Protecting glass and wheels?

[Pilaar39]

New to the forum.. hope you can help me out.

Just got a new Ford Fusion, and it looks really good - right now. But, I am concerned about the glass and the wheels.

In the past, on previous cars, over the years, the windshield became marked and almost impossible to clean. I would like to know if there is a product I can apply to assist in repelling marks on the windshield.

Secondly, wheels. I have brushed aluminum open wheels and disc brakes. I found that just driving it home, the wheels collected a lot of black powder from the brakes, and I can see this is going to be a pain cleaning. So, similar question: is there something specifically made to apply to the wheels that would make it easy for me to just hose off the black brake soot?

[Markus Kleis]

Re: Protecting glass and wheels?

Welcome to MOL Pilaar39-

Just a friendly heads-up, I moved your thread over to Detailing 101. This is where most questions belong, and when in doubt just put them here. You will get the most "traffic" in your threads here.

Mark

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Protecting glass and wheels?

Just got a new Ford Fusion, and it looks really good - right now. But, I am concerned about the glass and the wheels.

In the past, on previous cars, over the years, the windshield became marked and almost impossible to clean. I would like to know if there is a product I can apply to assist in repelling marks on the windshield.

What do you mean by marked?

Do you mean scratches or some kind of film that builds up? Like water spots?

Secondly, wheels. I have brushed aluminum open wheels and disc brakes. I found that just driving it home, the wheels collected a lot of black powder from the brakes, and I can see this is going to be a pain cleaning.

So, similar question: is there something specifically made to apply to the wheels that would make it easy for me to just hose off the black brake soot?

There's a lot of interest in products for wheels that will prevent brake dust from sticking to the wheel but the problem is car wax and paint sealants don't hold up very well on the wheels especially if you wash them with a wheel cleaner as the wheel cleaner will remove the brake dust and the protective coating.

It's also for most people too much work to wax their wheels often, like in every other wash or so... (think about it, sitting down on the ground and applying wax and then after it dries wiping it off)

Most people that wax their wheels agree that it helps make cleaning them a lot easier, it's just a matter of doing the work to maintain the coating on the wheel.

It might be easier to get the right wheel cleaner, a soft brush and wash your wheels often so the brake dust doesn't build-up into a layer that will be difficult to remove.

You might be able to find a drum brake conversion, that will prevent disc brake dust from building up on your wheels. (Just kidding)

[ColonelCash]

Re: Protecting glass and wheels?

Glass: You can put wax onto the glass, search the forums for some suggestions.

Wheels: If you want to cut brake dust, you'll probably want to put some new brake pads on the car. Something that has minimal dust. I know Volvo's are horrible about dust from their OEM pads. NXT All Metal Polysh will add a layer of protection to the wheels. Also, you can put some wax on them. Again, search the forums and you'll find a few threads that mention this.

Good luck and welcome to MOL!

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Protecting glass and wheels?

Here's an interesting thread on waxing wheels...


NXT 2.0 vs Poorboys Wheel Sealant


You say your wheels are brushed aluminum, do you know if they're coated with anything?

Or are they bare aluminum?

You want to know for absolute sure before you start applying any kind of wheel cleaner.

One option is our new Hot Rims® Aluminum Wheel Cleaner



This product is safe on anything in the wheel compartment area as well as all types of wheel.

[Jeepster04]

Re: Protecting glass and wheels?

It seems like different cars use different types of glass. Some glass must be softer than other glass b/c Ive noticed our corolla has marks from the wipers all over it and none of our Jeeps do.

To prevent wiper marks, dont run the wipers when they do not need to be used. If the windshield is covered in dirt and dust then its possible the glass may get scratched from the wipers. I keep a 'kit' in my Jeep which has towels and meguiars 'detailer line' glass cleaner in it.

I like to use Rain-x to keep the water beading on the glass. Seems to make it easier to clean also.

My rims are clear coated so I just wax them. I also use ceramic brake pads so I dont even know what brake dust is.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Protecting glass and wheels?

Glass: You can put wax onto the glass, search the forums for some suggestions.

Just to note, Meguiar's doesn't recommend applying any of our waxes to glass for a number of reasons, one is a quality wax is formulated to stick to paint and glass is a completely different substance than automotive paints so bonding or adhering will be compromised.

RainX is a respectable brand when it comes to glass treatments.

[Maserati Mario]

Re: Protecting glass and wheels?

Well I believe nothing will prevent Bd from gathering on the wheels.
You can get covers for the back of your rims to completely seal out the bd. But you lose ventilation.
You can wax, seal or polish but nothing will change, maybe trying different break pads, but I just think your going to get a harder pad which might reduce braking power.
If it bothers me I'll clean it off with Quick Wheel Detailer.

As far as the glass goes. I used to wax (dad taught me that back in the '70's) but, when Rain-X came out I only use that. There are allot of glass products on the market today for you to choose from.

