Need help choosing the correct wheel polish.

[Phimp27]

Re: Need help choosing the correct wheel polish.

I have Trix on order from AG so once I get that I'm gonna scrub my rims to see if that helps. Thanks for the help Murr

[Bostonstrong]

Re: Need help choosing the correct wheel polish.

Personally i think you folks are a little much when it comes to cleaning your wheels, haven't you ever heard of -

Staying ahead of the brake dust wipe daily
when you wash the car use a bucket strictly for wheels with lots of soap / water/sponge
And course UQW on the wheels when they're dry.

PS: then you wouldn't need all the extras - good ole elbow grease never killed anyone,the problem is society wants the product to do the work instead of you doing the work and the product being the tool.

I take damn good care of my car but this post is a little much

JUST SAYING !

[Murr1525]

Re: Need help choosing the correct wheel polish.

Well, with that much dirt, may have seemed like black coming off.

Something like the TRIX could be handy to wash them off with as well.

[Murr1525]

Re: Need help choosing the correct wheel polish.

Well, with that much dirt, may have seemed like black coming off.

Something like the TRIX could be handy to wash them off with as well.

[Phimp27]

Re: Need help choosing the correct wheel polish.

It's a 99 explorer. I can post pics tomorrow. Last week I really cleaned the front 2 rims. The barrels were so black I honestly thought that was the color they were because it was only the part of the rim people don't see. I have some pics of the before and after but it was only the backside. I'll post pics of the face tomorrow along with the other pics of the barrel. Thanks for all the advice Murr.

[Murr1525]

Re: Need help choosing the correct wheel polish.

How old is it? Any chance of pics of the wheels?

It is possible any clear coat may have been gone if they were in bad shape, or that much dirt to remove.

If you apply some UC by hand now, and the applicator still turns a soot black... then it wouldnt seem like any clear coat is there.

[Phimp27]

Re: Need help choosing the correct wheel polish.

I just recently found out I have alloyed refinished rims with a clear coat. I've been using the all wheel cleaner on them but before I found out what kind of rims they were I used the all metal polish with dynacone. They come came out black. Does that mean the clear coat came off? Or should I just use UC or 101 to polish them up? Thanks for the input guys. I just want to make them look decent. It's an old car that wasn't taken care of before I found this site

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Need help choosing the correct wheel polish.

Hot Rims is an acid.
Using acid will clean the hell out if your rims.
Start there, cleanning is the most important part.
Don't over think this.
It's very simple. Clean, polish, protect.

Actually, this is something we want people to think about very carefully, because this is the one place where when people make the wrong choice it can cost them dearly.

So merely stating that "Hot Rims is an acid" and that "Using acid will clean the hell out of your rims" can and will get people into serious trouble - and the statements aren't entirely accurate, either. We make three different wheel cleaners under the Hot Rims title - Chrome Wheel Cleaner, All Wheel & Tire Cleaner, and Aluminum Wheel Cleaner. Chrome Wheel cleaner is quite acidic, having a pH right around 3.0. All Wheel & Tire Cleaner is actually on the other end of the spectrum and is a high alkaline product, with a pH of 13.5. Aluminum Wheel Cleaner has a pH of 7.0 and is therefore considered neutral - neither acid nor alkaline. As such, Aluminum Wheel Cleaner is perfectly safe to use on even bare, highly polished billet aluminum wheels. The other two should only be used on surfaces they are intended to be used on, namely true full chrome for Chrome Wheel Cleaner, and all factory coated wheels as well as full clear coated aftermarket wheels for the All Wheel & Tire Cleaner. The bottles clearly state that neither of these two products should be used on uncoated, powdercoated or anodized finishes and to be cautious of brake components that might be similarly finished. Using either of these on bare aluminum will stain the surface white in very little time. Below is an image of a polished billet wheel after a single application of Hot Rims Chrome Wheel Cleaner:


It's because of all this that we made the recommendations we made in our post above, and we commend the OP for coming here and asking for advice prior to just diving in. Our Call Center gets enough calls from people choosing the wrong product for the wheels they have.

For those of you using our Detailer Line you're probably familiar with D140 Wheel Brightener, which is also an acid cleaner but at proper dilution ratios it's still less acidic than Hot Rims Chrome Wheel Cleaner. D140 will have a pH between 4.5 and 5.5 depending on dilution ratio. While still not suitable for bare, high polished aluminum wheels, it's perfectly safe when used as directed on chrome, painted, factory OEM and many clear coated aftermarket wheels. While the recommended dilution ratio for Wheel Brightener is 4:1, we have seen it be highly effective even when diluted at 8:1 or 10:1.

