OCD Wheel Detail and Scratch buffing

[santov]

At first I hated the wheels on my Z4 3.0si since they're two piece and they had a thousand nooks and crannies that collect brake dust. I know that Sonax makes a great wheel cleaner, but I found Megs Wheel Brightener. It's very acidic and eats brake dust very well. Plus for $18 you get 4 GALLONS (diluted it 4:1).

After I managed to get the nasty brake dust out of the little bolt holes and heads I went after the scratches in the clear coat. I didn't have high expectations since most of the scratches were deep and theres a little curb rash on the rear right (not me).

I also hate how some tire monkeys place wheel weights on the outter area of inside of the wheel. When I get new tires I'll ask they be mounted far inside.

I used my Flex 3401 with Chemical Guys CG-C2 on an LCC orange pad on speed 3 or 4. To finish a coat with Megs Liquid Wax D156. It beads water very well and the slick surface should repel BMW brake dust for at least 3 or 4 miles.

I used 303 Aero protectant on the tires and wheel wells.

Stand back and I like how the whels look very ol' English roadster-ish.


On to the pics:

[Finnegan]

Nice work. I'm surprised at how well those cleaned up, and I admire your patience!

[l4zy]

yeah...you ocd....lol

[porshah]

Looks great. Nice work.

[Shipkiller]

I personally love the 108's. They just look good, but as you suggest, a pain to clean..

[mikeinsf]

Yep, definitely OCD. But nice.

[santov]

I'll tell you what inspired me to do this (I was done in about 2 hours).

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/...-pictures.html

These guys are very talented. Take a look at all the effort they put into their clients car. I suspect they charged around $800 which is big dollars on a VW, but the before/after is amazing.

I got one of them steamers. It does work well on door jambs and nooks and crannies, but I wouldn't use it to spray steam into the dashboard.

[beta]

+1 santov that's an amazing thread. That is some serious attention to detail.

[Shipkiller]

Originally Posted by santov

I'll tell you what inspired me to do this (I was done in about 2 hours).

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/...-pictures.html

These guys are very talented. Take a look at all the effort they put into their clients car. I suspect they charged around $800 which is big dollars on a VW, but the before/after is amazing.

I got one of them steamers. It does work well on door jambs and nooks and crannies, but I wouldn't use it to spray steam into the dashboard.

When I started my detailing journey several years ago, I lived on the AutoGeek forums soaking up information. I still go there...and that's where I buy most of my detailing products...

[fercho]

hey sell me those rims hehe..

[santov]

Originally Posted by fercho

hey sell me those rims hehe..

Make me an offer!

I want to buy these wheels:
http://www.zpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=525700

But I'm too broke for tires.

[doozyj]

Now you just got to do something with all that curbing.

[Aries326]

Sorry to revive an old thread but I have the same wheels and like the OP, I took wasn't very fond of the wheels but now love them. I think I will forgo getting new rims and just get Hankook V12s to replace the run flats.

Can you do a step by step post on how you cleaned and refurbished your wheels with the products you used? I am unfamiliar with those products as well as wheel care. Thanks!

[santov]

Originally Posted by Aries326

Sorry to revive an old thread but I have the same wheels and like the OP, I took wasn't very fond of the wheels but now love them. I think I will forgo getting new rims and just get Hankook V12s to replace the run flats.

Can you do a step by step post on how you cleaned and refurbished your wheels with the products you used? I am unfamiliar with those products as well as wheel care. Thanks!

3.0si with Sport Package?!? Brother from another mother! Sure I'll give you more info on the arsenal of chemicals I've stock piled.

First there's a ton of online retailers to buy detailing products from. Autogeek.net has some of the best prices, and around holidays they usually have a 10% or Free Shipping promo going. From Autogeek I mostly buy the Meguairs Detailer line. The products come in 1 gallon bottles, perform great and are stupid cheap.

I buy a lot of stuff from ChemicalGuys.com. The value of their products is amazing. Their waxes and polishes are great. I know there's BETTER stuff around, but the value of the gallon sized stuff is unbeatable.

On to the wheels:

First you'll need a soft bristled brush. I use a Mother's fender brush. The bristles are long (to get inside the bold heads and bolt holes) and the head of the brush is covered in soft rubber so you won't scratch the wheels as you're working the brush around. Of course, it works awesome on actually fender liners too, just rinse often.

For cleaning I used Meg's Wheel Brightener. You have to dilute it in a spray bottle 4:1 water:cleaner. As soon as you spray it on it starts to eat brake dust. You have about 90 seconds to use the brush to work. I keep the pressure washer running next to me, work the inside of the wheel clean with a soft scrub sponge, rinse, flip the wheel over and use the brush all over the face. The Wheel Brightner suds up really well and makes a nice lather. It smells like sin, so do it outside.

After that you're wheels will be bare bones clean.

Next I used ChemicalGuys rubbing compound 2. 1 is very light, 2 is medium duty, 3 is liquid sand paper that can remove paint VERY quickly. I use mostly 1 and 2 on paint. I used just 2 on the wheels.

Use your Flex and I used a yellow pad to work over the rim and spokes. I tried to keep that stuff out of all the bolt holes.

Wipe everything clean with a MF towel and move on to protection...

I used Meg's Liguid Synthetic Wax. It mists on and wipes off and leaves sealed sufaces feeling crazy slick. It doesn't last as long as a regular wax, but it's perfect for shine.

Ever since I've done that wheel detail I've washed the car every 3 or 4 weeks. The brake dust blasts right off with the pressure washer. It is getting time to take the wheels off to get the inside tho, I can't get the brush in there.

PS: The Wheel Brightner works AWESOME on our brake rotors, hubs and brake calipers. My brake calipers looked like thy were freshly painted silver. It makes a mess in the garage to drag the bucket and brush in, after I put the wheels on I pull the car out and I used the pressure washer to rinse everything super clean.

If you haven't joined the detailing club you're about to spend a ton of money. I've paid for lots of supplies by detailing neighbor cars. I let them off cheap for just to help subsidize my addiction.

[Aries326]

Thanks for the detailed instructions! Will definitely order the supplies this weekend and detail my wheels. When I bought the car, one of the wheels had a bit of road rash. I'll have to get that done before detailing them. It really bugs the heck out of me seeing the curb damage.

As for cleaning the calipers, I'll have to bring my car to my brothers to get the wheels off. He's the mechanic in the family and has everything in his garage minus a lift. I definitely want the calipers cleaned up too. Your calipers sound extremely clean. Got pics? I'd rather clean them than get a set of brembos. I lie. I'd love to get a set of brembos but I think it would be impractical and my wife would kill me.

When you detail your car, what do you use for the leather? Thanks again for the detailed explanation!

[Loogey Clapp]

I love the 108's. After looking at your rivets, I see I really need to get after mine. The rivets have always been a PITA for me. Your wheels look absolutely super!! However, I guess you must be OCD if you enjoy doing it to your neighbors cars too! Just kidding. Great job!!