Maintaining New Factory Wheels

[dschribs]

Just bought the wife a new Nissan Rogue and I'm looking for sugestions on what to use to clean the clearcoated wheels during my weekly wash. I do have Meg's Wheel Brightener which would certainly be over kill for weekly use on brand new wheels. I also have Eagle One A2Z, which I love, but not sure if that's too strong for weekly use.



Could I just maintain them with Meg's APC? I have two bottles diluted 10:1 and 4:1. I plan on sealing them with 845 every few weeks.



Thanks!

 

[tom p.]

I just use a dedicated wheel cleaner (Griot's or P21S) and bypass the sealants/waxes etc. I clean the wheels weekly, no heroic efforts needed to maintain a factory-new appearance.

 

[mborner]

Just don't let brake dust sit on them too long. (we're talking months, here) Keep them sealed, it will make them easy to clean.



Big tip. When you have your tires rotated and balanced, don't let the shop use an impact gun on your wheels. They wield that impact gun around with complete and total reckless abandon, not caring one iota about your wheels. Make them remove them by hand and torque them by hand. Same thing with hammer-on wheel weights. They just hammer away without a second thought to what kind of damage they're doing to your wheels. I've learned my lesson.

 

[Legacy]

I just use a dedicated wheel cleaner (Griot's or P21S) and bypass the sealants/waxes etc. I clean the wheels weekly, no heroic efforts needed to maintain a factory-new appearance.

Why would you not seal the wheels and then use only soap a water to clean. Clear coat on wheels is no different than paint. So, they should be protected and will make your cleaning that much easier.

 

[Dan]

Why would you not seal the wheels and then use only soap a water to clean. Clear coat on wheels is no different than paint. So, they should be protected and will make your cleaning that much easier.

EXACTLY. They are painted just like car paint, would you use wheel cleaner on your paint? As long as you wash on a regular basis, you will never need a wheel cleaner.



I only use wheel cleaner in extreme cases or on a new to me used car. Regular use will cause the clear to get dull and will also damage any plastic parts such as center caps on the wheels.



The key is frequent washing with regular car wash soap.

 

[tom p.]

Sorry, guys. I've been proper wheel cleaners for years and have never suffered any discoloration, dulling or fading. Soap and water just doesn't "cut it" for me - - pun intended. I've tried and have never found it to be equivalent to a good wheel cleaner when dealing with heavy brake dust generated on Euro cars.



My $.03

 

[Legacy]

Sorry, guys. I've been proper wheel cleaners for years and have never suffered any discoloration, dulling or fading. Soap and water just doesn't "cut it" for me - - pun intended. I've tried and have never found it to be equivalent to a good wheel cleaner when dealing with heavy brake dust generated on Euro cars.



My $.03

Yeah, you have a bimmer..brake dust glore, but if you sealed them you wouldn't need a wheel cleaner, especially if you wash weekly. Just trying to make your life easier, Tom. Try Black Fire Metal Sealant (heat resistant).

 

[Dan]

Sorry, guys. I've been proper wheel cleaners for years and have never suffered any discoloration, dulling or fading. Soap and water just doesn't "cut it" for me - - pun intended. I've tried and have never found it to be equivalent to a good wheel cleaner when dealing with heavy brake dust generated on Euro cars.



My $.03

A few questions:



-How long do you go between washes?



-What soap are you using?



-What wash media?



I have a few Audi's and an MB and have had plenty of other euro cars (BMW, Saab, VW) so I am no stranger to brake dust, in fact, if its that much of an issue, check out my thread here:



http://www.autopia.org/forum/car-de...3989-eagle-one-keep-clean-wheel-review-2.html



That said, using ONR, OPT car wash or NXT, I have no issues with brake dust, one light pass on the wheel with a sheepskin or GS and it wipes off.

 

[tom p.]

Yeah, you have a bimmer..brake dust glore, but if you sealed them you wouldn't need a wheel cleaner, especially if you wash weekly. Just trying to make your life easier, Tom. Try Black Fire Metal Sealant (heat resistant).

Yikes, guys, c'mon! Is this a congressional hearing? I plead the 5th!



Legacy, I do use sealant (I'l apply it if I'm looking for a job to kill some time), I've tried several. Thanks for suggesting it. I know it's a solution that works for others. I'm just partial to a good wheel cleaner, the effortless and thorough cleaning and the bright finish it leaves

A few questions:



-How long do you go between washes?



7 days



-What soap are you using?



Soaps I've tried in the past? I dunno, NXT, ONR, QEW, Griot's shampoo, etc.



-What wash media?



