Wheel Center Cap Removal- 2000

Just got done changing my headlights, so Im paranoid about plastic clips breaking everywhere, so I am wondering, is there any magic to removing these before I start yanking them out? They are discolored and I want to put some color on them.

Thanks

 

Just yank it off. Seriously. That’s the only way to remove them.

They’ll be fine.

 

There should be a slot in the hubcap, near one of the wheelbolts, that you can insert a lever (e.g. one end of the factory tire wrench) to pry the hubcap off.

 

The most humane way is to remove the wheels and pop them out fron the inside

 

Thanks guys. Got it off. Now I need to figure out how to restore these things. Anyone know of any rad aftermarket ones?

 

nah, just repaint them.

edit: And a few coats of clear over afterwards. The wheel paint at auto parts stores is fine. Maybe a repaint needed each tire change, maybe not. It's cheap enough. Do the wheels too and it'll all look brand new.

BTW, nice truck

 

Just prime with a primer that adheres to plastic first, then do this. Its what I did anyways.

 

God that’s such an improvement over the stock finish.

 

What paint is that? I have a set of wheels like OP's that I'm not using at the moment but I'd love to paint them that color

 

VHT/Duplicolor graphite wheel paint with a gloss clear coat.

 

X2 on the Duplicolor Wheel Paint. I've been using that stuff for years, and have nothing but good things to say. The formula is a bit more foolproof than standard automotive paint, seems to have more tack to it, but as always, good prep will go a long way towards making it look factory. My '96 4runner had those same wheels. I got sick of the faded yellow center caps and ended up sanding and painting the entire wheels with the Duplicolor silver. Wish I had pics; it looked near-factory, and I got a lot more comments from passersby about how "clean" the truck looked afterwards. Sometimes it really is the little things...

 

Yeah, I'd keep these wheels too if it weren't for the stupid backspacing being too close to the control arm. If you spray a clear coat though, make sure its uniform across all the wheels. I have 3 that look about the same and one really shiny one. Kinda makes my eye twitch a little.

 

Ah. I meant I had the same ones as the OP. Yup, the clearcoat is definitely the trickiest step. Or the part where an amateur like me just says "f this, this is taking too long" after one wheel and rushes the rest of them. Gotta watch out for that.

 

I did mine over the course of 4 weekends. Took about 4 hours each. Pretty corroded.