Silver Wheel paint code?


Jim

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
Jul 17, 2006
203
Michigan
Does anyone know what the paint code is for the Ford GT factory BBS optional wheel? I have a theory that it is the same as Quick Silver and that it is also the same as the frame silver.

Help appreciated.

Jim
 

06fordgt

GT
Mark II Lifetime
Le Mans 2010 Supporter
Nov 8, 2006
1,908
Toronto Canada
Since you are asking about paint codes, is there a paint code for the silver paint on the engine frame and braces?
 

Jim

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
Jul 17, 2006
203
Michigan
I have a gallon can of "Quick Silver" and may do a test spray out. I swear it's the right silver for the frame and wheels.....
 

06fordgt

GT
Mark II Lifetime
Le Mans 2010 Supporter
Nov 8, 2006
1,908
Toronto Canada
pk Jim let us know.
 

twobjshelbys

GT Owner
Jul 26, 2010
6,053
Las Vegas, NV
Search can be your friend. This isn't a new topic. This one might help:

http://www.fordgtforum.com/forums/s...S-Wheel-Paint-Code?highlight=wheel+paint+code

Someone here has been trying for a long time to match it and still hasn't declared success.

If it were the quicksilver paint that would have been known a long time ago.

On the other hand, some people report they have had their wheels repaired and seemed satisfied with the results. I expect that the difference is that painting a whole wheel, even though it might not precisely match the others, is easier to get a match that tricks our eyes than creating a paint that could be used as a touch up paint.
 

06fordgt

GT
Mark II Lifetime
Le Mans 2010 Supporter
Nov 8, 2006
1,908
Toronto Canada
The issue I found with them is the finishing of the wheels -the final finish /shine. The shine is something special to Ford / BBS and my guys couldn't match it. It's close but not exact.
 

fjpikul

GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
Le Mans 2010 Supporter
Jan 4, 2006
11,475
Belleville, IL
Good luck. Only BBS knows. You might ask the GT Guys. If I remember right some purple is involved.
 

shelbyelite

PERMANENTLY BANNED
May 10, 2007
1
Quick silver is not even close. Much darker than the factory BBS wheel finish. The BBS wheel finish is a special powder coat process that also requires lead based paint that I have been told is not available in the US. You can find paints that are "close", but nothing currently available that I'm aware of that's an exact match
 

fjpikul

GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
Le Mans 2010 Supporter
Jan 4, 2006
11,475
Belleville, IL
Yeah, what he said.
 

spartan

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
Feb 11, 2017
1,216
Bloomfield Hills MI
Quick silver is not even close. Much darker than the factory BBS wheel finish. The BBS wheel finish is a special powder coat process that also requires lead based paint that I have been told is not available in the US. You can find paints that are "close", but nothing currently available that I'm aware of that's an exact match

I have asked Rich GT Guy and he said the same thing. They have a paint color that is "close".
 

NorthwoodGT

GT Owner
Jun 12, 2009
1,215
Michigan
there are some paint colors that are close but you'd have to paint all 4 wheels because like Shelby said, you'd never exactly match the color of the BBS wheel process.
 

PeteK

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
Apr 18, 2014
2,267
Kalama, Free part of WA State
Actually, you could get away with painting just two wheels--the two on one side of the car. Since you can't see both sides of the car at the same time, no one can tell the difference. Yes, that's the voice of experience--I actually put two slightly different wheel covers on different sides of a car long ago and no one ever noticed.
 

ChipBeck

GT Owner
Staff member
Mark IV Lifetime
Le Mans 2010 Supporter
Feb 13, 2006
5,769
Scottsdale, Arizona
Actually, you could get away with painting just two wheels--the two on one side of the car. Since you can't see both sides of the car at the same time, no one can tell the difference. Yes, that's the voice of experience--I actually put two slightly different wheel covers on different sides of a car long ago and no one ever noticed.

Yeah but I wouldn't be able to sleep at night if I did that. :willy

Chip
 

NorthwoodGT

GT Owner
Jun 12, 2009
1,215
Michigan
Yeah but I wouldn't be able to sleep at night if I did that. :willy

Chip
+1 lol
 

PeteK

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
Apr 18, 2014
2,267
Kalama, Free part of WA State
Hey, it was a Chrysler! Cut me some slack...
 

Nafod

GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
9-10 years ago I called and talked to the tech department at BBS(US), which if I remember correctly is(was) in Georgia. I was looking for some touchup paint and valve stems for the optional BBS wheels.
I was able to purchase both. Received a small 4 oz can of paint and 4 valve stems.
He did say that I would probably could not match the wheel paint completely, due to a 3 step process of applying the first layer/base(which I think was white), then the wheel color layers. Still, it was a fair repair of a chip on a takeoff(rear) I had bought on Ebay.
 

Jim

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
Jul 17, 2006
203
Michigan
It certainly will be a challenge. I have now tried 5 different silvers and it's not even close. The metallics are all too big. Shelbyelite is correct, quicksilver is not even close.

Duplicolor has a "Ultra Silver T191" but again, the metallics are to large. This does however, look fairly good on the frame.

IMG_1791[1].jpg

I then tried 3 other paints, basically wheel and caliper paints and the reflectivity is all wrong. I won't even show those samples. Too "frosty" if that is the correct word. These wheels have a very bright, almost "polished aluminum" look to them.

Since it became obvious that the silver color on the wheel is a very very reflective material, I decided to try some of the "Chrome" paints
and I am getting closer. If you look below, the level of gloss, reflectivity, clarity is much closer vs a "Silver" based paint.

Rustoleum 7718 was a really close match (looks better in person) but once I urethane cleared it for durability, it all frosted (incompatible materials).

IMG_1792[1].jpg

So I am going to go back to Painters Supply and start looking at the Urethane Chrome topcoats. They will mix me test samples at $45/each.

Jim
 

Indy GT

Yea, I got one...too
Mark IV Lifetime
Jan 14, 2006
2,526
Greenwood, IN
Jim,
Very interesting post and you certainly are determined! Go for it.

In talking to the BBS people in Braselton, Georgia, the finish used on both the 05-06 Base BBS and Optional BBS rims is proprietary to BBS. As I recall it is a 2-step process. A light base coat with a thin silver layer over that and then a clear top coat. There is no lead used in any of the coatings and there is no specific "paint code". The people at BBS have had a number of claims on rim problems by people claiming something was defective on the rim. One of the first questions asked is if the rim had been powder coated. If pursued by the claimant, when the rim is received for warranty review the metallurgy of the base metal can be easily checked. The bake temperatures of the powder coat process does indelibly alter the aluminum microstructure such that it can be easily determined if the rim had in fact been powder coated at which point all warranty claims are null and void.

Pretty sure it is a paint process only.
 
Last edited:

shelbyelite

PERMANENTLY BANNED
May 10, 2007
1
If it's a paint, it appears to be a "water based" paint as that's typically the only way to achieve such fine metallics. The Nissan GTR in SUPER SILVER is a water based paint and it has the very fine metallics like the BBS wheels.
 

texas mongrel

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
May 3, 2009
1,661
Houston Texas
When I kerbed a rim years ago, I just called the BBS office and they Fedexed me some paint.