Wheels-black vs. aluminum finish?

[normal_dave]

Hi Folks, wheel preference is a real personal thing. Searched several terms on colors but no real success on opinions. Are there practical advantages to the black finish rims such as trail dust, cleaning, etc. or is it just the new style for today? I'm showing my age here, but have a hard time picking black rims for my application.

My van is a factory Chateau package, two-tone with black and anti-chip finish on the bottom. I also plan to keep the factory chrome bumpers with the plastic cladding. If I chose black 16" wheels, well it seems like a lot of dark color on the lower side with chrome left on the ends (bumpers) Historically I usually would choose mods from other year/type vehicles in the line, keeping close to stock just to keep folks guessing. So a 5-spoke aluminum or similar to the XLT Lariat SD for example. If I keep this one 2WD and do a Weldtec lift, I could go up to 16" but would still have the E-150 5 x 5.5 bolt pattern, LT265/75/16 and limited wheel options.

So, if I went low-cost/easy choice for example, what do you folks like, black or aluminum? 16x8 4.5" offset.







Thanks

 

[Kgorman]

Mostly black just looks beefier.

 

[KD2IUS]

Aluminum. Not a big fan of shiny, but black wheels just aren't my thing.


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[dingus]

i think on your van the silver will look better as you already have that black band along the bottom edge of the van.
black mags looks cheeper. like its just spraypainted.

 

[Bbasso]

If I could find factory aluminum wheels I put them on in a heartbeat.

 

[cjken]

I've done both.
I think I like black better

 

[ert01]

No real advantage except black ones won't corrode like aluminum will. But I personally like aluminum better and I don't mind polishing the wheels once in a while.

I currently have black factory steel wheels but I'm just waiting to find a set of factory Alcoas locally.

 

[normal_dave]

Thanks, I guess I just needed a slight push in the direction I already wanted to go, but when the teenage son says "but Dad the black wheels would be beast mode" well I had to at least consider them. Aluminum it is for now...primarily due to the black bottom trim already on the van.

 

[Lunchbox2]

I've been running all black wheels for the past 12-13 years. I hate chrome, but I can handle aluminum finishes sometimes, especially satin...

These are going on my current 4x4 shorty

 

[Lunchbox2]

Black wheels tend to have a little more corrosion resistance, compared to a polished aluminum. I ran a Tires Plus for several years in wisconsin, and the salt and what-not is HELL on aluminum wheels. I couldn't even begin to count how many tires I've seen that had slow leaks from the bead being corroded over, like nasty battery terminals. So that's one "advantage" of a black wheel, the coating slows down the corrosion process. But other than that, it's all personal preference.... some people love shiny stuff, some don't.... Go with what you think looks the best

 

[normal_dave]

Good point on corrosion, both of these rims are clear coat, and practically no winter salt here, so with reasonable care, I should be good to go...but to those of you who posted black rims, they do look good, such difficult choices in life. ha.

 

[mikracer]

Here's a pic of my Chateau with black wheels. My van doesn't have black trim on the bottom, it has dark grey. The wheels are pro comp 16x8 and the lift is the Camburg Baja Performance kit.

 

[normal_dave]

Uh oh...now you've done it, I previously looked for pics of your van based on your avatar, but couldn't get a close up, they look pretty good on your Chateau package. Am I going to have to draw straws now?

 

[JET4]

I like the black

 

[Battman]

Silver is the new black.


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