Undercarriage and wheelwell cleaning?

C

clnfrk

New member
I'm curious to know if there is a way in which one could clean the wheelwells and undercarriage without the need for wiping or scrubbing? Even after pressure washing these areas if you were to rub your finger across you'd still pick up a dirty film. Is there such a spray that would completely clean as if the surface were scrubbed?



It would be nice to be able to find a product that you could just spray on and pressure rinse off and reattain the look from when the car was new. I personally clean the undercarriage and wheelwells (each wash for wheelwells) periodically by hand and pressure washing to keep it as clean as possible. I'm just wondering if there is a way to eliminate the need for any wiping.



Also, what about cars and mainly trucks and SUV's with highly visible wheelwells and underpinnings that get driven on a muddy road? Even after a full on pressure wash these areas will still be brownish after it dries correct? These areas if not clean really detract from the overall appearance of a vehicle imo, especially seeing them at night with my headlights shining on them.
 
Well, I think you'd need to use some type of strong acid-based product then, but I'd have other concerns at that point



About the wheel wells, they need to be thoroughly cleaned then dressed with something. This will restore "blackness" for a while
 
clnfrk said:
I'm curious to know if there is a way in which one could clean the wheelwells and undercarriage without the need for wiping or scrubbing? Even after pressure washing these areas if you were to rub your finger across you'd still pick up a dirty film. Is there such a spray that would completely clean as if the surface were scrubbed?
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IMO the answer is "no". You just need *some* degree of mechanical agitation to get things truly clean. Sometimes you can get by with just a spraying, but as you've found that doesn't always get things very clean. Better to just keep cleaning them properly ;)
 
I suspected that would be the case. It sure would be nice to have a lift like the ones auto technicians use then. Just lift the entire car up, remove all the wheels and go to town.
 
If I'm not mistaken, Accumulator, you usually jack up your cars to get some clearance to thoroughly clean the wheelwells, right? I think it's a great idea, it just takes some extra time to jack up each corner individually, but jacking it up and pressure washing is probably the best way to clean the wheelwell and undercarriage.



As paul34 said, don't forget to dress your wheelwells!
 
I regularly clean my wheel wells thouroughly with a mild degreaser and a stiff brush, but when I'm in a rush, I spray the wells down with degreaser and pressure wash them away.... Then I'll use a foam dressing like no touch. It keeps the wells looking very very nice.
 
Im not sure..... I might be the only one who rotates his own tires, but every time I do (2x per year), I do a full detail of the wells, wheels and tires.



I use just dishwashing soap, water and a MF or two (designated JUST for that purpose) since I can avoid getting it on any painted surfaces.



Just sharing my techniques.
 
Oh yes, I too vote on dressing the wells. I do them everythimne I wash (1x week). Sure it may attrach dirt as well, but like oil on a pan, the dirt comes off much easier that way.
 
I put a car up on jack stands, remove the wheels for complete cleaning, clean the wells with APC+ and yes, you have to scrub it. Rinse and clean all brake calipers, hats, coils, shocks etc. Same for suspension as well. Some washing and rinsing will dislodge dirt stuck between wells and fender lips. Cover all brake parts during washing of wells, you don't want this stuff between the pads!



As for dressing, try to stay away from silicone type, although they look great, dirt just sticks to them after a silicone type dressing. Check with mfg if you want to treat suspension bushings.



Use a product like Engine Kote, or hard liquid wax that does not require removal. Good floor waxes work very nicely for wells. Wells are mostly hard plastics.



Rubber/plastic can be dressed with std rubber/vinyl dressing, but need to be wiped down to avoid dirt to stick. As long as it dry, it should be OK.



Wax does not fair well with heat generated by brakes, so a sealant should be used for the area around calipers, hats and wheels. Nothing fancy, any good sealant w/o wax will work for wheels and brake areas (not the rotor-duh...you'd be surprised:p) hats, calipers, backplates. It's also a good time to inspect the brake lines for any problems.



For cars/trucks w/o stands, it's just a heavy duty cleaner, let it setup and use a stiff brush designed for the wells. Meguiars and others sell brushes just for this area with angled heads and long handles.



