# is it necessary for wheel cleaners?



## primatives (Jun 6, 2011)

Hey guys,

is it necessary to buy wheel cleaners? I just use normal car wash to wash the wheels and every so often i will use a specific wheel cleaner just to get rid of the brake dust and clay it to get rid of the stubborn stuff. Only reason i ask is i find say 1 bottle of any wheel cleaner can be used up quite quickly and can be expensive.

Also like to add I have used a few wheel cleaners and find that that baked on stuff still needs agitation. as good the label it says no agitation is required it doesnt seem to be the case for me i may not using the right product i dunno not too sure. Your thoughts?


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## Rayaan (Jun 1, 2014)

Nah you don't always need to use wheel cleaner if the grime is not stubborn


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## bilt-hamber kid (Dec 4, 2007)

I personally think it is essentual, but I am used to watching auto-wheel do its magic on my alloys. Only the worst wheels need agitation in order to clean them and even then not very much. auto-wheel is super effective and efficient, and it won this years Best Wheel Cleaner Award from Auto Express.


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## Clancy (Jul 21, 2013)

I use proper wheel cleaner if it's bad, normal wash I use halfords foam wheel cleaner that'd like a pound a can. Does the job for normal cleaning


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## stuartr (Mar 11, 2014)

I'd say yes, the majority of brake dust is Fe and if you don't get it all off it pits the coating and then the alloys. Before I got into detailing I used to wash the car every weekend with just soap and water and after a year or two the alloys started to get yellowing and pitting in the creases where brake dust was worst.
Current car is 2 years old and alloys still like new.


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## Mashburn (May 14, 2010)

I don't usually feel the need to use a wheel cleaner. Car shampoo should be enough on regularly maintained car. 

Bilberry wheel cleaner is good though if the dirt has been left for a few weeks. And it can be diluted to different ratios so lasts ages.


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## alan hanson (May 21, 2008)

as a weekly wash no but would i go without one in my collection absolutely not


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## FiestaGirlie (Jul 15, 2009)

Never found the need for a specific wheel cleaner myself. Once had a bottle of Billberry, but didn't make any difference to cleaning over normal car shampoo, so never bothered again. My car is not a daily driver though and so there's probably not enough brake dust, etc necessary for a specific wheel cleaner.


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## mac1459 (Aug 25, 2011)

easy answer, strip the wheels off twice a year, wash , detar,clay ,polish & seal. rest off the year just wash.


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## muzzer (Feb 13, 2011)

mac1459 said:


> easy answer, strip the wheels off twice a year, wash , detar,clay ,polish & seal. rest off the year just wash.


This is pretty much spot on, yes you do need one if you have a car that produces lots of brake dust, say a diesel or a heavy car but as mac correctly said, if you take the wheels off and clean them properly, decontaminate them and seal them with either a good wheel wax or a dedicated wheel sealant, then just soapy water should be enough to keep them in good condition.


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## Scottien (Jan 3, 2006)

As long as they are sealed properly I doubt you'd need to use wheel cleaner on regular washes. I only use it after winter when I take wheels off for proper deep clean.


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## hutchingsp (Apr 15, 2006)

I think it varies a lot on the wheels and brake discs and their dusting levels.

My Freelander 2 was a sod for having dust build in every nook and crannie and the wheels were quite tricky to clean.

My Golf wheels on the other hand are a very "open" design and even after a couple of weeks driving (about 500 miles) seem to need nothing more than a quick foam with some grimeout and a quick clean with a "pastry brush" and an EZ-Wheel or Wheel Woolie.


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## Peugeot (Apr 19, 2014)

Any Car shampoo would do the same job in clean your wheels 

Why waste your time and money on products for wheels.


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## Yellow Dave (Apr 5, 2011)

Are the wheels protected or not?

If so what are they protected with?

How many miles are done in between washes?

What type of car, how is it driven?

Different scenario would warrant a different approach.


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## Pittsy (Jun 14, 2014)

I find that when I use a high dilution of AS smart wheels of say 10-1 as a spray prewash then wash them with the woolies and shampoo it works really well if that's any help


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## spenceST (Mar 25, 2015)

I personally only use wheel cleaner when the protection is failing so every couple of months then reseal them and just use normal car shampoo


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## Peugeot (Apr 19, 2014)

Yellow Dave said:


> Are the wheels protected or not?


I have seen these products that calm it leaves a protected layer on it, my question to this is why do you need to wash the wheel time after time IF there is a 'protected layer on it'? IMO there is nothing on the market that can stop the dust,road grime,brake dust on alloy wheels

Alloy wheels are made from an alloy of aluminium or magnesium. Alloys are mixtures of a metal and other elements they are probably the hardest part of your car. unless you think you are the king of the road.



Yellow Dave said:


> How many miles are done in between washes?


 Why fix how many miles you do!:doublesho, wouldn't it show you how dirty your wheels are looking



Yellow Dave said:


> What type of car, how is it driven?


 unless you want to make your car think it's a 4x4, or if you want to drive your 4x4 jeep over rocks.

for most of us safe road users we normally have cars.


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## mr.t (Oct 1, 2010)

I personally use abilberry on every wash.The wheels need cleaning anyway so no point in using anything else as bilberry works well and its diluted so I just use it every time.


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## AlbaLife (May 3, 2015)

mac1459 said:


> easy answer, strip the wheels off twice a year, wash , detar,clay ,polish & seal. rest off the year just wash.


so would you use bilberry to clean the wheels when off? also would you de-iron? not mentioned above (newbie questions)


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## TrainerFreak81 (Mar 7, 2015)

Peugeot said:


> I have seen these products that calm it leaves a protected layer on it, my question to this is why do you need to wash the wheel time after time IF there is a 'protected layer on it'? IMO there is nothing on the market that can stop the dust,road grime,brake dust on alloy wheels
> 
> Alloy wheels are made from an alloy of aluminium or magnesium. Alloys are mixtures of a metal and other elements they are probably the hardest part of your car. unless you think you are the king of the road.


It may be true that alloys are hard wearing but brake dust can cause damage to the lacquer. Imho wheel sealants provide a barrier from the grime and makes them easier to clean, a quick PW blast and they're done sometimes. Obviously wheel sealants will not keep them spotless in the same way wax/sealants won't keep your car paintwork clean.

To the OP cleaning wise use whatever best suits the task. Twice a year I totally decontaminate mine, on my usual wash I use bilberry 1:10 diluted and then treat the same as my paint > foam and shampoo. If they need a bit of agitation then out come the hog hair brushes and the EZ detail brush


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