Wheel Cleaning
 

What is the best way to clean the insides of wheels that have had no attention for 25 years? I have pressure washed the insides with plain water, and then cleaned with brake cleaner on a rag, but there are still traces of brake dust stains and tar stains. Is there any magic bullet for this? I am really afraid of damaging the near perfect factory annodizing on the face of the wheels. Thanks.

I've read on several detailing sites that WD-40 & steel wool works well.

PLEASE do not use steel wool or any abrasive on alloy/painted/clear coated wheels!

There is no silver bullet but there is a safe, relatively easy means to clean these wheels. Purchase some Sonax wheel cleaner and apply as directed on the bottle. Light brushing will help. Expect to use multiple coats on the spots of residual brake dust as Sonax actually dissolves the iron based brake dust. Note that Sonax will remove brake dust that P21S and other cleaners will not remove and it will do so without damage to the wheels like acids and harsh chemical wheel cleaners can do.

For the tar blobs use Bug and Tar remover available at any auto parts store. Once the wheels are good and clean apply a coat or two of RejeX sealant. That will reduce adhesion of brake dust in the future.

http://www.detailersdomain.com/sonax...elcleaner.aspx

Very simple process:

1. Clean wheels with P21S Gel Wheel Cleaner. This will clean up the majority of the dirt. Allow the product to sit for about 5 minutes before beginning to clean.

http://www.glisteningperfectionstore...aner%2C/Detail

2. Then use P21S Polishing soap on the inside of the wheels. This product is very unique that it will further clean where wheel cleaners cannot. It's basically a soap with polishing abrasives in it. The abrasives are effective enough to clean the wheels, but gentle enough that hey won't harm the wheels.

http://www.glisteningperfectionstore...p-metal/Detail

3. Rinse well and dry. By now the wheels should be sparkling clean. For the tar spots, use 3M General Purpose Adhesive Cleaner. This is a solvent that will quickly and safely break down the tar.

http://www.glisteningperfectionstore...dhesive/Detail

4. You can seal the wheels a bit by using a polish like P21S Finish Restorer. Waxes aren't designed for bare metals, which is what looks like you have.

http://www.glisteningperfectionstore...r-metal/Detail

Hope this helps.

Thanks for the tips. I do beleive that the insides of the wheels are unfinished, and no, I would never touch the annodized faces with anything abrasive or caustic. I like the idea of the polishing soap, as the "dirt" appears to be more of a stain than surface material.

Yes; I think you'll like using the Polishing Soap very much. Works great on cleaning any bare metal, chrome, and even tail pipes.

I was under the impression that anodizing is a dipping process which means the entire wheel would have this finish. If that's true I would be careful with a polishing soap. It may contain abrasives which will wear the anodization. I would stick with a wheel cleaner designed for this type of finish. If that doesn't work you can try a tar remover. Clay Bar may also get some of the embedded dirt off of the surface.

Good luck!

You have a great point. I think he's safe cleaning the inside of the wheels with the polishing soap, and the exterior surface of the wheel could be cleaned with wheel cleaner and polished with the finish restorer.

How can you tell if the inside of the wheel has clear coat? Will the P21S polishing soap ruin any finish on the inside of the wheels?

So I am following Moe's recipe of P21S gel followed by 3M adhesive remover on the tar blobs and finishing with Phil's Prima Wheel Armor to do a wheels-off cleaning of the wheels on my 2001 A6. They have never been done and they are BLACK on the inside.

These are stock alloy wheels with clear coat I believe. I have found I have to work the P21S gel for a while with a Swissvax wheel brush (Detailer's Domain) and later with a three-finger foam mitt (Griot's). I used a four-finger mesh mitt (Griot's) to agitate the adhesive remover and get the tar spots off.

Probably ~ 1h per wheel.

So far the wheels have come out spotless - cleaner than new. I ordered a bottle of Sonax, but happened to use the P21S first and it has been fine. Do NOT confuse the P21S jell with the regular P21S wheel cleaner. The gel is a lot more effective.

I did this type of cleaning once before with the wheels on my Mercedes 420SEL. It was far less successful with different products, and I actually damaged the finish of one wheel using Goof-Off.

So thanks to Moe and Detailer's Domain for their recommendations and products.

In our experience, it's best to leave P21S Wheel Cleaner on for about 10-15 minutes on clear coated wheels, then hit them with a pressure washer. With the Gel, about 10 minutes does the trick. This way, the product dwells and is able to do its magic. Then, your wheel should be pretty clean and the rest of the clean up should be pretty easy. Always best to test a small area to figure out the optimal procedure and technique.

Glad everything worked out. You got any pictures?:)

I use both wheel cleaners and the Sonax requires a lot less scrubbing than the P21S in my experience on real dirty wheels. The Sonax will also remove sintered brake dust that P21S will not remove no matter how much you scrub.

I ended up using both the Sonax and the P21S, and I think I agree the Sonax does more as a spray-on, rinse-off. However, I think for a wheels-off cleaning, where you are going to have to do a decent amount of scrubbing to get the nooks, crannies, and lettering on the back of the wheel clean anyway, I prefer the P21S, at least for clear-coated wheels. The Sonax is sort of nasty, like working with blood...

I also found on the inside of the rears a rust brown discoloration that the P21S, Sonax, and 3M could not remove. I remember finding this with my Mercedes as well. It came off with some Mcguire's Cleaner Wax, and I suspect the Prima Wheel Armor would have taken it off as well.

No pictures, but my wheels came out great. Not "pretty clean for neglected 10 year old wheels", but truly indistinguishable from wheels that have never been mounted on a vehicle. And I am very confident with these products that the finish is undamaged.