Cost to retrofit black wheels, diffuser, etc?

[lazor79]

If the stars align, I hope to begin my serious search for a new(to me) elise in the somewhat near future. Appearance-wise, the black package, or at least the black wheels and diffuser, are a must-have but I know not all cars will have it. So my questions are:

-What are costs to paint wheels black? Need a real estimate, not "know a guy who has a shop" types, since I don't have any hookups...
-when painting the wheels, what are advantages to powdercoat, vs. traditional paint, etc?
-if powdercoating is the way to go, can it be done in gloss? I prefer the gloss look on the black wheels

-Same for the diffuser, what would it cost to paint it black, and what is best paint technology for this application?


I'd like to know so I can wisely negotiate with the seller if I find an otherwise perfect car without the black wheels/diffuser. Need to know if they're ripping me off if they say "sure, we'll do it for $xxx..." to complete the sale...

Thanks guys!

[tvacc]

Where are you located...if you have the Silver LSS wheels...I might consider swapping...
I am in buffalo ny

[V-RAPTOR]

There are threads on here for do it your self wheel and diffuser painting if that is an option for you.

I did follow the thread and painted my diffuser my self for around $10 for the products, a can of spray paint, scotch pat, and some break cleaner. It turned out really well and has held up.

Do a search and you will find out the info about the wheels, some one just posted recently about a DIY wheel painting. I am not sure how well the wheels will hold up if I was to do it I would go the powder coat rout.

You can call some of your local shops to get price quotes in your area for the powder coating.

[Frank Amoroso]

If you get the wheels powdercoated be careful to have them tape off the center bore / hub and the seats for the lug bolts.

[lazor79]

Thanks for the responses guys. I wouldn't be completely against a diy diffuser job,but I definitely feel like I'd rather pay someone to professionally paint the wheels. They take much more punishment, and between brakedust, cleaners, etc, I'd be worried the diy job wouldn't hold up.

I'll search around a bit, but was just hoping to get a feel for what others were paying so I didn't get ripped off. One of my bigger concerns about repairs/maintenance/mods is that as soon as a shop hears it's a Lotus, they'd be likely to jack up the price for a non-Lotus-specific routine job(like painting wheels) and charge 2x what they would for any other car....

[AnsisK]

Definitely powdercoat the wheels if you're already sensitive of them holding the paint from the abuse. Gloss can be sprayed on afterwards.

You don't have to take the wheels to a car shop either. They're most likely to outsource it anyways. Most bigger cities or ones with enough industry have powdercoating shops that do parts for manufacturing/prototyping etc. The only problem with this is that it costs less the more parts they're coating. Since you've only got 4 parts, it'll be pricey to get it done right away unless you want to wait for them to do it with someone else's black run.

[kabinski]

I paid $280 total for the wheels, diffuser, and diffuser hardware to be powdercoated. Wheels are semi-gloss, diffuser is flat.

[glacialmoraine]

FWIW, i have read of wheels cracking after being powdercoated. Putting them in an oven and baking them may or may not screw up the heat treating.

I read that having the powdercoat baked off then re-powdercoated is almost guranteed to remove the strength of the alloy.

Perhaps there is a reason manufacturers still paint alloy rims.

gm

[qu1Z]

Just powdercoat them... it will never chip or rust and it's solid. I did it to my diffuser and wheels on all of my cars.