!

    I've had two other slim ballast DDM 55W HID kits on my other cars for over two years. At $50 a set, at this point, I've gotten my money's worth out of them. It wouldn't be worth it to pay shipping each way for warranty work! Also, on all three of my cars with the DDM 55W kits, I've never had to use relays either. The current draw on startup isn't that high. I think I went with the 4300k on the Prius.

    I tie-wrap mounted the ballast and ignitors inside the little plastic covers in the front fenders. When you pop those covers off, there's a metal fender piece near the rear of those sections you can tie-wrap onto. Especially on the drivers' side - I wanted to keep the ballast and ignitor away from all the electric hybrid stuff in case of any possible interference. This way, everything is neatly tucked out of sight. It's amazing Toyota went to all the trouble to put those plastic covers on there - doesn't seem like they could do that much. I may go back and drill some holes in those plastic side pieces and directly tie-wrap the DDM stuff onto those as it will be an even cleaner install.

    The only thing I didn't like on this particular DDM kit for our bulbs is that they don't give you a plug-in harness from your original headlight wires. You have to manually insert loose wire plugs from the kit into the female OEM connector. I put a lot of electrical tape on those connections :mad:

    I marked the before/after beam patterns on my garage wall. After the install, the beam cutoff is a tad lower than the OEM bulbs, but I didn't readjust them yet and probably won't do it as there is just so much more light output now. I'm not worried about blinding oncoming drivers either with our projector lenses with an excellent cutoff.
     
  14. Mac Attack

    Mac Attack New Member

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    Thanks - fair enough!

    If you noticed at the top of my first attached picture, sits my NSX that's been my daily beater for the last seven years. The Prius purchase will now allow me to retire it, rebuild the motor, tranny, and install my custom twin turbo. That car has never had any wheel on it other than the 15" front and 16" lightweight forged aluminum OEM's :D And yes, they're painted white too!

    The smallest wheel you can fit over your brakes is the most efficient from a rotational inertia (acceleration and handling) standpoint. Also, since I use 180 treadwear-rated tires on it with a lot of aggressive toe and camber, I replace tires every 10k miles. The smaller the tire, the cheaper too!

    It may not look the coolest - but looks are subjective anyways.
     
  15. chrisj428

    chrisj428 Active Member

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    You know what, I really like the way that looks. I was always a fan of the pearl painted wheels on the early 90s Audis and on the all-white '87 Sable.

    You've given me an idea...
     
  16. Rokeby

    Rokeby Member

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    Mac Attack,

    Well done on the painted wheel covers.

    As to wheel treatments, most often the discussion is between painting
    vs. powder coating the wheels. I went with powder coat. I've said many
    time that painting the wheel covers would be less expensive, and easily
    reversible. Folks have talked about doing it, but few if any have gone
    ahead and done it. You did, and it's a great job.

    I know this won't help you, but for other folks who may be thinking
    along these same lines but with other colors, here are two paint
    suppliers that have Toyota colors in shake and spray cans, and the
    recommended compatible primer and clear top coat as well. They are
    probably more expensive than mixing and matching supplies from
    hobby shops, etc. But the color match should be more certain.

    PaintScratch Touch-Up Paint (rs), Spray Cans

    Dr.ColorChip Custom Automotive Touch-Up Paint Kit

    One point with darker colors, the wheel/cover combo may look better if
    there is a thin contrast ring right at the edge of the rim. Don't know if it
    can easiy be masked off on the OEM wheel covers though. Here's what
    I'm talking about on my Touring wheels, but I doubt it could be as wide
    on the covers:

    Before:
    [​IMG]

    After:
    [​IMG]

    Again, well done. It looks like you've gotten some folks exited about
    trying something similar.
     
  17. therover1991

    therover1991 Junior Member

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    Yeah I have a set on my 02 explorer, pretty impressed with them and for the price cant go wrong.

    I ordered the 6000k for the prius like my explorer so I hope itll be good because for me the stock bulbs arent bright enough.

    When the kit comes tuesday I will try to mount them the same way you did because it seems like a better way than i was going to do. Thanks again for the reply.
     
  18. Mr. D

    Mr. D Junior Member

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    That makes the car look tons better than with just the stock grey.........We went for the V, but if I would have bought the IV This is something I would have done..........LOOKS GREAT
     
  19. robertp

    robertp Junior Member

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    Like the tint too..... What percentages did you use?
     
  20. Mac Attack

    Mac Attack New Member

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    Thanks again for the kind comments and the other wheel ideas.

    I used the darkest legal tint here in South Carolina - 35%. Combined with the factory glass, it works out to be ~29% or so (from the tint guy). Combined with my dark charcoal interior, I think it's just right.