[e90pilot]

I've looked around and found that an aggressive compound may be the way to go but I just wanted to try other things first. I've pretty much only used car soap. If I rub it with my fingers, I can make a clean spot, but a rag and soap won't. The strange part is that it's only 1 wheel.

[psnt1ol]

There is no magic bullet.

Try Chemical Guys Diablo at 1 to 3 dilution. Spray on and let the gel sit for a minute or two then agitate with a quality wheel brush follow with a good rinse.

Next aggressive step...

Sonax Wheel Cleaner. Spray on and let the gel sit for a minute or two then agitate with a wheel brush follow with a good rinse.

or

CarPro IronX or TriX. Again, Spray on and let it sit but don't let it dry. Agitate then rinse and follow up with a good wash (car soap).

Even more aggressive....

Meguires D140 at 1 to 4 dilution. Spray on and agitate follow by a good rinse then a wash with your car soap.

After the wheel is clean, I would recommend you clay it then seal it with a good sealant. This will keep future brake dust at bay or at the minimum...make it easy to clean next time.

[B39 B58]

Yeah definitely don't use an abrasive method if something else will work. Your wheels are clearcoated in paint just like the rest of your car, and you don't want to dull that finish. If the chemical solutions mentioned above don't do it, use some detailing clay. If your finger takes it off, the clay should easily handle it.

[ssmith96]

Without a doubt ironX! It should definitely take care of this

[UncleWede]

Since you need to clay them before sealing with something like PoorBoy's Wheel sealant, just go with the clay.

If it's just one wheel, you might have a caliper piston sticking, generating constant brake dust.

[E90_boostjunky]

Surprisingly WD-40 works great to clean them, spray the wheel down avoid getting it on the brakes and wipe with a rag, if that doesn't work use Megauirs aluminum cleaner it's white compound cleaner, works awesome

[benzo23]

I would definitly take the wheel off to clean that one, get the inner barrel too. Like others mentioned iron X and scrubbing should do the trick.

[e90pilot]

Thanks for the suggestion guys! I have some WD40 and also have access to some aircraft degreaser. I'll probably do that an go to ironX if that doesn't work. Then clean, clay and seal all the wheels.

[rollinstone157]

If you're still struggling, a good fist step:

I have a powerwasher with a foam lance, and I've found that soaking the wheels + foaming dawn/palmolive/etc does a great job at getting a lot of the grime off. And with some gentle agitation from a wash mitt soaked in a mix of dish-soap/water, the dust falls away. And since dish soap strips wax, you'd have a great base for applying a sealant!

[kjlogan65]

Originally Posted by E90_boostjunky

Surprisingly WD-40 works great to clean them, spray the wheel down avoid getting it on the brakes and wipe with a rag, if that doesn't work use Megauirs aluminum cleaner it's white compound cleaner, works awesome

+1 on the WD40, would need to clean of the WD40 good, afterwards. WD40 attracts a lot of dust.