Hey “Nice Wheels”, Man!!!

We spent a good deal of time talking about car washing and, to some extent, drying your vehicle. If there is a neglected area when it comes to car detailing, it’s got to be the wheels. In the last segment, I briefly talked about how to wash the wheels correctly. I hope to make this blog a little different in two ways. The first thing is to briefly re-discuss the “how and whys” of wheel cleaning and, second, to showcase some of the products that I personally use.

On that note, may I first clarify that I am under no financial duty to recommend or support any product, company or manufacturer. If I like it and it works for me, then you’ll hear about it. I have tried a lot, and I do mean A LOT, of car care products. Some sound good and just don’t keep up their end of the bargain. Those products that I routinely re-purchase and find myself looking to use over and over again are the products that I will recommend to you. Hey, you’re my “loyal followers”. Uncle Vinny ain’t gonna let you down!

So as you recall, you need a good wheel cleaner, ideally a good wheel brush, a wash mitt and a tire protectant. Let’s first talk about my all time favorite wheel cleaner, P21S. This is a German made product that I believe has been around since the mid 1980’s. It comes in the regular spray version and a gel version (for really soiled wheels, heavy brake dust). This product is to be sprayed on to a cool dry wheel and let it sit for a few minutes, agitate and hose off. Remember that the thing that really “dirties up a wheel is the grime and brake dust residue from the brake pads. To agitate the dirt that is saturated with the P21S wheel cleaner,  I use 2 different types of brushes.

The first brush is a soft nylon brush called a Daytona Brush. It is awesome at reaching behind wheel spokes and around brake components (be easy here). It is bendable to help reach tough spots. I often gently spray water onto the brush and into the wheel area as I move around the brush. The second brush is a Montana Boars Hair Wheel Brush. Boars hair brushes are extremely gentle on all finishes including paint. There are polished wheels that can be easily scratched. My Jeep SRT-8 wheels are polished aluminujm (clear coated) that despite all of my tricks can easily show light scratches. Boars hair brushes are actually horse hair, as an FYI (you might win some money at Jeopardy one day). I will often lightly spray water on the wheel as I work the brush around. Don’t be bashful to re-spray the wheel cleaner onto the wheel. It may need a second dose.

Another really good and recently “devised” product is one that comes from the good folks at TKO Performance. It is called the Corvette Wheel Lug Nut Brush (aka E-Z Lug Nut Cleaner). It is a “T” shaded plastic device that has on one end a foam sponge. You basically insert the sponge end atop the lug nut and twist the T handle back and forth to clean. A quick spray of P21S into each lug and a twist and its so much cleaner, without any wear to the wheel. The sponges are replaceable but I must have a dozen or so cleanings and the sponge end still looks good. Heres an Uncle Vinny trick using this device. When drying off the wheels, use an old, ready for the garbage micro-fiber cloth and cover the sponge end of the device. Now re-insert it on top of the lug nut. As you rotate the devise it will do a final cleaning and drying. Works great. Re-adjust the micro-fiber cloth and do the next lug.

This next product is also a new one for me and it works great. It’s called Wheel Wax. It doesn’t take a lot of thought to figure what this product does. Nice clean wheel gets nice coat of wax. Why bother? Waxed surfaces not only shine better but the micro porosities in the wheels’ finish are sealed up. Wheel Wax is a polymer sealant and not a true wax (yes, more on that discussion, boys and girls, in a future blog). The idea is that a sealed wheel will attract less grime and dust and hence be easier to clean. It works great…and it has a nice banana type smell.

So what’s left to do before you buff off the Wheel Wax to reveal the awesome shine and protection? That’s right, you remember…treat the tires.”Uh, Uncle Vinny did you make a mistake?” Of course not. You want to treat the tires BEFORE you polish up the wheel. You most likely will inadvertently get some of the tire dressing on the wheel. When you buff the wheel, any residue from the tire dressing comes off too. You will buff the wheels with a dedicated to wheel use micro-fiber cloth. Remember that trick with the EZ Lug devise using the draped cloth over the top? Works great on getting out any residual sealant, too.

There are two camps of thought on tire dressings, spray on or wipe on. Spray on tire products are fast but can get on vehicle surfaces and I guarantee you will stain the pavement you’re working on. I have been using all types of tire dressings over the years. For flat out speed and bang for the buck good looks, I say Stoner’s More Shine tire spray just rocks!!! It runs about $5-6 a can (less if you buy a case directly and use the easy to find $5 off coupon). Get some buddies together and split the case of 12. Their Trim Shine product is designed for exterior black trim but I love it for under carriage and wheel well black plastic. I have black plastic mesh on the Jeep’s grill and this stuff in no time makes it look great. I have been using the aerosol versions of these products but I am sure the trigger pumps ar equally good and may have their advantages.

Any good vinyl and rubber dressing will also do a good job on the tire’s sidewalls (never ever apply to the treads very dangerous, slippery stuff). You will need to spray these dressings on to a poly foam applicator or in a pinch a few old cotton tube socks. Saturate the applicator and in a circular motion wipe on the tire’s sidewalls. My personal favorites are 303 Protectant (which has a lot of uses and a product I go through by the gallon) and Vinylex. The 303 does not have a cleaner while Vinylex does. Both are great to have around and I do own both. I like to vary products. It keeps me busy. The most recent product that I am trying is Optimum OptiBond Tire gel. It is slightly viscous but the tires look great, and they look great for a long time (several weeks). Also keep in mind that Uncle Vinny doesn’t like the bling bling super shiny look to his tires. These dressings will make the tires look new and clean, not plasticy. Now step back and take a look…really nice wheels!

So now you’re well versed in wheel and tire detailing. Welcome to a bigger world. Oh, by the way, if you revisit my last blog, the products listed above can be found at the mentioned online car care sites.

I’ll be on vacation in the coming weeks.  Look for my next blog towards the end of the month.

Thanks for stoppin’ by!!!

Stay safe out there!!!

Uncle Vinny