Help with 18" chrome clad wheels

[yohab]

Hello everyone. I have a new 2011 edge with 18" chrome clad wheels. I just had it washed for the first time. When I got home from the carwash i noticed that there appears to be an "adhesive" of some sort stuck to the chrome wheels. Looks like someone stuck some duck tape to them, let it dry, and then peeled it off, leaving some adhesive behind. In some areas there is actually a thin film of plastic peeling from the wheels. Looks like there was a plastic film to protect the wheels that was never peeled off before delivery. Is this the "problem" that appears throughout this forum, or something else? It is uniform all over the spokes (center and near the edges). It looks like some "goobegone" might clean it up, but i don't want to damage the wheels further. Anyone have any ideas of what this is?

 

Also, on another note, has anyone purchased snow chains/cables for these 18" tires? If so, anyone have a suggestion of a brand/type that won't ruin the chrome? Can the hubcaps be removed before chains put on?

 

Thanks for help.

[richy]

I got the 20" chromies on mine and they too, had that awful glue stuck to them. See my post for the entire clean up effort including what I had to do to remove the glue residue:

http://www.live2detail.com/showthread.php?t=971

[ChrisZoe]

Thanks for the info richy (nice MKX BTW).

I was reluctant to buy a Ford because of the lack of attention to finishing detail. Our 2010 Edge is 6 months old with less than 3500 miles, the sticky glue has been on the wheels since we brought it home. I'm afraid if I rub it off the foil covering on the wheels will come off too. Over the phone, the dealer said to use some Windex to remove it. We have not touched it, it looks cruddy and now the foil covering is starting to peel anyway. I'll let you all know what happens when I drive to the Worthington Ford Service Center next week.

 

When we looked at the vehicle in the lot I was surprised (or maybe not) to see how sloppy the flex conduit under the hood was installed & routed, and how carelessly the black electrical tape was wrapped and cut off. It looked like the product of a last minute 8th grade project. what else was rushed?

 

I wanted to buy American for our 'around town' car; Ford didn't rape the tax payers for huge economic support, so we will get buy with our family investment and hope that Ford's quality and attention to finishing detail improves. We have a lot the be thankful for.