Safe to QD the wheels??

[Deep_Freeze]

I was wondering, my car has a tendency to collect a lot of brake dust and it really only takes like a day for the rims to have the dust on them again. So, of course, I have been looking for an easier way to keep them clean. I know that brake dust could be mildly abrasive, and I was wondering if you guys thought it was safe to QD(Eagle One WWS) to get the dust off.



The rims I have right now are factory clearcoated rims, but I will be getting some custom rims for the car in a month or two. The custom rims will be clearcoated in the center, and the lips will be polished. Any advice on either my current factory rims or my future custom rims would be appreciated. I currently use Eagle One A2Z to clean my rims, and don`t know if I will need some kind of metal polish for the custom rims(they do have some clearcoat on them).

[Jngrbrdman]

I use Platinum Gloss Enhancing spray on my wheels. I`ve got a ton of rivets around the lip of the wheel that are tough to clean around. I`ve found that by using the Platinum QD after cleaning the rims with A2Z that they don`t get dirty as quick and it is certianly not as tough to clean them. I`ve experimented with one side of the car by not using the QD after cleaning them. That side got dirty faster and it was tougher to clean them. The QDed side was much easier and required way less work around the tough areas. It was a substantial difference that makes it worth it to me to continue using the QD on the rims after cleaning them. Its been several months with no adverse effects to report.

[Deep_Freeze]

Seems like you are talking about right after a washing the car. I am saying more like inbetween washings, like every other day, when the QD is solely responsible for cleaning off the brake dust. Also, where can you get Platinum, is it just an online buy or can you get it in local stores? And how much money does it run??? I use Eagle WWS cause it is cheap and good, since I use QD alot, don`t want to spend alot of money on stuff that I use a lot of.

[shaf]

Yeah I`ve heard of people QDing wheels to remove brake dust. It`s probably best to do it often so you don`t have to try QDing off too much of it.



I`m going to have to try QDing wheels after washing and see how much it helps. For some reason I never thought of that and instead kept looking at things like spray waxes and stuff..... must`ve got tunnel vision. :p

[huangdong28]

Originally posted by Deep_Freeze

I was wondering, my car has a tendency to collect a lot of brake dust and it really only takes like a day for the rims to have the dust on them again. So, of course, I have been looking for an easier way to keep them clean.



You might want to consider reducing/eliminating the brake dust at the source by changing over to ceramic brake pads. I did this a year ago with dramatic results. A side-benefit is smoother, quieter stopping.



I use Raybestos ceramic Quiet Stops on all my cars. If the car is low mileage, pad replacement is usually pretty simple and you may only need to scuff the rotors with emery sandpaper to get the glaze (and possibly rusty edge) off.



If you go for the Raybestos, make sure there is a "QS" at the end of the part number. Some of their other pads are "low dusting", but not as low as ceramic.

[Spilchy]

I QD after every wash with EFCP. You can do it inbetween washings. Waxing helps too. Makes the break dust accumulation less.



Just be sure to spray the rag with the QD and not the wheels. It`s not a good idea to get it on the brake pads.

[Accumulator]

Deep_Freeze-I somehow scratched a wheel QDing it, must`ve picked up something nasty without noticing it. No more of that for me!



Ceramic pads can be a good idea, but check with people who have your car/brakes and see what their experience has been. SOME people get rotor problems when they switch to ceramics. Not often, but it happens. Cryo`ed rotors seem to help with this, BTW.

[MBZ 500E]

I QD my wheels after every single drive and have never had a problem. Here are my observations and a few trickes I`ve learned.



If the wheels are very dusty take a very soft cotton towel and GENTLY wipe the surface first. This will remove the majority of dust before you spray the QD.



Always make sure your wheels have cooled before spraying QD, hot wheels will bake the QD and dust on to the surface not to mention you can warp your rotors if you use alot of QD. When using your cloth turn it frequently to prevent rubbing the abrasive brake dust into the clear coat of the wheels.



Clay & Wax your wheels every month or two to create a slick surface, I prefer Zaino for this since it can handle the heat better.



