Hey all, new to the forum here, looking to get some advice. So I drive an 08 F150 XLT 4wd with chrome wheel covers. My center cap fell off a few weeks back and I finally got around to fixing it recently. I noticed that the entire wheel cover is bent outwards and looks like it separated from the rim itself, not allowing the new center cap to snap back into place. I didn't know if there was a way to fix this wheel cover so it would allow the center cap to snap back on or if I would have to buy a new one? Any help/past experience would be appreciated. Thanks

Kyle

 

I'm guessing you're taking about chrome clad wheels, like these?



As far as I know, the chrome cladding is not sold separately. You could either try bending it back and using some epoxy, or just get a new wheel. You could get one of these chrome clad wheels for under $100 easily.

The chrome cladding is not meant to be removed. Did you hit a curb? It should stay on for the life of the truck without issue.

 

I have not hit any curbs or done any damage to them since I have owned the truck. I thought the same thing about them staying on for the life of the truck. A local mechanic said it could have separated due to the wear and tear of the truck or the heat from the brakes but I get my tires rotated on a regular basis and this has only happened on one rim.

How would you suggest to mount it back onto the rim? TIA

 

Can you post a pic?

 

You can see in the first picture where the chrome clad has separated from the rim and the second picture shows how the chrome clad is bowed outward from being separated...and yes my tires are dirty I haven't had time to give my girl a bath

 

They're a different chrome clad than mine, but same concept. If you want to do it right, you may want to take off the tire.

I'm sure you could epoxy it back on there. Is the whole chrome clad piece loose and ready to let go? Or is it still glued down in a spot? Kind of looks like it's still glued around the edge but popped up in the center.

 

Ok, I didn't know if this was something I could do myself or if I would have to take to a tire shop or something. Is it as easy as getting a new chrome clad and throwing epoxy on it? I didn't know if there was any specialized press or anything that needed to be done.

And it looks like the outer wall might still be glued down but the balancing weight of the tire is mounted on the outside of the clad

 

As far as I know, ford does not sell the chrome cladding. If you aren't able to epoxy yours back down, you'd need a new wheel.

You could try some strong epoxy, but you'd want to take the tire off the wheel first. And you'd need something to hold pressure on the center while it sets.

If you try to push in where it's popped out, does it move back to possition?

 

It does move back into position when I push it back in. I was thinking I could glue it back down and clamp it in place while it dries or something to that effect? Or would it be easier to take the tire off as you said before?

 

If you could get a clamp in there with the tire on, that would be easier. You need some strong epoxy.

I used some on the edge of a chrome clad wheel and it worked fine. I think it was the loctite brand with the 1 minute set time and I used some small C-clamps.

 

Ok I'll definitely give that a try this week and let you know how it goes. Thanks a lot for the advice!

 

Definitely post your results. I hope it works for you! That the first I've heard of the chrome cladding popping up for no reason.

 

All done! Ended up lucking out and finding a brand new rim on Craigslist. Much easier than trying to repair the old one. Thanks again for all the advice!