# Which product for cleaning alloys with a rim inside



## bigkahunaburger (Jun 27, 2012)

My new car's alloys have a rim inside them that collects all sorts of grime. The wheels were professionally coated- inside and out- with Kamikaze Stance. The idea was that they would then be fairly easy to maintain with regular shampoo and/or a mild wheel cleaner.

The trouble is, they were not easy to clean on the first wash because of this rim inside. Apparently a lot of German car alloys have this, erm, feature  . I used a bucket of Dooka Wheel and a 9:1 diltion of Dooka in a bottle. It was hard work tbh. I can see a few odd areas where I have missed now too but the biggest concern is this rim that collects all the crap. The wheels were not even all that dirty (4-5 weeks of dirt since getting the car) so I am screwed come winter 

I have got some great brushes (Wheel Woolies, Microfiber Madness Microfibre flat wheel brush, Valet Pro brushes etc). 

I have ordered some ODK Rotate with some foaming triggers (thanks for the tip, Overkill  ).

Can Autoglym's Wheel Cleaning Mousse be used on coated wheels? Autoglym replied in their YouTube video's comments that it doesn't strip wax  They also said they were unsure about coatings and to check with the manufacturer, which is fair enough.

I've always used wither AF Imperial or Bilt Hamber Auto Wheel. The Bilt Hamber is phenomenal in my book but I doubt it's really suitable for regular use on coated wheels?

Any tips for my German crevices please folks?


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## OvEr_KiLL (Mar 2, 2015)

post a pic up of your rims  not sure if the ag mousse would degrade the sealant as it has a fallout remover in it, ive used the ag custom wheel cleaner and odk rotate 10-1 and they dont seem to affect the race glaze nano wheel seal on my rims


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## Cookies (Dec 10, 2008)

Yes.

I have an f30 3 series bmw with the 19" rims. It has a groove right around the wheel, just in behind the spokes. I happened to find a noodle wash glove in halfords for 4 quid. Its perfect for this very job as you just run your finger round the wheel groove and it's perfectly clean.

This one










Cooks

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## bigkahunaburger (Jun 27, 2012)

Thanks folks.


















They are 18" Brescias on the Polo.

Cookies, my groove is in the same place. My detailer told me that a lot of German wheels have this groove and he warned me they might be a pain to clean. And I thought my Suzuki Swift's multi-spokes were a pain


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## Cookies (Dec 10, 2008)

bigkahunaburger said:


> Cookies, my groove is in the same place. My detailer told me that a lot of German wheels have this groove and he warned me they might be a pain to clean. And I thought my Suzuki Swift's multi-spokes were a pain


Yep. Here's the groove in mine. The glove let's you clean the back of the spokes too very easily.









Cooks

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## Proppashine (Jun 24, 2019)

Cookies said:


> Yes.
> 
> I have an f30 3 series bmw with the 19" rims. It has a groove right around the wheel, just in behind the spokes. I happened to find a noodle wash glove in halfords for 4 quid. Its perfect for this very job as you just run your finger round the wheel groove and it's perfectly clean.
> 
> ...


 I like this will purchase this


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## Derek Mc (Jun 27, 2006)

I too have a BMW on the 19" alloys and I have found after rinsing that an old sponge is perfect to mop up the puddle that sits in the gutter / groove, as that was where I noticed if I didn't it would dry out to a leave dirty mark.
I have the monkey mitt, but find an old cotton wash mitt is easier for my hands to reach in behind the spokes to clean.


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## OvEr_KiLL (Mar 2, 2015)

yo big. let us know how odk rotate goes man


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## bigkahunaburger (Jun 27, 2012)

OvEr_KiLL said:


> yo big. let us know how odk rotate goes man


Will do  I have been meaning to try it for a while so it was good to see you recommend it. I have got some foaming trigger heads for the Rotate and Dooka Wheel. Hopefully my Wow mitt will do a good job on the, erm, rim :lol: and spoke backs


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## bigkahunaburger (Jun 27, 2012)

OvEr_KiLL said:


> yo big. let us know how odk rotate goes man


Bump 

Realised that I had forgotten to update this and the need for decent wheel cleaning is perhaps even more relevant now we are heading into winter!

ODK Rotate is amazing at 9-1. I have used it through foaming spray triggers and it clings nicely. These are good to use. I have also used it with a Kwazar mercury 360 pro double-action sprayer. This was brilliant and lets me coat the wheels in cleaning solution in half the time. It can also be sprayed upside down etc for all angles of cleaning.

Dooka is great in the bucket and great in a sprayer too.

At the time, I also bought Bilt Hamber's Atom Mac. It was until Brian's review of this that I became aware you could use it as a wheel cleaner too! 
It was excellent for this purpose out of a regular, basic sprayer. It has the added advantage of spreading it anti-corrosive goodness around too.