Regards,

Deanski
 
Heathenbrewing said:
Im not sure..... I might be the only one who rotates his own tires...
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If the people on this forum know how to detail, they most likely know a thing or two about regular car maintenance. I'm waiting for my 2nd oil change to rotate my tires. I haven't waxed the insides of the wheels for quite a few months, and definitely need to re-detail them soon. During that time, I'll probably clean the wheelwell area more thoroughly.
 
mikebai1990 said:
If the people on this forum know how to detail, they most likely know a thing or two about regular car maintenance. I'm waiting for my 2nd oil change to rotate my tires. I haven't waxed the insides of the wheels for quite a few months, and definitely need to re-detail them soon. During that time, I'll probably clean the wheelwell area more thoroughly.
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Yeah, I figured as much. But "doing" and "knowing how to do" are two different things. A lot of people couldnt be bothered, by I have a feeling this forum is full of doers.
 
As Deanski mentioned, sealants are usually better than waxes for the areas that get exposed to heat. Much to my surprise, BlackFire is holding up just great on the S8's calipers! It's also working well on the MPV's rear drums, other black suspension/brake parts, and all sorts of things under the hoods. BF, with all its oils (or whatever they are) seems to work incredibly well on flat/semi-gloss black components that are suffering from surface rust too! If it makes the MPV's drums look OK, it's got some serious abilities in this area, so it's quickly becoming my sealant of choice for this sort of thing. It may be just makeup, but it works.



On wheels, I was also surprised to find that some waxes seem to work as well as sealants, at least on cars that don't get driven on the track. Even on cars where the rotors get *very* hot, I've never had any problems with using Collinite waxes on the wheels...seems like the heat just doesn't transfer to the wheels as much as I had expected.



Oh, and cleaning these areas and dislodging that dirt aren't just a cosmetic consideration- dirt retains moisture, which can lead to rust, and accumulated [stuff] can clog a car's drains. Had I not pulled the fender liners/etc. out of the M3 it would've been headed for a major rust-out. Both sides' drainage areas where the front fenders meet the rocker panels were *completely* packed with leaves, bugs, you name it. No way you could tell until all the cover panels were removed, sure glad I was feeling curious...



mikebai1990 said:
If I'm not mistaken, Accumulator, you usually jack up your cars to get some clearance to thoroughly clean the wheelwells, right?



As paul34 said, don't forget to dress your wheelwells!
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Right you are, got a pair of floorjacks in the washbay just for this.



Heh heh, guilty as charged when it comes to not dressing the wheelwells on all our vehicles :o Honestly, just keeping them very clean works pretty well, the ones that really *need* more get it but some do OK with just a good cleaning. I guess it evens out with the way I treat the good cars, polishing/etc. in there same as on the rest of the vehicle (those get cleaned very gently with regular shampoo mix and BHBs).
 
Heathenbrewing said:
Im not sure..... I might be the only one who rotates his own tires, but every time I do (2x per year), I do a full detail of the wells, wheels and tires.



I use just dishwashing soap, water and a MF or two (designated JUST for that purpose) since I can avoid getting it on any painted surfaces.



Just sharing my techniques.
Click to expand...



Put me in that camp (rotating tires part 2x a year) and always take advantage of having the wheels off to do a full detail on the wells.



Cleaning the wells on my A4 isn't so bad when I'm running 16's for the winter setup but when rolling with the summer 18's on I can't get my hand up in there (car sit's low)
 
Accumulator,



I too have an e36 M3 ('99) and just hate how the stock pads dust like no other. What pads are you using on yours? Also, I attached a few images of someone's M3 on bimmerforums who keeps the underside of their car meticulously clean also.



http://oldmary.lqhome.com/~jordansa.../e36Project/2006/September2006/093006-001.JPG



http://oldmary.lqhome.com/~jordansa.../e36Project/2006/September2006/093006-010.JPG



http://oldmary.lqhome.com/~jordansa.../e36Project/2006/September2006/093006-011.JPG
 
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