Wheel cleaning question

M

melissa809

New member
Hey guys..I have tried so many products to clean up the black gunk on my wheels. I'm talking about the area where the lug nuts are. I bought this foam lugnut brush...that didn't work...some gel wheel cleaner from Auto Geek...nothing....tried to get in there with some clay...no good.



My questions are:...First, I'm thinking that I really need to remove the wheels to clean them properly, right?



And second, my wheels are machined aluminum with a clear coat....and yeah, I have some embedded brake dust on the lips. I tried using Mother's clay, but really no results. SO, is there a product or method you guys can suggest to:



A) remove the brake dust from the lip of my rims



B) remove the embedded "gunk" or probably brake dust...in the recesses of the lugnut "areas" of my wheels.



Thanks in advance

Melissa
 
The absolute best way to clean your wheels is definitely to remove them, but in most cases, you can get away with leaving them on. A good wheel brush goes the distance when it comes to cleaning in all the crevices and far back into the wheel.



A) Clay is my go to for embedded brake dust, if Mother's clay isn't working for you, try a more aggressive clay.



B) APC or some sort of degreaser left to dwell usually works great for baked on "gunk". If you can afford one, a steam cleaner can get the job done a lot more effectively than manual labor and a chemical can.



The foam lugnut brush may not be stiff enough to clean in the lugnut areas, I like to use a stiff-er bristled brush to clean the lugnuts and recesses in wheels.



It might help to describe the "black gunk", as it could be a variety of things.



Good luck!
 
Thanks for the info....I'm pretty sure the black gunk is brake dust....the area where my lug nuts are recessed...those "walls" aren't smooth...or rather, have striations...so the brake dust is getting caught in those crevices...and it is a hard to reach area. I have yet to try a toothbrush...lol....but do you think a steam cleaner will remove embedded brake dust?



I'm thinking if I take the wheels off, I can hit those hard to reach areas with clay. Is there a more agressive clay for wheels that you can recommend?



Thanks

Melissa
 
probably step up from a fine grade clay to medium grade-I also use #0000 wool with diablo gel so it doesnt scratch the clear-if its in the lug nut holes, you wont see where the wool has cut a little bit.
 
i have always used meguires wheel bright,mixed it 50-50 sprayon agitate with a soft brush and use a preasure washer with a flexable wand.
 
I was just doing this with my own wheels yesterday. Trying to clean the lips and holes where the lug nuts go. I got maybe 90% of it using Optimum Power Cleaner 0:1 dilution as an APC and then using ONR (just in the car wash dilution, I don't bother remixing for the recommending clay lube dilution, seems to work fine, clay can still glide over surface) as a clay lube with some Clay Magic Blue I picked up at Autozone.



I like using ONR as clay lube because it has cleaners in it, not just lubrication. For some tough spots on the paint or wheels, I just use clay and ONR to really scrub it instead of trying to scrub really hard with a sponge or whatever.



I was wondering if I was being too OCD about it, but apparently not since it doesn't seem people are reacting to you weird in this thread. You only notice what I left it if you stop and inspect it, which most people won't do. Maybe I'll try to get the last 5% later? If you stop and look, it still looks bad. I didn't watch the clock, but it wouldn't surprise me if I spent over an hour on each wheel. I was taking breaks and stuff, but over an hour of work maybe...



I didn't do anything to clean the lug nuts, just because I got lazy.



melissa809 said:
I'm thinking if I take the wheels off, I can hit those hard to reach areas with clay. Is there a more agressive clay for wheels that you can recommend?
Click to expand...



Before you take the wheels off, I'd make sure you have a process that works. Testing it with the wheels on. That was the biggest ***** about the process, taking the wheels off the car. And, I've got one of those $30 hydraulic jacks that make it easier to do.
 
Legacy99 said:
Take a look at this vid. Manufacturers and Distributors Of Professional Auto Detailing Products and Car Wash Cleaning Chemicals
Click to expand...



Good lord! I wouldn't even have had to take my wheels off if I had bought that stuff!



I left this thread wondering if I should have just bought some dedicated wheel cleaner, like maybe that Meg's Wheel brightener would have done a better job than the general purpose Optimum Power Cleaner. But that stuff was just spray on / spray off.



Has anybody tried that stuff? The videos are realistic?
 
melissa809 said:
Is there a more agressive clay for wheels that you can recommend?
Click to expand...



I missed this the first time I read it. If I remember right, Clay Magic Blue is the clay that all the retailers copy. Clay Magic has some patent or something that companies get sued if they don't pay royalties to Clay Magic. It's the Clay Magic Red that's the more aggressive. I think, verify that.
 
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