[DESI4life10]

Hey Guys,

Since we had some great weather yesterday here in the GTA I decided that this was a good time to clean the rims. This was the first winter where I drove my BMW. During the winter, I would get the car washed however the rims were never thoroughly cleaned (carwash can't clean rims really well).

Thinking that I would be able to get it all off I used some carwash soap and water. Well after cleaning it I wasn't able to get all the goo/brake dust off using the sponge and soap. The dirt can be removed because I was able to scrap some of it off with my nail.

I wanted to ask you guys if there is any solution that is strong enough to clean/break the dirt off.

Here are some pictures:



Thanks

Edit:

After getting some Meguiar's Hot Rims Cool Care rim cleaner, I was able to get about 95% of the goo/brake dust off the rims.

[LaLakers91tc]

I use Armour All's "triple action" wheel cleaner and it takes care of my brake dust fairly easily

[marcvtec]

Mothers FX red spray from performace improvements
cleans like a good mother should!!!!!!!

[perfectg]

wheel acid. watered down from the bottle, strong enough to eat through the dirt without any damage to wheels and little to no scrubbing

[Evolution_GT]

Originally Posted by LaLakers91tc

I use Armour All's "triple action" wheel cleaner and it takes care of my brake dust fairly easily

Ditto.... I feel your pain man.... my last car was too an E90 with the same rims..... same problem... really hard to clean. Just spray that stuff on there... let it sit for a bit.... then use a hard spray to rinse it.

If that doesn't get it all off.... I would use a brush and a cloth to get into all the corners.

Hope this helps!

[DESI4life10]

Thanks for the replies.

I was surprised to get this stuff on my rims as it never happened to my other cars.

Where can I get these sprays? Canadian tire?

[perfectg]

yes

[SGxi]

I tried with a steamer and it seems to work. Watch out with some of these wheel cleaners, some of them are extremely toxic. The one I got (Poorboys) are very strong, but it can kill you lungs....

[Mach@M-Force_Design]

Wheel Wax
It gets anything off! I believe a member on the forum named Dimsum is selling them.

[addicted2bmw]

Originally Posted by DESI4life10

Thanks for the replies.

I was surprised to get this stuff on my rims as it never happened to my other cars.

Where can I get these sprays? Canadian tire?

I have the same rims as you and I was having the same problem; soap and water just didn't seem to get the rims looking like new. I went to Canadian Tire and bought some "Meguiar's Hot Rims Cool Care", it's in a purple bottle with a black spray handle.

I sprayed my rims with the hose just enough to wet the rims and then sprayed the Meguiar's on the rim, waited 15-20secs to let it work its magic and then used a micro fiber wash mit (from Canadian Tire) which had been soaking in my bucket of soapy water to go over the rim and all the dirt basically was running off of the rim.

I know your pain, the rims have many hard to reach areas and this Meguiar's Hot Rims Cool Care made it very easy.

Since it is available at Canadian Tire, when you run out you won't have to order it online, you know can easily go and get a bottle when you run out.

Hopefully you do try this stuff cause it really works well.

Good luck!

[DESI4life10]

Thanks for the information. I am going to stop by Canadian tire today and get the spray.

[DESI4life10]

After going to my local Canadian Tire, I was able to get the "Meguiar's Hot Rims Cool Care" rim cleaner (had a very limited selection and was only able to find this).

I was able to get about 95% of the goo/dust off the rims pretty easily. I used a scrub brush to help loosen the dirt after applying the spray. The 5% I am talking about are the very little black dots that seem to be sticking to the rims. They can come off using the nail but the brush and spray alone wasn't able to get it all off.

Thanks for all the advice guys. The little dots are barely visible so it does not bother me at all. My main concern was getting that nasty orange/yellow color off as it was noticeable meters away

I posted some after pictures of the rims. You can find them in the original post above.

[addicted2bmw]

Originally Posted by DESI4life10

After going to my local Canadian Tire, I was able to get the "Meguiar's Hot Rims Cool Care" rim cleaner (had a very limited selection and was only able to find this).

I was able to get about 95% of the goo/dust off the rims pretty easily. I used a scrub brush to help loosen the dirt after applying the spray. The 5% I am talking about are the very little black dots that seem to be sticking to the rims. They can come off using the nail but the brush and spray alone wasn't able to get it all off.

Thanks for all the advice guys. The little dots are barely visible so it does not bother me at all. My main concern was getting that nasty orange/yellow color off as it was noticeable meters away

I posted some after pictures of the rims. You can find them in the original post above.

What a difference! Rims look super clean! I'm glad it worked out for you.

[DESI4life10]

Originally Posted by addicted2bmw

What a difference! Rims look super clean! I'm glad it worked out for you.

Thank you for the tips

[trickydisco]

P21S

[2kaccordocoupe]

Wheel Wax gets my vote. I have been using it for years with excellent results. I apply it every 2 - 3 weeks and when you wash the car you just spray the wheels with water and the dust / crud etc... wash right off.

[KaOsTiK]

Originally Posted by trickydisco

P21S

p21s wheel gel with a soft brush to agitate the wheels and a larger brush for your tires...and ur set

[DESI4life10]

Yea I am going to get some wheel wax as well to make the cleaning process easier down the road. During the summer, I usually wash my car 1-2 every 2 weeks and usually the rims don't need much cleaning.

But during the winter I usually don't wash my rims which is probably why I had all that build up.

Learned some good tips to prep the rims for the winter seasons.