Is there a wheel cleaner that actually works?
- Thread starter edweather1
- Start date
Over the last decades I've probably bought all the "new-Improved" wheel cleaners out there.
Today ... I now create my own solution mimicing the Dawn stuff they sell.
Get a spray bottle and a couple taplespoons of the Dawn 4X ... a couple tablespoons of 70% alcohol and then water.
The stuff works great.
Today ... I now create my own solution mimicing the Dawn stuff they sell.
Get a spray bottle and a couple taplespoons of the Dawn 4X ... a couple tablespoons of 70% alcohol and then water.
The stuff works great.
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I have yet to find a wheel that couldn't be cleaned by this stuff. Cheap and extremely effective. Light agitation with a wheel brush speeds things up a lot. I use it full strength on anything and everything for over a decade now, and have no side effects to report.
Forget almost everything that has been mentioned so far. Koch Chemie Magic Wheel Cleaner or Armour Detail Supply Wheel are the two best I have tried on extremely dusty wheels from German / high perf brakes. If your grime is mostly dirt and not dust, Adam's Wheel and Tire cleaner or Koch Chemie Alkali Wheel Cleaner. P&S Brake Buster is not very good and requires significant agitation to do anything. The Adam's W&T is basically the same thing as Brake Buster but 2-3x the concentration.
The Poorboy's product above is amazing BUT it contains ammonium bifluoride, a salt of HF. Extremely nasty and dangerous stuff.
The Poorboy's product above is amazing BUT it contains ammonium bifluoride, a salt of HF. Extremely nasty and dangerous stuff.
Smells like Satan’s ******e burning, but works really well.
Yes, this is good too, anything with iron remover is generally decent. The Koch MWC is somewhat better but also costs more.
Superior Dark Fury. If that doesn't work use their Wire Wheel cleaner.
f355spider
$50 Site Donor 2025
Yes. Ceramic formulation brake pads dust a lot less, but be prepared that they tend to create a softer feeling pedal and the pads tend to not have as much "bite" as oem pads. Under harder use, they can potentially fade more readily, though I have not experienced this. For daily drivers, I'm okay with the compromise...Akebono Euro Ceramic and Brembo Ceramic are my go to. For my performance cars and my Tundra (pulling a horse trailer) I prefer to stick with oem pads.
f355spider
$50 Site Donor 2025
Are any of the recommended products truly spray on, hose off?
I recall using a product like that 15+ years ago, I think it was acid based, but was discontinued due to damaging uncoated aluminum wheels. I just use Griots Garage wheel cleaner and a small lambswool mitt.
Griots makes a heavy duty version now that appears to be similar to the Sonax in that it changes color upon application:
https://www.griotsgarage.com/heavy-duty-wheel-cleaner/
I have not tried either yet.
I recall using a product like that 15+ years ago, I think it was acid based, but was discontinued due to damaging uncoated aluminum wheels. I just use Griots Garage wheel cleaner and a small lambswool mitt.
Griots makes a heavy duty version now that appears to be similar to the Sonax in that it changes color upon application:
https://www.griotsgarage.com/heavy-duty-wheel-cleaner/
I have not tried either yet.
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Most folks who are actually interested in keeping their wheels & tires clean/ cleaner could probably get away with just an alkaline chemical.
You dont need a boutique "wheel cleaner" from a detailing retailer or manufacturer here.
I have used too many to count/ list and I have found most all non-acid (alkaline) wheel cleaners to perform similarly. So, I moved to Zeps Purple or their 505 available at home depot & dilute 3:1 because it performs well and is available locally and very cost effective @ $13 a gallon.
If you are the type of owner who wants barrels of the rim & wheel face 98% perfect... you probably want to add an acid based wheel cleaner also. You dont need hydrofluoric here or a heavy duty... just a mild acid (Oxalic acid) like Meguiars Wheel Brightner or similar which is usually only available in gallons and online but could be found local if you have a paint supply place near. Do wear gloves and limit exposure even with mold acids.
A final chemical could be necessary if you operate a car with metallic/ semi-metallic brakes and that is a ferrous metal removal chemical like Car Pro's Iron-X.
I reach for it quite a bit but that's because customers I service dont really keep up on their brake maintenance and the backing plate of the pad usually ends up in the rotor and the debris from that on the wheels and down the side of the car is horrendous... thus iron removal is necessary with Iron-X + claying.
Things to consider...
Acid based chemicals do not clean tires.
If using acid cleaner, do a final quick clean with car soap or your alkaline cleaner to return wheels surfaces to a neutral pH or close.
Non acid cleans both wheels/ tires.
Tire composition and COO will determine, to a considerable degree, how effective the alkaline chemical is able to remove dirt or "blooming" (brown-ish look) of tires. Some tires after cleaning and totally dry always show brown no matter what process and chemical... only solution is to dress them.
