# Bilberry - Wow!!



## ryand (Jul 18, 2008)

Many thanks to the guys of Autoperfection that recommended the Bilberry Wheel cleaner to me at the Midlands meet yesterday! Wish I'd gone for a 5ltr now as the stuff is awesome and cleaned my wheels a treat today. 100x better than the AG Acid Free I was using.

Will mix a proper 1:3 for sure now just to make sure and try it through a foaming head bottle I think too - will then help more?

Colour of this stuff is great too as it helps to see where you have sprayed etc.

Also like the ph Snow foam - did a better job than the Super Snow Foam I have. Better cleaning power from the same amount and a nice slick surface to to do the wash on after I think.

Still have 3ltrs of AG Acid Free and 2ltrs of the other foam to get through though but I'm sure I can use it up, if not on my car, someone elses that I'll probably do!

Cheers

Ryan


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## DAVEE46M3 (Aug 23, 2008)

I bought some Bilberry at the meet too like your self I bought 1ltr but a little goes a long way its awesome stuff out with the Meguairs wheel cleaner.

Autoperfection were really helpfull.:thumb:


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## david330conv (Apr 19, 2008)

have to agree with Ryan, tried the Bilberry today :thumb:

Just a question of what to do with the existing wheel cleaner

Cheers Jim!


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## jackal2513 (Jun 30, 2008)

its amazing stuff imo

the first 'proper' prodcut i bought and it proved to me that a lot of this detailing gear isnt hype

i was stunned at the ease with which is worked... and that was just at 1:10 or less, i dont seem to need any more concentration than that, works fine


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## grant_evans (Mar 2, 2008)

ryand said:


> Will mix a proper 1:3 for sure now just to make sure and try it through a foaming head bottle I think too - will then help more?
> Ryan


ive never used it through a foaming head but i mix mine 10:1 and it does the job perfectly


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## ryand (Jul 18, 2008)

10:1 wow! How dirty are the wheels at that point? My are really fiddly to clean so wondering if I should not dilute it to that extent?

I'm thinking a foaming head will help it stay on the vertical surface longer for an even better result?


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## steve from wath (Dec 12, 2008)

i love this stuff
dilute at 4:1 for general
and neat if the wheels are off the car and the backs are caked on brake dust


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## Ian2k (Apr 13, 2009)

this is next on my list of goodies


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## Mirror Finish Details (Aug 21, 2008)

Brilliant stuff, is all I use nowerdays.


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## barneyblue (Mar 29, 2009)

I used this for the first time last night and i was very impressed 
Spray on leave for a few minutes then jet wash off done 

Barney


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## Consultant (Sep 19, 2008)

Guys does Bilberry remove tar as well? Or would you have to use Tardis for example to remove these? Just bought myself a 5litre bottle of the stuff from CYC!


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## Guest (Apr 22, 2009)

Consultant said:


> Guys does Bilberry remove tar as well? Or would you have to use Tardis for example to remove these? Just bought myself a 5litre bottle of the stuff from CYC!


Tar on your wheels is likely not actually tar, but brake dust material, acid based wheel cleaners work better at this but still may struggle, by all means try it, but if it is stubborn you'd be better claying the wheels and then doing regular washing which will keep it down, the longer its on the wheel the more difficult it gets to remover.

If it is indeed tar, a tar remover will do a much better job than bilberry or almost any wheel cleaner really.


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## n80krr (Mar 31, 2009)

does bilberry need agitating?


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## Guest (Apr 22, 2009)

Like most wheel cleaners you will see on here you will need to agitate to get the best results, I can't speak for bilberry but I have enough other wheel cleaners and while some are excellent when just rinsing with PW, if you do manual agitation you will remove some of the more stubborn things which you wouldn't otherwise.

So in summary if you rinse with a PW (tap press. is no good) then you can get away without agitating and to answer your question *bilberry is very good at doing that* (so i hear) but if you want them cleaned to absolute perfection you will need to agitate.

It also depends on your wheel type, if they are slightly rough in finish agitation might be needed to bring the sparkle back to remove ingrained dirt, if they are very smooth you won't need to neccesarily. My DIY refurbed wheels need a stiffish brush like the AG one now regardless of what wheel cleaner i'm using.

My opinion of course!


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## owen86 (Jan 2, 2009)

Just finished my first 1Ltr bottle of this stuff, get on really well with it! It does work much better if you spray it on then work it in with a wheel brush than just spraying on a hosing off.


