'89 Wheel Center Cap Prepping

[tonylong]

I finally loosened the #@&## coded screws holding on the center caps with only slight damage to my knuckles. I'd like to put some kind of treatment on the large rubber O rings that are around the perimeter of the caps, and also put some anti-seize stuff on the #@&## screws. I've also thought about replacing the #@&## screws with hex or another type screws.
Anyone's thoughts on this would be appreciated.
TIA

 

[milehigreg]

#% ^@! Center Cap bolts!

Three of the four came off easily. The 4th which was of course on the wheel with that picked up the nail - stuck tight!ad It wasn't corroded in the threads it was just tightend up to o much when it was last instaled. Had to drill the top off. The coded key isn't designed for very much torque. I used a hex bolt in its place for about two weeks but the guy who drilled out the bolt had a great used set of chrome ZR-1 wheels with GSCs. Problem solved! See avatar

 

[tonylong]

I found that 303 Aerospace Protectant is safe to use on rubber and other stuff. It doesn't contain silicon, or any flouro/bromo/chloro-carbons and is biodegradable. I also found that I didn't need any of the large O-rings used on the wheel center caps. All I need is some of the plastic "straw" material used to keep window screens in their frame. The O rings don't actually seal anything, they just keep the caps from rattling. Hope this helps someone else.

 

[CTYANK2]

The center cap screws don't need to be very tight. They won't come off and just need to be snug.