grampi ... I can see your are enjoying retirement! Its pretty cool to be able to get back to things you never had time for isnt it?
What's your favorite wheel cleaner?
- Thread starter grampi
- Start date
I tried all 3 today. I'd spray a wheel and let sit for couple minutes, then use my HP hose to rinse them. The Diablo smelled like bubble gum, but didn't seem to do much cleaning. The Super Clean sprayed a stream of foam which made it hard to cover the whole wheel/tire combo. Once covered, it didn't really seem much more effective then the Diablo. The Eagle 1 was another story. As soon as I sprayed it on, brown was running off of the tires, and black was running down from the wheels. Once I sprayed it off, this wheel looked cleaner than the other two, and it had a much better spray pattern than the others. This is, I think, the E1 wheel cleaner I used before. There are some others I haven't tried but, I think I might try as many of them as I can find...there might be an even better one than the E1...
For a long time I used diluted degreaser, allowed to soak for a few minutes, finish washing with mitt and brushes using car wash soap on hand.
Lately I've been using Meguiar's Ultimate All Wheel Cleaner, which works very well. Its acid-free, reacts with iron particles/changes-color, thick gel clings and requires minimal agitation. However it's not the most powerful cleaner (can be good or bad) and its cost is definitely a downside. I believe Sonax's cleaner is similar to Meg's Ultimate.
An alternative, a bit less powerful and non-clinging, would be Eagle One Black & Plasti-Coat Wheel Cleaner. Its also reacts to iron/changes color, would be a great panel decontamination spray.
It's good to have different cleaners to tackle various jobs. Had some real stubborn brake dust on my wife's Honda which was a bit neglected. Every cleaner I had, did a little, but some brake dust just remained. Ultimately it took a few applications of Meg's Hot Wheels (acidic) cleaner to remove the last of it...
Lately I've been using Meguiar's Ultimate All Wheel Cleaner, which works very well. Its acid-free, reacts with iron particles/changes-color, thick gel clings and requires minimal agitation. However it's not the most powerful cleaner (can be good or bad) and its cost is definitely a downside. I believe Sonax's cleaner is similar to Meg's Ultimate.
An alternative, a bit less powerful and non-clinging, would be Eagle One Black & Plasti-Coat Wheel Cleaner. Its also reacts to iron/changes color, would be a great panel decontamination spray.
It's good to have different cleaners to tackle various jobs. Had some real stubborn brake dust on my wife's Honda which was a bit neglected. Every cleaner I had, did a little, but some brake dust just remained. Ultimately it took a few applications of Meg's Hot Wheels (acidic) cleaner to remove the last of it...
Adams wheel cleaner works great, it has built in iron remover too. If you have delicate wheels, they even offer an eco version safe for all wheels
Why is that? Simple Green is my go to for wheel cleaning.
It depends on your wheels. Some have clearcoats now. Continued use of harsh cleaners will damage that clearcoat. Look around in a parking lot sometime and you will see what happens to wheels that are not taken care of properly.
This is why General suggestions sometimes don’t apply.
This is why General suggestions sometimes don’t apply.
I've used simple green diluted, purple power diluted, Sonax wheel cleaner, Simoniz (Canadian Tire), Chemical guys Diablo, Megiuars wheel cleaner, and Dawn ultra.
Sonax and Megiuars usually take less effort to get the brake dust off. I try not to let the wheels get too dirty before I clean them.
I've never seen a wheel cleaner totally remove all brake dust without a brush taken to the rims. Maybe if the time are ceramic coated then that makes a difference.
Sonax and Megiuars usually take less effort to get the brake dust off. I try not to let the wheels get too dirty before I clean them.
I've never seen a wheel cleaner totally remove all brake dust without a brush taken to the rims. Maybe if the time are ceramic coated then that makes a difference.
Mothers wheel brush and a bucket of soapy water.
I really like Sonax Full Effect Wheel Cleaner. It works similar to others - going on green and turning purple as it dissolves iron. It works well for both the wheel face and barrel.
Sonax wheel cleaner. Acid free, works great as part of my maintenance wash.
I tried the SuperClean wheel cleaner and while I love SuperClean, I won't be buyimg their wheel cleaner again. Eagle 1 A to Z has always worked well.
I like the Autoglym wheel cleaner. Easy to get at CTC here in Canada, and works well. Not too expensive. They offer two different versions:
Followed up with the rim protectant.
Followed up with the rim protectant.
