Cleaning crud off wheels?

[GINA]

Shut up John you don't know anything, remember?

[FineExampl]

I know. I'll behave.

[58ragtop]

if the stuff does not come off with a simple degreaser, then i would get some wheel spoke cleaner (wheel acid), most likely it's built up brake dust, you might need to hit it a couple times.
ive used to own and run a detail shop for years, just so you know i do know what im talking about and not shoot from the hip :-)
you might want to go through the yellow pages and find a detail suply place....hella lot cheaper then buying it from the retail stores.

[dalethompson]

I think you maybe are thinking of something else other than Brasso then... it's not that harsh or strong. Like I mentioned before, if you can use it on your ipod (to clean and buff out scratches) and cd's/dvd's, then I think using it on wheels wouldn't be an issue. Look at what's in the wheel cleaners you buy at the autostore... tell me those aren't as hazardous or worse than Brasso. And when I say to use it, I'm not instructing anyone to pour it on by the gallon, I'm saying to use an old soft bristle toothbrush and dab it into the jar. Brasso is basically just a mild abrasive... metal polishers are pretty much the same thing too. If Gina wants to try this or doesn't want to, then it's totally up to her... I'm just giving my two cents basically

I've used it on my car's wheels and chrome for years... never had an issue with ruining anything at all... and just so you know, Brasso is pretty much the choice for cleaning anything metallic in the Canadian Armed Forces (has been for years)

[GINA]

I appreciate all the suggestions, I'll let you know what I use and how it goes in a few days

[Lnzbug]

Try using a toothpick to get all the way into the corner.

[Yllwtrb]

I got 4 letters for you.

P21S

http://www.p21s.com/products/bis_wc1.html

[manoverboard987]

Originally Posted by Yllwtrb

I got 4 letters for you.

P21S

http://www.p21s.com/products/bis_wc1.html

2 and 1 aren't letters, silly.

[Yllwtrb]

Originally Posted by manoverboard987

2 and 1 aren't letters, silly.

[FineExampl]

Gina...try Greased Lightning. Cleaned all my wheel gunk off with one or two good doses.

[WNAB911]

An auto detailer I was speaking with recently said to drive your car for a while, stopping frequently to heat the brakes/rims, then use a spray on oven cleaner. Supposedly it will take off even the worst baked in brake dust accumulations.

I haven't tried it yet, but I will before my new rims come to see how it works.

[iScott]

I used that Meguire's stuff mentioned earlier and it did a good job of cleaning. But you have to scrub pretty well and it did NOT, in my case, get the really heavy gunk off.

[Too Cold NB1.8T]

Don't know what to tell you about why the products/procedure mentioned didn't work for you, the care process that I mentioned has work extremely well for me for many many years.

Below is a picture of one of my five year old BBS front wheels that has seen speeds of over 130mph and has been exposed to all the elements of nature and man during that time, I've maintained these wheels and all of my previous wheels as I discribed in earlier replies.

I chose to show you a front wheel because the fronts get the worse beating, due to my maintenance practises, I've never had any difficulty in cleaning my wheels and keeping them looking new.

[iScott]

The gunk on my wheels is minimal... but it's also probably about 100k miles old. I'll keep trying stuff and pass any info along.

[Jeremy Toaster]

I have one of those SHARK steam cleaner things, I use a mixture of Vinegar/Water/Dishsoap in a spray bottle (this is our only house cleaner we use along with baking soda, environmental friendly and kid safe and 100% germ killer). I spray this onto the wheels while I have the steamer heating up. Once it has sat a bit, I then use the steamer to blast out that nasty blackness that builds up on the wheels especially in the hard to reach corners. Also use a stick brush with the baking soda to do the scrubbing.

[oneighturbo]

its just a combination of all brake/road etc

its a bitch after its cooked on. time and effort will get it off.

P21s is a great product

heres a nice commerce site for some of the top porducts along with how-tos etc

http://www.autopia-carcare.com/tires---wheels.html
http://www.autopia-carcare.com/inf-wheels.html

this looks rebranded/designed but ive got the "wheel wax" and its awesome
http://www.tirerack.com/accessories/.../wheel_wax.jsp