This is one area of detailing where you'd better be darn sure what you're dealing with before just diving into the deep end.

[Detailing by M]

Hot Rims is an acid.
Using acid will clean the hell out if your rims.
Start there, cleanning is the most important part.
Don't over think this.
It's very simple. Clean, polish, protect.

[gmitch23]

Re: Need help choosing the correct wheel polish.

like I said, acid wash these.
polish with a Dyna Cone, just go get one.
M105 and any metal/chrome polish will do. I use NXT and it works great.

What do you mean by acid wash? All Wheel Cleaner? Sorry I'm not getting it, i know you've been helping me for a while. Once done, I should use NXT on both wheels?

[Detailing by M]

Re: Need help choosing the correct wheel polish.

like I said, acid wash these.
polish with a Dyna Cone, just go get one.
M105 and any metal/chrome polish will do. I use NXT and it works great.

[gmitch23]

Re: Need help choosing the correct wheel polish.

Let's get back to the wheels on the Pontiac for a moment, though. In my personal experience with GM factory wheels (my wife has had a couple of GM cars and many members of family have and still do) the clear coat is easily stained or otherwise compromised and can look splotchy and dull in spots over time. I have never found a way to fully correct this, other than to have the wheels refinished. It seems to be more noticeable on GM polished aluminum wheels, which seem to more readily show the staining in the clear than silver painted and cleared wheels do, but it's still there.

Thank Mike for all your information it will help.

You say havent found a way to "fully" correct but UC and Dynacone should atleast make improvments? And you are right on about the second wheels, they are chrome clad. Now the All Metal Cleaner that comes with the Dynacone, do you recommend that or specifically i should try the medium cut/or finishing polish?

I used to use Hot Wheels All Wheel Cleaner but stopped because and experience i had with my wife's Mitsubishi Eclipse. The center cap of the Mitsubishi's wheels were made of plastic. After a few times using All Wheel Cleaner, the paint on the center cap edges started to peel. I had to replace 3 of the caps. So I have been sticking to a soap and water regime.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Need help choosing the correct wheel polish.

You mention that both sets of wheels are factory original, and that tells us a lot.

This first set looks to be the very typical painted and clear coated factory finish found on everything from Mercedes to Hyundai these days. For regular cleaning you can safely use our Hot Rims All Wheel & Tire Cleaner; follow directions though, cleaning one wheel at a time from start to finish - never spray all 4 wheels and then start working on the first one. If need be you can clay these wheels, use a paint cleaner like Ultimate Compound or ScratchX on them, and even apply a wax or sealant if you like. Our Hot Rims Brake Dust Barrier works great on this type of finish. But since these wheels are coated you should not use a metal polish on them. Metal polishes are for metal, and you're not working on metal any more here than you are on when working on the steel body panels of the car. The top surface, in this case a clear coat of paint, is what you're working on.


These wheels appear to be what's commonly referred to as "chrome clad" wheels, where a chromed, plastic cover is bonded to an underlying steel wheel. It is a chrome finish so it's quite hard, meaning even fine scratches can be very difficult, if not impossible, to remove. Both our Medium Cut Metal Polish and Finishing Metal Polish are perfectly safe on these wheels, but stay away from the Heavy Cut Metal Polish as it can create very fine scratches or hazing in the surface that will then be nearly impossible to correct. Routine wheel cleaning with Hot Rims All Wheel & Tire Cleaner is fine here too, but we'd recommend staying away from the Hot Rims Chrome Wheel Cleaner if these are, in fact, "chrome clad". Why? Because things can get to be a bid delicate around the edges of the cladding as the wheels age, and with Chrome Wheel Cleaner being so powerful it could lead to issues down the line.


Let's get back to the wheels on the Pontiac for a moment, though. In my personal experience with GM factory wheels (my wife has had a couple of GM cars and many members of family have and still do) the clear coat is easily stained or otherwise compromised and can look splotchy and dull in spots over time. I have never found a way to fully correct this, other than to have the wheels refinished. It seems to be more noticeable on GM polished aluminum wheels, which seem to more readily show the staining in the clear than silver painted and cleared wheels do, but it's still there.

[gmitch23]

Re: Need help choosing the correct wheel polish.

Too bad I havent been able to find the stand alone dyna-cone polisher anywhere. Not even online. Time to get the elbow grease out.

[Murr1525]

Re: Need help choosing the correct wheel polish.

On the painted ones, yes.. you want to treat them like you would the car paint.