Cleaning your wheels.

[obi_waynne]

We know how corroded neglected alloy wheels can get. There are a lot of conflicting tips and advice out there so I was wondering.

How do you clean your wheels? Which products do you use?

This may well form the basis for an article on the main site so I'd be very grateful to hear your experiences and hints on this.

I know that a great many wheel cleaners are little more than acid and this can actually make the corrosion accelerate.

Do you use a finishing wax afterwards? Did this make a difference?

 

[Prince]

I just cleaned them with soap and water last time I washed the car, being careful not to get water all over my brakes!

 

[pgarner]

i think most contain a phosphoric acid which isnt that strong ( we use a 2% strength version at work at its got all the warnings goggles chemical gloves and aprons are a min, and we dilute that to 1%, ie 100ml in at 10ltr bucket of water). most will tell you to only to let it sit on for a minute then rub clean and wash off.
i use the autoglym wheel cleaner which does state not to use on highly polished or chrome wheels. then wash them with normal car shampoo and then use normal car wax, as never bought the wheel wax.


how many of you take your wheels off to clean ?
i do when im rotating the tyres but the rest of the time i leave them on

prince what are you worried about getting water on your brakes for ? what happens when it rains?

 

[HDi fun]

All four of mine are plastered in brake dust and I need to get 'em cleaned. Note that I do not want to do this myself.

I used to get the Bosniwash brigade in Milton Keynes to clean the whole car for a fiver every couple of months and they did a truly great job.

Sadly they've been closed down. ARC washes are crap. And the wheel cleaner chemicals are things I really prefer to not handle.

Any volunteers?

 

[petrol head]

i usually clean my wheels on my lunchbreak at work, i brush on some phosphoric acid giv it a min to soak in then pressure wash it off. after that i use an autoglym product which you spray on to protect the wheels, i think its called autoglym wheel sealant, they come up gleaming after that!

if your cleaning wheels at home though a good product i have found to use is called wonder wheels, its a bit more expensive than some other products out there but does the job alot better!

if not a bit of old fashioned elbow grease and hard work scrubbing with an old brush and soapy water will do the trick! lol

 

[StevieDB9]

ive just got my first set of alloy wheels embarrest for finishing my third year exams:cheesy:. second hand, but absolutely perfect condition, not a scratch, dimple, scuff or dented edge. all new nanking tyres aswell.

gave them a quick clean up with autoglym wheel cleaner, but havent sealed them yet. havent got autoglym wheel sealant (its about the only autoglym product i havent got!) but was thinking of using polish instead. what do you guys think? ive got autoglym super resin polish or autoglym gloss at my disposal

will post some picks of nemo when ive fitted the wheels

 

[obi_waynne]

Well done with the exams.

You really need a rim wax, I'm pretty sure that the products you mention will not cope with brake dust and road salts as well as a proper rim wax would. I'll look forwards to seeing "Nemo" - you called it Nemo?

 

[StevieDB9]

its called nemo cos its got one big wing mirror and one small wing mirror just like nemo the fish has one big fin and one small fin

 

[obi_waynne]

Cute story!

Would'nt the aerodynamic drag create a pull on one side at speed? (That's how Nemo got lost in the first place!)

 

[StevieDB9]

come to think of it it pulls slightly to the right

 

[Prince]

Aww bless him!! Are you planning to paint it orange with white stripes as well?! Lmao!

 

[StevieDB9]

thought about it but then it would just look like a traffic cone

 

[Prince]

Lmao!

 

[obi_waynne]

What about using citric acid - aka lemon juice. I know of a few pros that swear by this. And now for a really really bad pun that has just occured to me. Don't tell me you weren't warned.

He gets the wheels done in a Jiffy!

No? Eh?

I have heard of pros using citric acid solution with water to clean the alloy wheels. :

 

[HDi fun]

Boric acid works well

 

[pgarner]

where do you get boric acid from ?

 

[obi_waynne]

I thought Boric was a character from Black adder?

 

[Gremlin]

X-lite MUC-OFF is brilliant at getting even the dirtiest wheels clean, does need some brushing but as its totally acid free and non damaging to rubber and paint its a winner!..

.... Its all I've ever used since it came out ( was used by used mountian bikers for years before halfrauds got it! )

As for waxing wheels, old fashioned carnuba block wax works well but does require eblow grease to do.

 

[obi_waynne]

Thanks for that Tip Gremlin I'll look out for that one.

 

[rockape]

i use a non acidic safe wheel cleaner called bilberry, excellent stuff which can be diluted for less stuborn dirt or used neat for heavy soiling. and then a dedicated wheel wax, chemical guys wheel guard :bigsmile: