Will Eagle One Tire/Wheel Cleaner damage paint?

[mikebai1990]

The past two days I`ve been detailing my cousin`s family`s cars. They had two cars that were absolutely TRASHED. Vaccumed once in it`s 6-7 year lifetime, and washed maybe once or twice. It was a pain to do the cars... Anyway, I was using Eagle One Cleaner on the wheels, and I was wondering whether it would work if I sprayed it onto the paint where there was all sorts of bugs+tar+spray from the front wheels.



I sprayed it on and let it dwell for half a minute. Then I lightly scrubbed. Most of the stuff came off easily except for one or two stubborn tar spots.



These cars were in really bad shape, so I didn`t care too much.. But will the cleaner damage or degrade some of the CC?

[coscooper]

I`m no expert, but I`d suggest that you DO NOT use any wheel cleaner products on paint. I once accidentally made the mistake of using Eagle 1 (Chrome and wire wheel cleaner) on my coated wheels. There`s a warning on the label against this, but I grabbed the wrong bottle of spray and was 4 wheels into it before realizing it. It took the silver coating off the black aluminum wheels and I had to have all 4 of them re coated. Also, the inside of the wheel well was horrible looking. Some of the parts behind the wheel looked like the springs were oxidized and shiny aluminum was tarnished. Took 2 days to repolish and rework every wheel well back to fully dressed.



Don`t do it unless you plan on paying for a new paint job.

[mikebai1990]

Well, the thing is I tried it on paint, and I didn`t notice any adverse results... I understand that the E1 cleaner is not recommended for aftermarket wheels, so be careful with that.



I was thinking about this because I believe that E1 is a basic product, and I`ve heard of many people using acid decon kits, which are more effective than clay. Of course, the acidity/alkalinity of the products may vary, but I figured I`d try it out. It doesn`t seem like I did any damage, but I suppose if it only takes a little of the CC off, I wouldn`t be able to see it..

[paul34]

Well, I guess there is one way of looking at it. If its supposed to be safe for clear coated wheels - which I believe are the way most wheels, especially OEM ones are, then why should it damage paint?



Regardless, I wouldn`t let it sit on the paint for an extended period of time (as one wouldn`t with the wheels, either).



Possibly, it is a powerful degreaser, and there are people here who use degreasers on paint to get rid of what you were talking about.



However, I`m not going to be the first person try E1 wheel/tire cleaner on paint :D. I`ve gotten some accidental overspray from the wind on the paint, but nothing serious like actually directly spraying on the paint.

[Ern]

How does it perform on chrome or paint/powdercoated wheels? Like say, black with a polished/chrome lip?

[Setec Astronomy]

Mike, it should be fine on paint (what do I care? you don`t know where I live LOL). It`s a caustic cleaner, but as you noted, not much different than the alkaline step of the decon kits. I`ve used it to remove wax from textured plastic trim (a technique from old member David North). As mentioned, probably not a good idea to let it dwell for an extended time, but you wouldn`t do that with any cleaner you put on the paint.



EDIT: These remarks apply to Eagle One All Wheel and Tire Cleaner.

[coscooper]

Ern - there are actually several different products Eagle One makes for cleaning wheels. I`ve used All Wheel (http://www.eagleone.com/pages/products/product.asp?itemid=1003&cat=5006) one on my Elise, black aluminum with silver coating, no problem. All wheel is not as caustic as Chrome and Wire (http://www.eagleone.com/pages/products/product.asp?itemid=1007&cat=5006) cleaner. As I mentioned above, I got the bottles confused one day and made a $$ mistake as it took the silver off my black aluminum wheels. It doesn`t wash of like dirt, but it was thin in places and was very obvious what happened.

[Setec Astronomy]

Just to clarify--I was talking about the Eagle One All Wheel and Tire Cleaner, what used to be known as A2Z.



From the EO website: "All Wheel & Tire Cleaner is safe for all types of metal hubcaps and steel or aluminum alloy wheels. Safe finishes include: anodized, clear coated, factory painted and chrome."