syee99

Wanted some advice from some of the pros here on how I can clean up these wheels.

I bought a cheap set of 16" RSX wheels off a guy on Craigslist. They're going to be used for winter tires so I'm not hugely concerned about how they look but I wanted to try clean these up as much as I could.

Below is the result after I tried cleaning it today. I used some wheel cleaner from our local Canadian Tire (which smells a lot like Simple Green actually) and gave it a good scrub with a wheel brush with some Megs car wash soap. As you can see, it's still pretty bad. It almost feels like the dust is etched into the wheel.

Anyways, I'm looking for any product suggestions that could clean up say 75% of the stains on the wheel. I'm guessing something that's mildly acidic might be required? Below is a picture I just took of it this evening. Any recommendations?

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

try a claybar to it.

Gen7Milan

iTrader: (1)

Doesn't look like much anything less then a sandblaster will help you there. I have had luck with Blue Magic metal polish but this may be beyond help.

syee99

Yeah, I was afraid of that. Since these are just going to be winter wheels I don't think it's worth the expense to do so. It's going to spend most of the winter covered in salt and mag chloride.

Does anyone know if the affected area is painted or if it's just bare metal? If it's painted, would using a metal polish be effective?

loulinjai

I am not sure if it is a good idea...but is a pressure washing a good idea? It works wonders on houses and my driveway, but I am not sure if it will damage or affect the structure of the wheel

TOGWT

I appreciate you don’t want to spend a lot of time/money on winter wheels. So I won' t post a 75 step wheel cleaning guide

Try P21S Polishing Soap if its road tar, dirt / grime or CarPro Iron X if its brake dust contamination

rlerman

Use #0000 steel wool and megs wheel mag polish. If that doesn't work or show any sign of improvement, nothing is likely to work. You'll need some elbow grease.

Jesstzn

Usually the wheels at the back like that are painted but after a while the brake dust just eats it away.

You could do the steel wool to clean it up a bit but its not going to do a lot .. also you could got to CT and get a can of clear coat and reclear it sfter your done just to keep it fron getting worse.

Other option is CT carries silver wheel paint. Steel wool it and repaint the backs only.

syee99

If it's something you have that is just a cut and paste, could you? It may be a project I take up next spring. (it's probably too late now since the snow has started falling here and I'm planning to mount them today)

Thanks everyone else for the suggestions. Looks like I have a few weekends in the spring already planned out for me.

Would a mildly acidic wheel cleaner at least clean these up a little bit to save me a bit of elbow grease?

TOGWT

Repairing Scratched or Kerbed Wheels: - ttp://forums.rennlist.com/rennforums/concours-and-car-care/384430-rim-rash.html#post4670905

Aman

Just to summarize all the posts so far:

You are screwed.

syee99

haha, well, I wouldn't say I'm screwed...just need a bit of elbow grease come Spring. I ended up paying $150 for the set so it's a better deal than some steelies. I'll just need to take some time to do some work on them when I take them off at the end of winter.

Jesstzn

Yeep I just paid $55 ea for 15" steelies at CT plus taxes.

OntheJob

try "sonax full effect" google or youtube it