Wheel Cleaners

[Zcar]

Yesterday I had to take my Z car down an extremely dusty dirt road. Of course when I got home my whole car was a disaster and the paint and wheels looked like they were dust magnets. My car is a 2011 370Z coupe with the sport package and 19" Rays wheels which appear to be clear coated. I hosed the wheels down thoroughly with a strong stream of water and then sprayed them one at a time with Meguiar's Hot Rims Aluminum wheel cleaner. I used the aluminum cleaner since I'm not totally sure they are in fact clear coated and I didn't want to take a chance. After spraying a wheel I waited 15-20 seconds per instructions and then hosed the wheel with plenty of water. When I was done the wheels looked clean so I proceeded to wash and dry the rest of the car. When I started to dry the wheels the were all still dirty with a wet layer of dusty dirt and the drying towel was quite dirty when I got done. Impression was that the wheel cleaner didn't do anything at all. I keep the car clean and the wheels had not accumulated any brake dust since the last time I washed them. The only thing on them was dust from the dirt road and I thought the wheel cleaner should easily remove that. Wrong! I'm 74 and it's kind of hard for me to bend or kneel down to clean the wheels. Any idea why the wheel cleaner didn't do anything or any ideas for an easy way to clean these wheels?

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Wheel Cleaners

Any wheel cleaner, regardless how mild or strong, is going to greatly benefit from at least some agitation of the surface. HR Aluminum Wheel Cleaner is extremely mild so it's not going to just break down dirt and grime and let you simply hose it off. Imagine if you just sprayed a soapy solution on your car and then merely rinsed it off - would expect the car to be totally clean when you went to dry it off? No, of course not, so you use a wash mitt to agitate the surface and physically remove the dirt. You really do need to do the same with your wheels.

We will say, however, that you were very wise in choosing a mild cleaner when you weren't completely sure what the finish of your aftermarket wheels is. You'd be amazed how many people get this horribly wrong and ruin a set of polished wheels with an aggressive wheel cleaner.

[Car Potential]

Re: Wheel Cleaners

Yea I tried to just spray all wheel cleaner on before without agitating the wheels and was disappointed with the results. Then when I sprayed and wiped the wheels I was satisfied. One thing I would recommend is to wax your wax because then the dirt comes off easier. Also, I don't like bending or kneeling either to clean my wheels so I just sit on the ground.

[Zcar]

Re: Wheel Cleaners

Thanks Michael. Reckon I was expecting too much from the cleaner. I'll look for a long handled, soft brush to use when I wash again and give the cleaner a quick brushing to loosen things up. . I'm surprised that dust will even stick to the paint on my car. I just recently did a spring cleaning with clay bar, cleaner and polish followed up with NXT2 wax. People are amazed at how silky smooth the paint is and there is not a swirl mark to be found anywhere. I've been a Meguiar's fan for a long time.

[davey g-force]

Re: Wheel Cleaners

One thing I would recommend is to wax your wax...

[Car Potential]

Re: Wheel Cleaners

One thing I would recommend is to wax your wax

wax your wheels

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Wheel Cleaners

Wait, isn't that the definition of "layering"?

[Nuscence813]

I use eagle one chrome wheel cleaner on my 2011 g37S. It works good on my alloy Enkei's. Is it too aggressive?

[davey g-force]

Re: Wheel Cleaners

Wait, isn't that the definition of "layering"?

[andytsang]

Re: Wheel Cleaners

I don't like bending or kneeling either to clean my wheels so I just sit on the ground.

This is good advice. Last time after I clean the second wheel my back hurt so much I could hear myself cursing how come there are 4 wheels.

[Abri]

Re: Wheel Cleaners

This is good advice. Last time after I clean the second wheel my back hurt so much I could hear myself cursing how come there are 4 wheels.

I just flip one of the buckets I use for washing, and sit on that! Obviously an empty one!

[Evan.J]

Re: Wheel Cleaners

I just flip one of the buckets I use for washing, and sit on that! Obviously an empty one!

I use an empty plastic milk crate to sit on

[coopstah]

Re: Wheel Cleaners

I use a heavy duty wheel cleaner called - XCLR8 - as in ( excel er eight) and let me just tell you this stuff is INCREDIBLE , you need to be careful though, one wheel at a time and only let it sit on the wheel no longer then 10 - 15 seconds, personally i use a sponge to wipe /rinse immidiately i wont take the chance and let it sit, however this stuff is by far THE BEST cleaner i have ever used period.