Very strong wheel cleaner...

P

peddy

Veteran
 London
I have some brake dust / tar spots that just wont budge, so need something strong.... Stronger than Autoglm ITR....

I'm thinking acid based...
 
Beware of using any acidic cleaners, they can soften the lacquer finish and permanently damage the wheel. I have always used BMW supplied cleaner and just gradually worked away at tar spots which will go if you use your finger nail and just 'scratch' across the surface and you clean. The tar will surface 'seal' which once broken will shift fairly easily - hope that makes sense. :thumbsup:
 
Dependant on what form of basis the acid wheel cleaner is will decipher what damage it will potentially cause. Most non acid cleaners are equally as harmfull so whatever you use, its all down to knowing the product and user error. Never heard of acid based wheel cleaners softening laquer so cant comment but within over 16 years of the trade ive never come across it. Acids are corrosive only so if you have a chip or bubble / blister in the laquer it will get under it and cause corrosion, otherwise, carry on. Always ensure you rinse throughly after application and try to steer clear of the brake calipers. Lots are using ironx on wheels atm but you can see its corrosive due to the levels of tarnishing it leaves on the break discs. Im due to try wolfs break duster. Sounds interesting and is very effective.
 
Use a non acid wheel cleaner non diluted i use Valet pro bilberry also Tardis will remove the tar, then dont let them get in that state again...... lol
 
read the OP.... I've used a tar remover and it doesn't work...

I never let the wheels get that way... they were like that when I bought them...

scottbt, what do you use?
 
I've used Wonder Wheels on alloys before and it really does work wonders. Stupidly powerful and acid-based, and not something I use all the time due to it's ability to severly damage alloys, but for removing years of baked on brake dust etc from secondhand alloys, it's amazing.

Care is required using any acid-based product though. My wife (who works in A+E) treated a bloke who'd damaged his eyes through wonder wheels being flicked into his eyes off the brush as he was cleaning his wheels. Hence I always wear safety specs and thick rubber gloves if I use the stuff.
 
peddy said:
read the OP.... I've used a tar remover and it doesn't work...

I never let the wheels get that way... they were like that when I bought them...

scottbt, what do you use?
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It sounds more so like pitted break debris rather than tar so from that point of view your just wasting time, money and patience with dedicated tar removers. I usually tend to start with a weak mix of Autosmart smartwheels, strengthen if needed and if that fails then its onto the mans stuff. Meguiars wheel brightner or Autosmart ali which are both acidic formulations. Using various bruhes, 9/10 gets the vast majority off then a dose of iron x is neccesary. Im due a test run of Wolfs chemicals break duster. Allegations state that it performs almost akin to iron x with a lower cost.
 
scottbt, just had a look into Iron X and the Wolf stuff. Looks like some good products. So good that they seem to be sold out every where... :(
 
Sure Chris at waxamomo will have some in. Supposed to be delivered today and shelved ready for sale tomorrow.
 
peddy said:
read the OP.... I've used a tar remover and it doesn't work...

I never let the wheels get that way... they were like that when I bought them...

scottbt, what do you use?
Click to expand...

Your tar remover V tardis might be very different..... and you never mention once it was like that when bought, im getting into mind reading but its hard work and harder over the internet.
 
scottbt said:
Never heard of acid based wheel cleaners softening laquer so cant comment but within over 16 years of the trade ive never come across it.
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You learn something new everyday - the power of the Forum :thumbsup: :roll:
 
experiment with autosmart smart wheels or megs wheel brightener... start off very diluted and work up to neat if you have to... just ensure it doesnt dry in so only do one wheel at a time, drying time for neat is around 4-5 min possibly more so uv got time to play with try spraying it on first and then spreading it with a brush... wheel brushes are very bristlely so often miss bits.. you want to have an even spread of chemical over the area you want clean.. ive used autobrite very cherry a good while ago and to be honest i find it on par with smart wheels and smart wheels is non acidic.. very cherry stinks... a hint of cherry and pure chemical its not nice.... as for using acid wheel cleaners and the damage to your alloys... unless they are painted the only difference you will notice if you make a mistake is that your wheel badges will deteriorate over time and become faded and pitted at the edges.. be careful if you have been using tar remover as i have seen many wheels that have white streaks all over them with people leaving the tar remover on too long and not rinsing correctly.... hope you get there in the end buddy....
 
alan j ... your best to assume that acid based wheel cleaners will damage your alloys because they can.. the reason scott wont have come across it before is because we know how to notice the signs, to the untrained eye wheel acid can be fatal to your alloys so should only be used by professionals..
 
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