NO, you tell me!

I get our company trucks tanks and wheels done all the time. >.>

 

I get my wheels,tanks,boxes etc. polished professionally twice a year and would never, ever even consider running a chrome wheel on a truck or trailer!
Chrome wheels look cheap and peel and rust...I don't even use chrome mudflap weights or center caps because they're cheesey and they rust out...I only run polished stainless steel.

If you're gonna run a little bling, Don't be cheap about it...It'll just cost you more in the long run!

 

We run whatever the company puts on it. And no bling is allowed on company trucks. Not even the cute lil chrome pig I wanted. *sighs heavily* Some folks have no taste in truck ornaments.

 

They're making "ever-bright" or somthing like that wheels now.. they never need polishing, they're all aluminum and have a coating on them like a clear coat.. there polished at the factory and never again...

Aluminum saves weight.. I run aluminum by the way... Most off road applications run steel, a lot stronger, takes a beating and doesn't crack.. That's why you see steel spoke type wheels on dump trucks... they're driven hard and aluminum just doesn't stand up.

 

Chaining up can eat up your aluminum rims! Then again, I guess not many people chain up.

 

The only time ive got my truck washed, is when I leave the cement place, as they have an auto wash as you leave(you can pick up alot of lose cement and sand when picking up or dropping there)

If I have not much to do on a weekend, ill do a touch-up wash, and get her to glean, but my rims are the same colour as I found them(got them)...

I keep in the inside clean as best I can, and wash dishes etc...

 

When I owned a truck & trailer, (both were used) I bought them based on other things so whatever wheels they had on them, was what I ended up getting. Personaly, I could careless what wheels were on them, but if I was buying brand new I guess I would go with aluminum just for higher resale value and weight savings. While I always kept my truck clean and still do, even though I'm currantly a company driver, I just do a quick polish every other month. When I mean quick polish, it's just wax on, wax off and then I'm done. I don't try for the mirror finish, just enough to knock off the oxidized finish. Likewise, on steel wheels, I take a wire brush to the hubs and wheels, then rattle can spray paint them every couple month. I like a clean appearance both inside and out and don't mind spending a little money or energy in doing so, but I don't care much for all the bling. I never use lug or hub covers because I like to visualy look at the lugnuts and oil level in the hubs that take oil instead of grease. It is important that you put some tape over the vent holes on the rubber grommet/hub cap thingys before getting it washed since a lot of the wash attendents will hit the hubs so hard with the washing wand that they will contaminate your hubs with water. Once that happens both the bearing and seals won't last long. Be sure to take the tape off when your done washing so you don't build up pressure in your hubs and possibly blow a seal. So to answer your question. For me, it's aluminum if I was buying new, and whatever is on there if buying used.

 

The company thought they would "save" some money by getting outer aluminum trailer wheels, but put steel on the inner ones, so they only got a partial weight savings, and saved a few bucks up front. But as tires wear, and you want to replace tires, but keep older better tires matched, the extra mounting and dismounting I have had to do has destroyed whatever initial purchase savings they had. If you are going to get aluminum, do the inner and outer!