Cleaned My Wheels - Holy Crap! (lots of photos)

[Traeger2591]

Well yesterday I had to take my rear struts off to change them because the passenger side was ruined. The spring broke and was rubbing up against the fenderwell, don`t ask me how it happened haha, I have no idea. But while I had the wheels off I figured I would give them a good cleaning since they needed it bad. I did it and I was amazed at how much better they looked. They literally looked like different wheels. The amount of brake dust and road tar these had on them was ridiculous.



After doing the rear wheels, I thought, I gotta do the front ones so it all looks this good. I took alot of pics when I did the front ones. Unfortunately I didn`t get any pics of the rears. They were actually worse than the front ones if you can believe that haha. Keep in mind that these wheels are from a 99 so they are 11 years old (except the front passenger wheel which was replaced this past January).



Anyway, here`s the process I used:



-Wash

-Claybar lightly soiled areas

-Steel wool on inside of wheel to get rid of caked on brake dust (I didn`t use this on the outside, only on the inside. Because these wheels are painted, I didn`t want to affect the clear coat)

-Razor blade on big chunks of caked on tar

-Tar remover on more road tar

-Another claybar of the whole wheel

-Wash

-Wax





I would guess it took me about an hour and a half to two hours to do the front two wheels. They were absolutely hammered though. The pics don`t really even show how bad it really was. Here are the results:





Driver`s side on car:



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1372.jpg





Passenger side on car (not as bad, this wheel replaced the old one in January):



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1376.jpg





Back to the driver`s side:



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1377.jpg



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1378.jpg



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1380.jpg





Pitting from 11 years of use:



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1395.jpg



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1395.jpg





After one wash:



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1400.jpg





After another wash, a whole lotta wheel cleaner, and a ton of scrubbing with a wheel brush:



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1403.jpg





Steel wool is done! Wow! But holy road tar! And yes this is still the driver`s side



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1407.jpg



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1408.jpg





After tar removal. The other black spots are chips and scratches in the paint.



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1411.jpg



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1412.jpg



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1413.jpg





Spots from where the pitting was. These cleaned up nice. Not perfect, but better.



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1417.jpg



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1416.jpg





Finished product (driver`s side):



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1421.jpg



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1435.jpg



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1427.jpg





Finished product (passenger`s side):



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1422.jpg



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1431.jpg



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1434.jpg





Don`t worry, the tires are all nice and dressed up now haha. I hadn`t put any tire dressing on when I took the pictures. And yes, I know my rotors and calipers are ugly haha. I need to do something about them.



Anyway, I`m really happy with the whole turnout. I didn`t post too many pictures of the passenger side during the cleaning process cause it wasn`t as bad as the driver`s side. You can get the point with just the pics of the drivers side.



After reading THIS (http://www.autopia.org/forum/pro-details-before-after/130446-grand-prix-white-nsx-detailed-tru_shine.html) thread a couple days ago, that is what inspired me to do my wheels. Check the bottom of the first post.





And just for fun, this is why I had the rear wheels off in the first place...lol...



http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e360/traeger2591/IMG_1426.jpg

[Legacy]

Good job. Next time try Meg`s Wheel Brightner, would have saved you a ton of time and effert.

[MrCLRider]

Those cleaned up really well!

[DRT]

Great job! Ok, this may be a dumb question, but if wheels are factory clear coated are they just cleared on the front and not in the barrels?

[Traeger2591]

Good job. Next time try Meg`s Wheel Brightner, would have saved you a ton of time and effert.



Thanks, I`ll have to give that a try next time I do this.




Great job! Ok, this may be a dumb question, but if wheels are factory clear coated are they just cleared on the front and not in the barrels?



I think they just clear coat the outside of them. Not the inside. I may be wrong though.

[454Casull]

They should be clear coated all around, I believe. If not, there`s a high chance of moisture seeping in through the clear coat layer and causing the greenish corrosion we`re all familiar with.

[SlantS]

I hate to be totally honest, but these pontiac wheels always clean up well.

You can get better results with wheel acid & pressure washer. It only takes 5 minutes too!



They are powder coated clear. They can handle just about anything.

[JohnKleven]

Fantastic job. Now you just gotta put a sealant on them and keep them clean.

[Legacy]

A little caliper paint would have helped the final apperance.

[Biggestmexi]

Srsly what the fu....



my rear pass side spring broke two weekends ago.



1997 Pontiac Grand Prix......



creeeeeeppppyyyy

[Traeger2591]

A little caliper paint would have helped the final apperance.



Yeah I know haha. The rusty look just isn`t cutting it. I`m thinking about trying out the g2 caliper paint. It looks pretty good and would be easier to apply than a spray can type.




Srsly what the fu....



my rear pass side spring broke two weekends ago.



1997 Pontiac Grand Prix......



creeeeeeppppyyyy



lol *** pontiac. That`s messed up. Just make sure you replace both of the rear struts and not just the bad one. It`ll mess up how the struts wear if you don`t replace both.

[imported_Chris223]

Srsly what the fu....



my rear pass side spring broke two weekends ago.



1997 Pontiac Grand Prix......



creeeeeeppppyyyy



Wow... I had the EXACT same problem with my 2001 Grand Prix... in February last year. Rear passenger side spring blew clean off the strut, just rusted right out of the seat. Had to replace 2 tires, 2 springs, 2 struts. Hope that never happens again!