Poor wear resistance of rare earth magnesium alloys has prevented them from wider application. In this study, composite coating (PVD carbon coating deposited on electroless plating nickel interlayer) is prepared to protect GW83 magnesium alloys against wear. The Ni + C composite coating has a dense microstructure, improved adhesion strength and hardness due to the effective support of Ni interlayer. The wear test result shows that the Ni + C composite coating can greatly prolong the wear life of the magnesium alloy. The wear track of the Ni + C coated magnesium alloy is obviously narrower and shows less abrasive particles as compared with the bare one. Abrasive wear is the wear mechanism of the coatings at the room temperature. In conclusion, the wear resistance of the GW83 magnesium alloy can be greatly improved by the Ni + C composite coating. Crown Copyright (C) 2014 Published by Elsevier BY. All rights reserved.