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: Protecting glass and wheels?

I find that claying the glass and replacing the wiper blades yearly are the secret for me. It keeps the glass free of any bonded contaminants.

As for the brake dust I just use quik wheel cleaner when I qd. It keeps the rims looking good.

[new2detailing]

Re: Protecting glass and wheels?

The problem with brake dust is that car manufactures switched from asbestos based pads to metallic several years back, due to health concerns. The problem with newer pads is that they tend to squeak and leave much more dust than before. Keep the wheels clean, apply a wheel specific wax or a wax, and stay vigilant on removing dust before it etches into the metal. As far as your winshield, keep it clean (and especially keep the wipers clean to prevent contaminants from creating scratches). You can apply RainX, Aquapel, etc to help, but keeping the windshield clean is paramount in keeping contaminants from embedding into the windshield. (My wife laughs at me, but I clean my windshield 3-5 times a week)

[gb387]

Re: Protecting glass and wheels?

Similar to what others have mentioned above the best things is to keep up on your wheels... I like to apply a coat of NXT 2.0 to my wheels and wash with soap and water. I find its easiest to keep up with their cleaning, say once a week when I get behind it makes cleaning the wheels that much more time consuming. As for the windows, I prefer rainX just haven't had luck with wax on the glass. Clay is also a good idea from time to time to remove bonded contaminates. I know Meguiars doesn't recommend it but I use #4 (Heavy Cut Cleaner) on my glass from time to time and it seems to do a very good job of cleaning but it does take a lot of product.

[Pilaar39]

Re: Protecting glass and wheels?

Well, first of all, that's to all for the replies.. I appreciate the feedback!

I think one of the first replies asked about the type of marks on the window.. well, I am not sure exactly, but some were wiper marks, and others seemed like minor grit marks... and no matter what I did, I just could not clean the windshield. Mind you I am talking about my old 9-near-old Explorer vs the new Fusion. When I picked up the Fusion, I initially thought the windows were down.. but getting nearer that car, I realized that the windows were up: they were that clear! That's what I am aiming for.. to keep these super clear windows.

While some suggested waxing the winshield, I have a question about this. Living up here in the GWN (Great White North), we get a lot of ice and snow build up, and mornings are usually peppered with foul language as we fight to scrape the windows clear. I personally find that the plastic ice scrapers just don't do as good a job as a metal scraper. The metal scrapers are usually made of relatively soft metal, like some aloy of brass or bronze, and I believe they are safe for windows.. ie, will not scratch them. However, what happens if I wax or treat the windows? Will these ice scrapers (metal or plastic) remove the protective coating?

And finally back to the wheels. Having seen the black powder build up on other car wheels, I always thought it was a factor of age - that is, it only started as the pads got older and worn down. However, after putting less that 100 Km on a brand new car, I was very surprised to see how much black powder had accumulated on the wheels. I know this is somewhat off topic, but one person mentioned using ceramic pads, which did not leave dust deposits on the wheels. Where can I learn more about these pads? Like how they compare to standard OEM pads, both in operation and cost?

Thanks!

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Protecting glass and wheels?

I think one of the first replies asked about the type of marks on the window.. well, I am not sure exactly, but some were wiper marks, and others seemed like minor grit marks... and no matter what I did, I just could not clean the windshield.

Mind you I am talking about my old 9-near-old Explorer vs the new Fusion.

If the problem with the glass is some kind of contaminant stuck on the glass then this will help...

Glass Polishing - Deep Cleaning

If the problem is a defect "in" the glass then there's probably not much you can do as glass does not lend itself well to being abraded with the end-result looking good.


But there are some glass polishing kits on the market, here's a link to one reference,

How To Remove Scratches In Glass

[Ryan L.]

Re: Protecting glass and wheels?

I agree with others...but I have never been able to get Rain-X to work for me, user error not the product. I have had great luck with NXT Spray Wax on windows though, because its really easy to apply and remove and quick.

Don't really have to worry about rain and windows here in southern California though.

Ryan

[Pilaar39]

Re: Protecting glass and wheels?

On the subject of rain-x.. I was just down at my local WalMart (which btw I rarely frequent except for cat fles collars, because I believe they are too damaging to North American manufacturers.. but that's another topic althogether) and happend to walk by the automotive dept. I saw two rain-x products: a clear blue coloured liquid pump spray, which I think they called a 'wax', and a opaque yellow 2 in 1 cleaner/wax.

Although I initially picked up the blue one since it sort of looked like Windex, the yellow one seemed (from reading the label) to be more appropriate for windows.

Which Rain-x product are you folks referring to for car windows?

Btw.. the yellow one said definitely not for use on tinted windows. I assume that car windows are tinted on the inside, and therefore the product is only for use on outside windows?

Thanks