IMO...
1) a part doesn't have to be 'shiny/bright/chromelike' to be NICE, and 2) I'm cheap , so I'm tending to agree with Nick on this argument. I generally choose 'functionality' over 'appearance'. Through my life, I've heard that 'stainless steel' is not as strong as other steel (obviously there are degrees of this), but I tend to shy away from SS where strength is the major requirement, or for safety reasons. I'm an engineer, but I only had a couple of courses in Materials Science, and I never specialized in that arena... (Precision electro-optics-mechanics here)...
That said, 'rusty steel' is ugly, and I certainly appreciate the beautiful looks of Chevy nut's 56... and I'm sure it's more than strong enough! I like the painted parts of Chevy Nuts car as much, or better than the 'shiny stuff'..