Seeing as so many people have been posting threads about their VOLK wheels getting messed up from car washes, I just wanted to put this out there for all the new owners that have purchased their wheels, even if it wasn't purchased from us cause it breaks my heart when I see threads about damaged VOLK wheels.
The finishes of the barrel's on all RAYS 2 piece wheels, I.E; VOLK, Gram Lights, Lexion, G-Games, etc, are all anodized with a finishing clear coat. Generally, MOST wheel cleaners will be way too abrasive for this finish and if used, will cause a very nasty "hazing" in the clear coat. Maintain your wheels by using anything that you would use on the paint of your car. Meguiar's Quick Detailer, MOTUL Wash N' Wax, mild wax, soap and water are ideal. If you have a matte or flat finish face, don't let this fool you because even the flat colors are clear coated as well. Treat your RAYS wheels just like the way you would treat the paint on your car, mild and nothing abrasive. The wheel cleaners will all say that it is "NON-ABRASIVE" but try cleaning the paint on your car with that and see what happens, it's the same deal with your RAYS wheels. Don't let water marks dry up as well as it will more than likely stain the clear coat. Remember that both the face and the barrel is clear coated.
On the monoblock wheels, these wheels have a powdercoated base with a light clear coat finish so the same concept applies, even on the flat finishes. Personally, the way I maintain my wheels is by cleaning the wheels with soap and water while I wash my car, rinse it down, drive the car around the block a few times to get all the water out of the barrel's and the cracks of the car, dry everything in a shaded and cooled environment, and finish the wheels off with either MOTUL Wash N' Wax or Meguiar's Quick Detailer for the final touches. The next time you take your car into a car wash or dealer, let them know as soon as they're writing up the car that they only should use soap and water on the wheels just as a warning. This way it will avoid any type of harmful cleaner getting to your wheels. Just remember that if the wheels do get damaged because of faulty maintenance, Mackin Industries and RAYS Japan will not honor the warranty so I wouldn't even attempt to try to have them warrantied. They will not give out color codes for any of their finishes or torque settings for the bolts on the 2 piece wheels so if you have already found yourself in this predicament, I'd recommend getting all 4 wheels re-powdercoated if they're monoblock. If it is a 2 piece wheel and the lips have been damaged due to negligence in maintenance, what I'd recommend doing is to have a professional wheel shop that has specifically worked on RAYS wheels before to take apart the wheel and polish all 4 wheels, it is a cheaper alternative than getting them re-anodized unless you have the cash for it. I would strongly suggest not to have them chromed. I know chroming will make it easier as far as keeping the wheels clean and avoiding scratches but the chemicals in the chroming process will weaken the forging of the wheel and the structural integrity of the wheel will be compromised as well as the warranty of the wheel being voided.
Hope this helps out all you new RAYS wheels owner's and hopefully even the existing ones!
