Clear Coat streaks on wheels

On my 2018 truck, these white, streaked, discolorations on the clear coated silver portion of wheels started slowly appearing about 2 yrs ago. It's on all 4 wheels. "Forward" direction is to the left. (These are OEM Toyota wheels).

Expand the thumbnail to better show the streaks.

The streaks are superficial, can't feel anything with my fingernail.

I live in suburban coastal So Calif, and there's never any snow or chemicals on the road, except for the "normal urban runoff" during the infrequent rains.

What could have caused these streaks?

I tried a mild "cleaner wax" (Meguiars #6) on the streaks, no effect.
I've been reluctant to use more aggressive polishes, in case I wear through the clearcoat.

Any (safe) ideas how to correct the problem?

 

It looks to me what happens up here with salt starting to get under the clear coat. At first you can’t feel it but it’ll eventually bubble and flake. Not sure if salt in the air can do this where you live

 

I my be wrong, but I thought that clear coat was powder coating, not automotive clear..? I have a set of those wheels that I purchased at takeoffs but immediately had them stripped and powdercoated a different color, but the build seemed thicker and softer than automotive clear.

 

Seems unlikely. I live about 1 mile from the beach, and there's a small hill in between that would block any direct line-of-sight.
But honestly, I dont know how far inland "salty" air could penetrate.
I formerly owned a chevy truck w/ clear coated alloy wheels, but it took over 10 yrs for their clearcoat to start deteriorating.

I think I'll carefully try a slightly more aggressive polish in a small spot on the wheels.
eg, Mothers California Gold Chrome Polish #05212 or California Gold Micro-Polishing Glaze #08100.
Both of these are mild, no acids or alkalis, with less than 10% of ""Calcined kaolin clay" or similar abrasives.
In fact, I've used the "Gold Chrome Polish" to successfully remove cloudiness and haze from fake-chromed plastic trim

 

When I view the wheels from about a foot away, I see very fine, concentric, "brushed finish" lines in the wheel's silver part. These lines are so shallow I can't feel anything with fingernail. But modern metal finishing and paint are so sophisticated, maybe it really is just another layer of paint

 

After many internet image and forum searches, I'm discovering that such "white streaks" in clear coats are not rare (sadly).
Unprotected aluminum alloys will often suffer white-looking oxidation, and a common guess/speculation is the clear coat might have microscopic defects that allow moisture or even plain "air" to eventually penetrate and start oxidizing the aluminum surface.

Maybe more frequent waxing of the wheels would have delayed the effect, but that ship has sailed.
I conjecture fully & properly painted factory wheels, like the all-black "TRD Pro" wheels, might be more resistant to this problem.

My wheels are the "TRD Offroad" , made in China. The $$ "TRD Pro", BBS brand, forged wheels are made in Japan.

 

Just powdercoat these black and you will have the look that you want. Once powdercoated, keep them waxed and you should not no issues with finish degradation.

What you have now is a failure of the clearcoat.

 

Toyota changed the bolt pattern on the 2022 and newer models, so the supply of near-new "takeoff" wheels & tires is drying up. I paid just $850 for 4, new, "TRD Offroad" Wheels and Michelin ATX tires in 2018. It would cost a lot more now, just for 4 bare tires.

I'm now also thinking to powder coat when the wheels' clear coat deteriorates to an unacceptable (for me) level in a few more years.

I'm reading that powder coat may not be "risk free" if the baking temperature is "too hot" or "too long", since it may weaken the alloy's structure. Most of the worries seem to be for track-raced cars, not street cars. I'd have to dig deep with any coating shop, to better understand their process.

eg,
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums/wheels-and-tires/1988489-powdercoating-wheels-safe-or-not.html
https://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1535015
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forum...der-coating-wheels-yes-or-no-good-or-bad.html

 

The streaks on the wheels look directional to me....so, even if there is no salt or brine on the roads...like I see here in the northeast....it still looks like something you drove through that caused them. There are shops that repair all kinds of damage to wheels.....I'd look to see of there are any in your area and have them take a look.

 

Oxidation from the clear coat letting in the elements is what it looks like to me.
The only way I know how to fix that is blast them, clean them, and paint them.