I just bought a '97 SE and the wheels are somewhat scuffed up and the clearcoat is scratched/peeling. I have checked and wheel refinishing is about $150 each. I like the look of the OEM wheel. Is there anything I can do to fix the. Can I strip them, repolish and clear again.

 

I refurbished my alloys O.K. but it's a pain in the butt to do.

Remove the tyres, natch. I'd advise against using any sort of chemical striipper on alloy wheels.

Rub the wheels down with fine "wet & dry" as you would for a body repair. Get an even finish, there's no need to get to bare metal! Just cut through the laquer and the first top coat. Fill any deep gouges with body filler and rub it down to a smooth even finish. If there is rim damage from kerbing you'll have to be a bit more violent and use a fine file to remove the damage. Three coats of undercoat (at least) rubbing down betwen coats. At least three coats of top coat, use a metallic silver paint. rub down each coat and then finish with as many coats of laquer that gives the deep lustrous finish you want. The big problem is leaving enough time for the paint & laquer to cure. The minimum time will be shown on the aerosol or paint can. If you don't leave it long enough then you may damage the finish when refitting your tyres. A good idea is to get a cheap set of steel wheels from a junk yard so you can stay on the road while the jobs in progress.

Total cost for me was about $15 per wheel.