Using acid to clean alloy wheels ???

[mis3]

I recently bought a set of AMG wheels for my 2004 MB CLK. As you probably know, MB is notorious for brake dust. My service advisor gave me a bottle of mild acid solution to clean the wheels and that's what they use in the shop. I tried it and it worked amazing well.

Question: Would the acid solution hurt the clear coat or the paint of my wheels?

[TOGWT]

IMO acid is too strong a product to clean clear coated paint.

Having said that any damage done would be dependant upon 'what type of acid' and its dwell time (ie how long it remains on the surface)

There are many very good detailing products available that will clean brake dust from a clear coated wheel surface without the need to resort to an acid
JonM

[rusty bumper]

If you have painted wheels, then you should be able to put a coat of wax on them after a good cleaning.

Then, when it comes time to wash your car, you could use a wash mitt and car shampoo combo to clean the brake dust off.

Some of the forum members like to do this with their coated wheels.

[mis3]

I did not use it on my new wheels yet.

I used it on my friend's bimmer. He does not maintain his car much and the wheels had a lot of black spots. Regular soap and water could not take off these spots. The acid solution worked like magic.

I feel the same way about acid but since they used it in the MB shop, maybe it's ok. That's why I asked for more opinions.

I usually use Wheel Wax for my wheels. I never use NXT wax for my wheels so I cannot compare. Can someone let me know the results with NXT?

[mirrorfinishman]

Originally posted by Rusty Bumper
If you have painted wheels, then you should be able to put a coat of wax on them after a good cleaning.

Then, when it comes time to wash your car, you could use a wash mitt and car shampoo combo to clean the brake dust off.

Some of the forum members like to do this with their coated wheels.

This is very good advice. It is much safer to wax your wheels on a regular basis and then use car wash soap and a wash mitt to wash away brake dust.

Personally, I would never use an acid solution on painted wheels. Then again, I wouldn't use acid for cleaning any type of wheel.