Brake pad composition will largely determine cleaning frequency. Ceramic pads will produce least notable dust on wheels.
Know your type of wheels finish... certain types don't like acids. IE- raw aluminum.
OEM wheels hold up MUCH better than aftermarket in terms of how they appear over time... even if maintenance (cleaning) is poor or sub-ideal over life span.
Aftermarket chrome wheels should be cleaned very frequently. Chrome is typically the easiest finish to maintain... but aftermarket chrome wheels have a poor plating process. ALL of them. However, the trend away from chrome wheels has been consistently strong over the past decade for aftermarket anyway... so maybe a moot point.
You dont need a boutique "wheel cleaner" from a detailing retailer or manufacturer here.
I have used too many to count/ list and I have found most all non-acid (alkaline) wheel cleaners to perform similarly. So, I moved to Zeps Purple or their 505 available at home depot & dilute 3:1 because it performs well and is available locally and very cost effective @ $13 a gallon.
If you are the type of owner who wants barrels of the rim & wheel face 98% perfect... you probably want to add an acid based wheel cleaner also. You dont need hydrofluoric here or a heavy duty... just a mild acid (Oxalic acid) like Meguiars Wheel Brightner or similar which is usually only available in gallons and online but could be found local if you have a paint supply place near. Do wear gloves and limit exposure even with mold acids.
A final chemical could be necessary if you operate a car with metallic/ semi-metallic brakes and that is a ferrous metal removal chemical like Car Pro's Iron-X.
I reach for it quite a bit but that's because customers I service dont really keep up on their brake maintenance and the backing plate of the pad usually ends up in the rotor and the debris from that on the wheels and down the side of the car is horrendous... thus iron removal is necessary with Iron-X + claying.
Things to consider...
Acid based chemicals do not clean tires.
If using acid cleaner, do a final quick clean with car soap or your alkaline cleaner to return wheels surfaces to a neutral pH or close.
Non acid cleans both wheels/ tires.
Tire composition and COO will determine, to a considerable degree, how effective the alkaline chemical is able to remove dirt or "blooming" (brown-ish look) of tires. Some tires after cleaning and totally dry always show brown no matter what process and chemical... only solution is to dress them.
Brake pad composition will largely determine cleaning frequency. Ceramic pads will produce least notable dust on wheels.
Know your type of wheels finish... certain types don't like acids. IE- raw aluminum.
OEM wheels hold up MUCH better than aftermarket in terms of how they appear over time... even if maintenance (cleaning) is poor or sub-ideal over life span.
Aftermarket chrome wheels should be cleaned very frequently. Chrome is typically the easiest finish to maintain... but aftermarket chrome wheels have a poor plating process. ALL of them. However, the trend away from chrome wheels has been consistently strong over the past decade for aftermarket anyway... so maybe a moot point.
Hard to beat good old Spray Nine.
I'm going to get crucified for this but i use Wheel Acid often on customer's cars that have very dirty wheels, diluted properly the way the particular brand recommends it , it won't hurt the wheels, judt don't use it on hot wheels or let it sit for too long, and rinse very well after use.
If the wheels aren't very dirty, i use APC, if they are dirty, Iron Remover , if extremely caked in brake dust, Acid.
If the wheels aren't very dirty, i use APC, if they are dirty, Iron Remover , if extremely caked in brake dust, Acid.
I go through Griots faster than the Sonax for some reason.
Use the other arm? 
I wish the car manufacturers made an alloy wheel without all the nooks and crannies that require so much elbow grease to keep clean. Might be nice to have steel again. 
That is true, gloves are a must, the smell is horrible, but you get used to it, i rarely need to mix it more than 10/90.
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This is coming from a guy that slowly replaced everything in their car care arsenal with Griots Garage products: It's a decent wheel cleaner, but there are better options available.
Meguiars Ultimate Wheel Cleaner does a better job and is cheaper at $8-10 per bottle. I've done a personal test where I sprayed one of each wheel cleaner, rinsed off, and then sprayed with the other wheel cleaner on the same wheel; when using the Griot's second, it would pick up very little iron (color change), whereas using the Meguiars second would find a lot left over from area where Griots was used for the initial application.
If agitating with a brush, they'll both work. But I like to deep clean and agitate once in a blue moon, with subsequent washes consisting of just using a wheel cleaner spray and rinsing off since I'm lazy like that.
Awesome feedback, on my 2023 Rav4 XSE Hybrid the rims are black and consistently needing attention. Yes, I know they are black. Ordered the P&S professional detail gallon jug. Seems budget friendly and hopefully I can get away with just spraying on and rinsing off once initially cleaned by hand well.
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