The glove from Halfords is excellent and it cleans out very easily after use. Highly recommend it for a few quid.


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## \Rian (Aug 23, 2017)

bigkahunaburger said:


> Bump
> 
> Realised that I had forgotten to update this and the need for decent wheel cleaning is perhaps even more relevant now we are heading into winter!
> 
> ...


If you like the halfords glove try the Streetwize monkey mitt https://www.carparts4less.co.uk/p/s...Q8qf6i4Zfx7CbTC5laI7T9-4WhiiMC4IaAvflEALw_wcB Since bying I dont use the halfords one


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## bigkahunaburger (Jun 27, 2012)

Rian said:


> If you like the halfords glove try the Streetwize monkey mitt https://www.carparts4less.co.uk/p/s...Q8qf6i4Zfx7CbTC5laI7T9-4WhiiMC4IaAvflEALw_wcB Since bying I dont use the halfords one


It looks good. Thank you for the suggestion. Is it better to clean with, or easier to clean with? Machine washable so that is good too.


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## Richors (Apr 29, 2007)

I have an M3 comp with 20in wheels and they are awful to clean and that groove is there on those too....Might avoid German cars in future.............Ha ha


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## \Rian (Aug 23, 2017)

bigkahunaburger said:


> It looks good. Thank you for the suggestion. Is it better to clean with, or easier to clean with? Machine washable so that is good too.


Its a better fit, the Halfords one felt like a left-handed glove on the right hand and wasnt a good fit

The streetwize one has more noddles and is easier to clean with has slightly longer cuff so stays on your hand much better, been using mine nearly 2 years now and its still in great shape,


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## bigkahunaburger (Jun 27, 2012)

Richors said:


> I have an M3 comp with 20in wheels and they are awful to clean and that groove is there on those too....Might avoid German cars in future.............Ha ha


I briefly thought that and then realised I had serious cleaning issues 

I remember eyeing up the five spokes on the Mk 7 Fiesta ST and thinking they would be much easier to clean than the Swift with multi-spokes I was running at the time


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## bigkahunaburger (Jun 27, 2012)

Rian said:


> If you like the halfords glove try the Streetwize monkey mitt https://www.carparts4less.co.uk/p/s...Q8qf6i4Zfx7CbTC5laI7T9-4WhiiMC4IaAvflEALw_wcB Since bying I dont use the halfords one


Bump - bargain

Cheers for the link to this Rian. It is still an absolute bargain. I have bought three. One for the back wheels which are virtually clean after a pressure rinse and light brushing and then the one front wheel and then the other to tackle the other front wheel. Picked up a spare too. The Halfords one is dcent so it sounds like this will really hit the spot. My lovely wheels are filthy. Damned winter, lol.

Free delivery from these guys too


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## Cookies (Dec 10, 2008)

Just to add, I also use either my trusty wheel woollies or my EZ detail wheel brush.

Oh, and a detail brush for getting into the wheel but recesses. 

Cooks

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## Derek Mc (Jun 27, 2006)

OK, so now we are getting hit with all the salt and muck I have found that when I rinse the wheels I get a small build up in the "gutter" where the water collects, so have found using a small sponge dry, to soak in the residue works really well in colder weather.
I started this process in late summer before treating the rims with sealant but in winter it lifts the remnants of water and any final grit.


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## Itstony (Jan 19, 2018)

This is an old Chestnut on here, loads of views given on other posts too.

Have the same issue and after 2-1/2yrs I found the best way for me personally.
No wheel brushing, marring will occur.
Remove wheels on a routine basis to clean and opportunity to service arches and callipers.
Treat them as panels. Once polished and cleansed, treat with C5 for example.
Use MF and QD where I found KC FSE to be my buddy.
Spokes are easy, MF and QD.
Barrels, use a wheel woolie with a MF wrapped around and spayed with FSE.
The hard part was done and very easy to maintain this way.
Depending on road conditions and user time, may need a pressure wash.
Defo dry off wheels and callipers etc with compressed air or blower, its a must.:thumb:


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## Mitch8 (Nov 9, 2009)

I have the same wheels on my Clubsport - Absolute nightmare!

But I tend to use the Carbon Collective Wheel Wand, and then a Dooka Wheel mitt which seems to work well for me


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## bigkahunaburger (Jun 27, 2012)

Mine are brand new wheels and sealed in Kamikaze Stance (May of this year) so it is nothing too bad but I do want to stay on top of things. I appreciate Wheel Woolies for what they are but personally don't get on with them.

I use the mitt for the crevice (lol) and spoke backs and an EZ Detail brush for the barrels and what it'll reach on the spokes. I use brushes similar to valet pro inch round ones to then clean any other areas. Works a treat but takes a bit of time.


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