Chrome Flaking on Boat anyone else?

(fuller313) · (fuller313) **Join Date: Oct 2006** 10-29-2009, 9:21 AM

We have an 06 Malibu and we had some chrome flaking. (dash, malibu label on tower, board racks, tower lights, tower speaker cans) The dealership covered some things under warranty but not the board racks, lights or speaker cans. Is this a common problem?

(polarbill) · (polarbill) **Join Date: Jun 2003** 10-29-2009, 9:38 AM

Well, the things you listed are probably aftermarket items as I don't think Malibu makes any of those. The individual manufacturer of those items must have a warranty but it is probably only a year or 2 at most. You may be out of luck. Do you use your boat in salt or brackish water. If not it sounds like your Malibu and the aftermarket Chrome was done cheaply. If any of it is stainless steel they used really cheap stainless.

(wakereviews) · (wakereviews) **Join Date: Sep 2006** 10-29-2009, 9:47 AM

the dash is aftermarket? :-)

(fuller313) · (fuller313) **Join Date: Oct 2006** 10-29-2009, 9:54 AM

The water isn't to bad, its not salt. I do believe all the things they didn't cover are the aftermarket items.

(polarbill) · (polarbill) **Join Date: Jun 2003** 10-29-2009, 9:54 AM

I meant the items that the dealership didn't cover under warranty. I appreciate you keeping me on my toes though.

(wakereviews) · (wakereviews) **Join Date: Sep 2006** 10-29-2009, 10:05 AM

haha, i couldn't resist Brett... all in fun.

(woreout) · (woreout) **Join Date: Aug 2006** 10-29-2009, 1:26 PM

Chrome on boats will flake everytime no matter what the conditions.

(mikes) · (mikes) **Join Date: Jul 2007** 10-29-2009, 4:04 PM

^^^^That's right. Anything aluminum that gets chromed will eventually peel. Never fails.Polished aluminum is harder to keep up with, but no matter how nasty it gets,you can always make it look new. Chrome...not so much.

(brett564) · (brett564) **Join Date: Jul 2006** 10-29-2009, 4:52 PM

I have two year old board racks and almost half of the chrome is gone.

(boarditup) · (boarditup) **Join Date: Jan 2004** 10-29-2009, 6:47 PM

The only way chrome sticks is when the item is plated with copper first. That is expensive, so the cheap process is to skip the copper and go straight to chrome. The oxides under the chrome make it flake.

(trace) · (trace) **Join Date: Feb 2002** 10-29-2009, 7:09 PM

It looks great for the first year! More poorly-executed bling on late model wakeboard boats.

(jlembas) · (jlembas) **Join Date: Apr 2002** 10-30-2009, 6:29 PM

Jeff,

If ALL those items including factory Malibu items are peeling then you must be in brackish/salt water...or very close to it. If the chroming was done correctly, you should not have problems in fresh water. While there are cheap chrome products out there that do fail in any situation, Malibu uses a very reputable chrome company. The chrome should last for years in a fresh water environment.

(polarbill) · (polarbill) **Join Date: Jun 2003** 10-30-2009, 7:50 PM

Do Malibu and the other boat manufacturers use chrome or stainless steel? I would think chrome would be a big no no.

(woreout) · (woreout) **Join Date: Aug 2006** 10-31-2009, 6:58 AM

BU is big on the 2 C's Chrome and Carpet. Its a cheaper way to build boats than using Billet aluminum and finished fiberglass for sure. It looks good new, but after that, they end up being a topic in a forum like this.

(jlembas) · (jlembas) **Join Date: Apr 2002** 10-31-2009, 8:44 AM

The marine industry uses all kinds of non-ferrous metals including brass, aluminum, and stainless steel which are resistant to rusting.

Chrome is just a very thin coating applied by chemical process to a base. It can be applied to most metals and even plastic.

Most of the chrome parts on boats are aluminum that is plated with chrome.

There are a lot of misconceptions out there regarding chrome...just trying to clear the confusion. Unfortunately, there were a few companies providing aftermarket accessories with cheap chrome. These products failed and gave the rest of the industry a bad rap.

(nauti4life) · (nauti4life) **Join Date: Sep 2008** 10-31-2009, 8:53 AM

Most of the things he is talking about came from Metcraft not Malibu.

(jlembas) · (jlembas) **Join Date: Apr 2002** 10-31-2009, 9:03 AM

Oh yeah...if you want a finish that holds up in salt/brackish water and lasts a long time, anodized aluminum is your choice. It wont chip, flake, or peal. It's a bit dull in appearance though.