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## Consultant (Sep 19, 2008)

G220 said:


> Tar on your wheels is likely not actually tar, but brake dust material, acid based wheel cleaners work better at this but still may struggle, by all means try it, but if it is stubborn you'd be better claying the wheels and then doing regular washing which will keep it down, the longer its on the wheel the more difficult it gets to remover.
> 
> If it is indeed tar, a tar remover will do a much better job than bilberry or almost any wheel cleaner really.


Thanks G220 - really not sure what it is, I have used BMW wheel cleaner, Autoglym wheel cleaner and even AG's Tar remover (which is rubbish imho btw).....Still the wee dots dont come off, so really not sure what it is....

In fact last time I used AG tar remover on the wheels, it did eventually come off after spraying and some vigorous scrubbing......but was knacked after one wheel hehehehe....... Will let you know when I get my bilberry if it did manage to take off the spots... :thumb:


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## Guest (Apr 22, 2009)

I reckon it may be heavily set in brake dust, you can feel tar more and it comes off easier, I had it on my wheels and I thought it was pitting but I was messing about with clay one day and after a few passes with heavy pressure with a clay bar it took it off.

AG Clean Wheels will probably be the best bet out of these products because the acid reacts with the metallic brake pad material, I don't know anything about BMW wheel cleaner but it will probably be alkali too like bilberry (but thats not a certainty). If your wheels are not too heavily intricate design then clay bar is the easiest and least messy by far, you will need to press down quite hard and it might take a few passes, but should get it off. Try scratching/picking a bit with your fingernail so you can at least find out whether it is workable.

If you have a soft wheel brush then you could also try getting something like a microfibre cloth, and while wearing gloves spray some AG clean wheels on your wheel and press down really hard on the cloth while moving it over the tar spots to see if it lifts them, I notice after using soft wheel brushes, compared to the AG Hi-Tech brush, you do get buildup of things like this because the soft bristles simply don't apply enough force on embedded dirt to release it.

Some say AG intensive tar remover isn't as strong as the likes as autosmart TARDIS but I haven't got any TARDIS to compare, if it was tar then ITR should have got rid of it fairly quickly really.


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## HairyG (Jun 13, 2008)

I've just used Bilberry on the wife's A3. The wheels were very dirty almost bronze coloured instead of silver.

Sprayed with Bilberry 10:1 and left to stand for a couple of minutes.

Sprayed again with the same dilution and agitated with a fairly stiff wheel brush.

Rinsed with the PW.

Amazing result, sparkling silver, all the grime gone.

I just wish it would do the same to my Merc wheels, see my thread on the problem


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## siphoto (Apr 20, 2009)

I have some problems with the insides of my wheels (well two of them) I'll try post up some pics, to give people an idea.
Hopefully this stuff might help.


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## chrisbond (Feb 13, 2009)

i think this will have to be one of the purchases soon, do you apply by spray bottle?


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## james_19742000 (May 8, 2008)

Just ordered a one litre bottle of Bilberry, first time!

I was thinking of dilutting some of it into a spray bottle, the bottle is one of these 947ml bottles, so I was thinking sticking about 250ml of Bilberry in and then topping up with water, does that sound about right, my wheels are never really dirty as I do them every week, or does it need to be stronger, weaker?

Suggestions chaps?

Regards James


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## HC1001 (May 27, 2007)

That should work fine James, you could even go to about 5:1 or 6:1 if you keep on top of your wheels.............:thumb:


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## james_19742000 (May 8, 2008)

HC1001 said:


> That should work fine James, you could even go to about 5:1 or 6:1 if you keep on top of your wheels.............:thumb:


Cheers for that, think I might try 5:1 for general cleaning then, and keep some in the original bottle if needed for a stronger mix say in the winter or a neat mix if ever required 

Look forward to getting soon!

Thanks :thumb:


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## tw99 (Aug 30, 2007)

I recently bought some Bilberry and tried it out today. Very easy to use, (spray on; wait 5 mins; agitate; pressure wash) and got good results at 5:1 dilution. Believe the hype!


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## Vyker (Sep 17, 2008)

I used this today, at 1:1, no PW.

Sprayed on using, and used various brushes to get the baked brake dust off.

It still left alot of black spots of either tar or brake material on the wheel, which I was disappointed to see, but considering the wheels have not had a proper clean since September, it did a very good job.

All in all, a very good wheel cleaner.

p.s smells like a saloon hair spray, and don't get it in your eyes... it hurts


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## ryand (Jul 18, 2008)

tw99 said:


> I recently bought some Bilberry and tried it out today. Very easy to use, (spray on; wait 5 mins; agitate; pressure wash) and got good results at 5:1 dilution. Believe the hype!