Chenille wash mitt



I have a few Audi's and an MB and have had plenty of other euro cars (BMW, Saab, VW) so I am no stranger to brake dust, in fact, if its that much of an issue, check out my thread here:



http://www.autopia.org/forum/car-de...3989-eagle-one-keep-clean-wheel-review-2.html



I have the Eagle One product (and the Michelin equivalent) in my basement and I've used it. It does help, I've written about it a few times previously.



That said, using ONR, OPT car wash or NXT, I have no issues with brake dust, one light pass on the wheel with a sheepskin or GS and it wipes off.

Yakky, I hear ya, but I still prefer to work with the wheel cleaners. They yield a "complete" job, IMO, where the other strategies don't.



Now, your suggestions and strategies could be entirely appropriate for OP and his new Nissan. It's my belief that the brake dust from most Japanese vehicles is pretty easy to deal with and, you could be 100% correct, he won't need any more cleaning HP than that. I have come to realize that there is virtually no brake dust on my Honda since the pads/rotors have bedded in and the car has a few miles on it. Let's propse that OP start with your basic strategy and see if it meets his long-term expectations :bolt

 

[tmg19103]

I have several coats of UPGP on my wheels as a sealant. Actually helps prevent the brake dust from attracting easily, but the key is to clean them often enough that the brake dust does not cake on.



That way I can just use a sponge with car wash liquid and not use harsh chemicals and a brush.

 

[Accumulator]

Hey guys, it's not like Tom P. hasn't been around this particular block a few times



After kicking this around with him, I'm doing it both ways; on most of my vehicles I'm doing my usual layered-sealant/wash with shampoo but on the '93 Audi (BBS wheels) I'm using wheel cleaner. Both approaches work fine and *generally speaking* the not-sealed wheels look as good as the sealed ones, at least they do after a quick spritz of FK425.



IF (and IMO that's a big "if") somebody's gonna be very meticulous about it, just using Griots/P21s Wheel Cleaner on bare wheels will work fine. I did it for years before I started the sealant thing and there were never any problems.



The big danger with that approach is the back sides; if, when cleaning, you miss some areas repeatedly you're gonna have problems. With a lot of sealant you can get by with a bit of imperfection during the wash.



IF you're gonna seal 'em, I'd do at least six layers of KSG. Anything less, such as a few applications/layers of FK1000P, and you'll have to redo them before too long. And even the layered KSG needs claying/etc. from time to time as stuff seems to get embedded in the sealant, seldom badly enough to be a *problem* but it can look less-than-swell.



FWIW, I don't clean my wheels as often as many here, usually only when I wash the vehicle, and I only do that when it's really *dirty*. But when I do clean them I get them *CLEAN* front and back (well...not the backs of those BBS ones ). That might factor in....

 

[Accumulator]

All that said...if it were mine I'd pull the wheels off, KAIO + KSG * 6, and use shampoo, with a little FK425 after each wash.

 

[steelwind101]

UQD over a quality sealant for me!

 

[Dan]

Yikes, guys, c'mon! Is this a congressional hearing? I plead the 5th!



Legacy, I do use sealant (I'l apply it if I'm looking for a job to kill some time), I've tried several. Thanks for suggesting it. I know it's a solution that works for others. I'm just partial to a good wheel cleaner, the effortless and thorough cleaning and the bright finish it leaves







Yakky, I hear ya, but I still prefer to work with the wheel cleaners. They yield a "complete" job, IMO, where the other strategies don't.



Now, your suggestions and strategies could be entirely appropriate for OP and his new Nissan. It's my belief that the brake dust from most Japanese vehicles is pretty easy to deal with and, you could be 100% correct, he won't need any more cleaning HP than that. I have come to realize that there is virtually no brake dust on my Honda since the pads/rotors have bedded in and the car has a few miles on it. Let's propse that OP start with your basic strategy and see if it meets his long-term expectations :bolt

Fair enough, everyone is different. I will note that I do use Megs APC+ on occasion when wheels get really dirty, but since that is even safe to use on leather, I consider it pretty mild.

 

[dschribs]

Thanks!! Good info guys.



I don't have KAIO or KSG but i do have Poliseal and 845. Which would be better for sealing after washing?

 

[David Fermani]

Clear coat on wheels is no different than paint.

They are painted just like car paint, would you use wheel cleaner on your paint? As long as you wash on a regular basis, you will never need a wheel cleaner.

The number I hear from Keystone, is that about 80% of all OE wheels are finished with a powder coating. It is the most durable finish you can use. The OE’s will use a liquid paint when they are trying to match the color of the wheel to the actual body panels on the vehicle.