Any advice for cleaning wheels?

[jonnyMercUK]

I usually wash the car every weekend, I pressure wash the car first to get the top layer of muck off (which hasn't been very successful recently but will come to that later), when I come to the wheels I always find a large amount of brake dust on the wheels that will not budge with the PW. I then use a microfibre to give them a good clean.

Anyone use any product that will lift the muck straight off without having to ruining the microfibre cloth?

In regards to the bodywork I have given the car a good few coats of 476s however feel I may have to apply another coat or 2 as the last coat went on about 3 weeks ago.

Is snow foaming the way to go to lift the muck off first?

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Strong chemicals used by the professional valet will lift more brake dust off, but aren't great for the wheel.

Try a wheel cleaning brush - or even a paint brush - it won't ruin like a microfibre cloth.

 

[300CE]

Has the brake dust eaten into the wheel jonny or does it come off with a bit of elbow grease?

You could try putting the collonite on your wheels as a bit of a sealant, however, if you can, clean them on a weekly basis with something like Bilberry Wheel Cleaner as this will keep them spic and span.

 

[jonnyMercUK]

Has the brake dust eaten into the wheel jonny or does it come off with a bit of elbow grease?

You could try putting the collonite on your wheels as a bit of a sealant, however, if you can, clean them on a weekly basis with something like Bilberry Wheel Cleaner as this will keep them spic and span.

A bit of elbow grease gets them spic and span again.

 

[SavMan]

CarPro - Iron X is my favorite for alloy wheels

 

[mikec32]

Hi

All you need is iron x to get great, quick results. Rinse the wheels and then apply iron x. Let it dwell for 5 minutes till all contaminants turn red. Then clean and agitate with a soft brush and then thoroughly rinse. If you want to go the full hog, take a look at my link below of how to clean wheels the right way. It will help you understand what to use and when to use it.

http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/detailing/112241-how-get-great-wheel-cleaning-results.html

 

[jonnyMercUK]

Hi

All you need is iron x to get great, quick results. Rinse the wheels and then apply iron x. Let it dwell for 5 minutes till all contaminants turn red. Then clean and agitate with a soft brush and then thoroughly rinse. If you want to go the full hog, take a look at my link below of how to clean wheels the right way. It will help you understand what to use and when to use it.

http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/detailing/112241-how-get-great-wheel-cleaning-results.html

Cheers!

 

[Deleted member 65149]

All these chemicals and things are all very well, but are there any recommendations for anything to keep wheels clean on a weekly basis. Now that we have a hosepipe ban here I can't give them a blast with water to remove most of the dust. It's a fairly long and tedious job cleaning the outsides with a paintbrush dipped in soapy water (I knew I shouldn't have gone for these twin-spoke alloys!) but at least they end up looking good. It's the insides that are even harder without taking the wheels off. A soaking wet cloth eased through the larger gaps between spokes gets to some of the wheel, but then I have to roll the car back or forth to get to the next bits, Please tell me there's an easier way. Remember that I can't use a hose!

 

[DRBC43AMG]

Next time you need new brake pads, get some low dust pads. They work a treat and my rims remain dust free for much much longer

 

[neilz]

All these chemicals and things are all very well, but are there any recommendations for anything to keep wheels clean on a weekly basis. Now that we have a hosepipe ban here I can't give them a blast with water to remove most of the dust. It's a fairly long and tedious job cleaning the outsides with a paintbrush dipped in soapy water (I knew I shouldn't have gone for these twin-spoke alloys!) but at least they end up looking good. It's the insides that are even harder without taking the wheels off. A soaking wet cloth eased through the larger gaps between spokes gets to some of the wheel, but then I have to roll the car back or forth to get to the next bits, Please tell me there's an easier way. Remember that I can't use a hose!

Exterior Coatings // G|Techniq

Bloody expensive though!

 

[mikec32]

All these chemicals and things are all very well, but are there any recommendations for anything to keep wheels clean on a weekly basis. Now that we have a hosepipe ban here I can't give them a blast with water to remove most of the dust. It's a fairly long and tedious job cleaning the outsides with a paintbrush dipped in soapy water (I knew I shouldn't have gone for these twin-spoke alloys!) but at least they end up looking good. It's the insides that are even harder without taking the wheels off. A soaking wet cloth eased through the larger gaps between spokes gets to some of the wheel, but then I have to roll the car back or forth to get to the next bits, Please tell me there's an easier way. Remember that I can't use a hose!

My 19''R8 V10 wheels on my van were coated with G-techniq C5 prior to fitment. Even with the hosepipe ban they are so easy to clean. without water tanks, i could just throw a bucket of clean water over to wet. Then wash them with ph neutral shampoo. Then throw another bucket to rinse and dry them with the warm air blower. Back to brand new. If you have glass coating nothing sticks to the wheels on a weekly basis.

 

[mikec32]

I will soon have a couple of full g-techniq details up soon of 2 mb members Mercedes. This should help with what you can achieve and how well you can protect.

 

[neilz]

Well, if it's anything like C1 then giving the wheels a wipe when they're wet cleans them in seconds. After it's rained I just give my car a wipe with a drying microfibre then with a clean normal one and it's completely clean again so I assume the wheels should be similarly easy. With these coatings nothing really 'sticks' to them, it's all like light surface dirt.

 

[Mr. B]

On a separate note I wouldn't use a pressure washer on my personal car.
Water can sometimes be forced into areas that should be kept dry or greased.
It can even remove bits of trim etc if the pressure is too great.
Just my opinion for what it's worth.

 

[ExW205and204]

I just dilute some Meguairs All purpose cleaner (APC) in a spray bottle. Spray on, agitate with a brush then rinse off. The APC does all the work so you could rinse of with a watering can.

As long as the APC is diluted well it is quite friendly on the wheels.

 

[John]

Has the brake dust eaten into the wheel

This is something I've meant to find out for a long time.

Does this actually happen i.e. you shouldn't leave brake dust on a wheel for too long?

I always thought it was just acid that some car wash places use that caused damage.