Chrome plated 94-01 OEM Wheels

[NSX_n00b]

Forgive me if this has been covered before but I couldn’t find anything through searching.

Does anyone know if the chrome plating on the OEM 16/17 94-01 wheels is true chrome plating? Are they copper then nickel then chrome plated?

I ask because I want to refinish a set and I know sandblasting can lead to bad results but I want to know if they need the full de-plating treatment of if it’s just a chemical bath to remove the chrome plate.


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[tucsonsx]

Sandblasting will probably remove as much or more aluminum from the wheel as chrome plate because chrome is much harder than aluminum and even though powder coating is much softer than chrome removing it with sandblasting is not advised. The proper way to remove either is a chemical bath done by a professional since there are some nasty chemicals involved.

 

[NSX_n00b]

Sandblasting will probably remove as much or more aluminum from the wheel as chrome plate because chrome is much harder than aluminum and even though powder coating is much softer than chrome removing it with sandblasting is not advised. The proper way to remove either is a chemical bath done by a professional since there are some nasty chemicals involved.

Right, and I’ll have this done chemically, but from what I’ve been able to find on the process if it’s just chrome that has to be removed it’s not has big of a job as it is if it’s all 3 (copper, nickel, and chrome). That’s why I’m wondering if anyone knows definitively what the chrome plating process used was for the wheels.


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[tucsonsx]

As far as I know Honda/Acura never supplied chromed wheels: they were done at the dealer level with varying levels of quality. I have never seen aluminum chrome plated without using a copper-nickel-chrome process but maybe it is possible. However, sooner or later the chrome inevitably separates from the aluminum ( the chromed wheels that some OEMs provided were manufactured with goal of getting through the warranty period - not lasting a long time ). How long it takes for the separation to occur depends on the quality of the zincating before the plating is applied and a plater who did the zincating properly would follow through with 3 step plating. If your chrome is in decent shape you can be sure it was done with a 3 step process.