Did a wheels off clean yesterday and used 1:1 which was great. Wheels now sealed and waxed up so have some ready at 10:1 for next time, if the shampoo alone doesn't work which hopefully it will, depends how often I do them but I dont want to break down the protection I have just put on too much so will try shampoo in a spray bottle first with brushes and PW and then try 10:1 if needed. Will report back!


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## -Kev- (Oct 30, 2007)

i used it @ 10:1 for the first time yesterday on a VW Golf - does a fantastic job and looks pretty cool too:thumb:


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## stealthwolf (Sep 24, 2008)

I bought this from autoperfection a few weeks back and loved it. Much less work required to clean the rims. I used to have to spend ages when using megs hot rims.

But I agree with sealants - coat the wheels properly and it becomes even easier to clean them.


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## edthedrummer (May 30, 2007)

does it need a foam head or can i get away with a spray head on my bottles?


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## Skodaw (Mar 19, 2006)

Hmm, getting low on my Meg's WB - anyone used both ? what thoughts against Bilberry??


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## Guest (Apr 27, 2009)

its really down to personal choice. I *think* most members on here use it with a foaming trigger, and it suits it perfectly, but you can just use a normal atomiser, i've stopped using foaming triggers because of the mist they produce (sounds odd but they seem to produce more than an atomiser), I think you can also get a more even coverage with an atomiser than a foam trigger if you don't intend on agitating, if you see what I mean.

Foaming triggers are more fun :thumb:


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## Consultant (Sep 19, 2008)

G220 - tried bilberry, and also tried some tar remover......didn't get the spots off..... will try AG's tyre spray this weekend (if its sunny) and i'll let you know how I got on.


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## james_19742000 (May 8, 2008)

Just had my first ever litre of Bilberry delivered today, have done a bottle diluted at about 1:4 was going to test it this afternoon but its raining now so wont bother, but hopefully tomorrow maybe! Must admit quite excited by it!!! 

Also, had some other goodies come as well, do we all get excited when our cleaning products arrive or is it just me......!


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## Consultant (Sep 19, 2008)

Nah mate - not just you


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## 1Valet PRO (Nov 2, 2005)

edthedrummer said:


> does it need a foam head or can i get away with a spray head on my bottles?


you can use any trigger. I personal preffer a normal trigger. but many on here use foam triggers.


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## Trodd69 (Apr 27, 2009)

Bilberry seems to be the non acid wheel cleaner of choice around here so I'm going to order a litre but just before I do, how do you guys rate it compared to acid cleaners like wonder wheels or Halfords?


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## _SYC_ (Nov 22, 2007)

I've got BBS RM wheels with highly polished alloy rims on them and I normally just use shampoo on them because they can go cloudy if the wrong stuff been used. I believe it's acid cleaner that does it, so would Bilberry be ok for them? also whats the best way to protect the wheels after washing to stop them getting damaged by the brake dust??


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## RossZetec (Dec 27, 2008)

Is this ok to use on chrome wheels?!?


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## Xorro (Jul 12, 2006)

How does the Bilberry compare to Auto Glym Clean Wheels?


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## ryand (Jul 18, 2008)

RossZetec said:


> Is this ok to use on chrome wheels?!?


Yes it should be fine AFAIK.

AG Clean Wheels is Acid based whereas Bilberry isn't.


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## azz00 (Nov 9, 2008)

Xorro said:


> How does the Bilberry compare to Auto Glym Clean Wheels?


I found that Auto Gylm wheel stuff wasn't that great, but I have just received some bilberry and it is quality. Very impressed with it.


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## robbie_d (Sep 19, 2008)

Xorro said:


> How does the Bilberry compare to Auto Glym Clean Wheels?


I've found Bilberry to be in a different league TBH.

Diluted at 9:1 through a foaming trigger it requires nothing more than regular jet washing to dislodge all but the most stubborn grime.

Although I use (and rate) a lot of Autoglym products I can honestly say I wouldn't use Clean Wheels or Custom Wheel Cleaner again, Bilberry is not only much more effective but also hell of a lot cheaper (around £8 for a litre that makes 10 litres at 9:1, both the AG products are around £6 for 500ml).


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## Ian2k (Apr 13, 2009)

robbie_d said:


> I've found Bilberry to be in a different league TBH.
> 
> Diluted at 9:1 through a foaming trigger it requires nothing more than regular jet washing to dislodge all but the most stubborn grime.
> 
> Although I use (and rate) a lot of Autoglym products I can honestly say I wouldn't use Clean Wheels or Custom Wheel Cleaner again, Bilberry is not only much more effective but also hell of a lot cheaper (around £8 for a litre that makes 10 litres at 9:1, both the AG products are around £6 for 500ml).


Youve made me think even more about getting some now :lol:


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