Finally separate the cloths you use for your wheels and NEVER use them on your paint. No matter how many times I`ve washed my wheel towels they always seem to have black spots, you don`t want this anywhere near your paint.

[chris0626]

Great tips, MBZ500E. But just to clarify, I thought I had read that wax is not really good on wheels, because the heat breaks it down and can actually make it attract more brake dust. Based on my readings on Autopia, I gathered that polymer sealants are the way to go. So I Zainoed my wheels, and this seems to make QD`ing a snap. Does that square with your experience?

[MBZ 500E]

I agree Lynn, actually if you read my reply I use Zaino as well for that exact reason. I leave the carnauba`s for the paint and lighting.



I guess I should be more specific in the future since we all know the difference between a wax and a sealant even though the names always seem to be mixed up by the manufacturers.:nixweiss



Have to go finish putting the S100 on the car now!:)

[chris0626]

Yeah, that`s what I thought you were saying, MBZ. But since this is Autopia U, I wanted to be double-sure we were being clear. :up



Yeah, I topped my Z with S100 too last week. Fell into the evil clutches of Autopian "exuberant enthusiasm." Can`t say it added much to the old white Jag.

[Pats300zx]

I have always put a coat of SG on my wheels every time I wax my car. It makes the removal of the brake dust so much easier. I always QD my wheels after washing them. It takes whatever dirt off I may have missed and helps remove some of the water spots.

[Deep_Freeze]

Originally posted by MBZ 500E

I QD my wheels after every single drive and have never had a problem. Here are my observations and a few trickes I`ve learned.



If the wheels are very dusty take a very soft cotton towel and GENTLY wipe the surface first. This will remove the majority of dust before you spray the QD.



Always make sure your wheels have cooled before spraying QD, hot wheels will bake the QD and dust on to the surface not to mention you can warp your rotors if you use alot of QD. When using your cloth turn it frequently to prevent rubbing the abrasive brake dust into the clear coat of the wheels.



Clay & Wax your wheels every month or two to create a slick surface, I prefer Zaino for this since it can handle the heat better.



Finally separate the cloths you use for your wheels and NEVER use them on your paint. No matter how many times I`ve washed my wheel towels they always seem to have black spots, you don`t want this anywhere near your paint.



Very interesting, currently, when I QD the wheels, I use a very similar techique to this already, although I have yet to clay or wax the wheels cause all I have right now is s100, and that is not good to put on wheels.



I have searched everywhere on this site, and although there is some info, I don`t think there is near enough on how to keep wheels clean properly. Wheels are sometimes the thing that make your car standout, even if they are factory rims.



I bought some cheap MF towels from walmart (you know the ones) just to QD the wheels and to QD for bugs on the front of the car often. They are real helpful in this role cause they are cheap, and you can have a lot of towels to do this real dirty work. It makes you be able to use a different towel each time, and I will be getting more of these cheap towels for this role. You just have to make sure you fling the towel a bit so you don`t mess up your rims and do it gently, I think.



As for the brake dust, I have been looking into get some other brake pads. I have a new 350Z, so good pads that perform well are hard to come by without dust. I have looked into this, and hopefully can come up with a long term solution. And I will look into Raybestos and have been looking at some Bobcats also, but I don`t want to reduce braking power just cause of the dust on this car. So that is why I am dealing with the dust right now until I can get something better.



This is just my thoughts, hope I don`t ruin the rims for life. :eek:

[beastie]

My car has polished aluminum wheels (they look like chrome) and I used to use Meguiars Gold Class on them. Now, I use Klasse All-In-One and it looks better. Cleaning the rims have never been an issue with me since I don`t need anything other than the car wash suds but they do look much shinier with the AIO when I`m done. I`ve used Meguiars and Mothers QD spray on them and their effect is minimal if any on my rims.

[Deep_Freeze]

yeah, the QD itself doesn`t do anything to clean the rims, so you have to make sure you use some decent towels if you do it. I use the small MF towels when I do this, although I haven`t done it lately, lazy I guess.