On the color, I will say that I thought the silver wheels looked amazing. Here are some shots of it on my car.
To the point on protecting my stuff, I have a clearbra all around the car + wheel guards
. Since the 1LE is garaged except for racing, I never felt the need to wipe off the rubber from the cone marks. Felt more "real" when racing.
When I sell the car, I'll take off the clear bra and perfect paint underneath!