Polished Aluminum Wheels Stained!

[thelastz28]

Can someone help? I sprayed some "turtle wax" wheel cleaner and stupid thing dried. Now it doesnt want to come off. Will a Mothers power ball and wax work? Thanks guys.

[01BLACKSS]

As long as your wheels aren't coated just use Mothers mag and AL polish.

[01 Red WS6]

Have you tried to polish them at all? Those look like some nasty stains but nothing that can't be fixed. Are the wheels clear coated? If not try some Mother's billet polish. If that doesn't work they might need to be wet sanded which won't be that hard to do. I've wetsanded my TTII's and they turned out looking like chrome

[thelastz28]

I've tried Mothers Aluminum polish and the Power ball... That didn't work. HELP!!!!

[01 Red WS6]

Are the wheels clear coated? They are polished wheels right?

[thelastz28]

They are polished aluminum. I have no idea if they are clear coated or coated with anything else.

[hllywd]

Try Gords Aluminum Polish. BUT YOU NEED TO FIND OUT IF THEY ARE CLEAR COATED FIRST.
The tire place used something that stained my Smoothie II's when they installed them and Gords and alot of elbow grease cleaned them up real good again. You might have to call the company to find out if they are coated.

[warpwr]

Maybe more of the turtle wax cleaner will loosen it. Try a small spot.

May turtle wax has a support page on their web site.

[thelastz28]

I'm not going to spray anymore of that Turtle Wax sh!t on my wheels. It's done enough damage already.

[01 Red WS6]

An easy way to tell if they are clear coated or not... When you used the aluminum polish did power ball turn black?

[white/blue99ta]

I've got the same problem on mine. I got polished aluminum zo6 wheels and tried the powerball and nothing! The ball does turn black and if i use a rag it also turns black.

[Daveinpa]

A piece of advice about wheel cleaners……they should all be outlawed …….The chemical in them is strong enough to etch into any finish, painted or clear. Why would you use sometime on your wheels you would never consider using on your paint.
I found that out myself the hard way . If you have stain marks from using wheel cleaners as I have had treat the finish on the wheels the same as you would the clear coat on your car. Use 3M rubbing compound # 05973 by hand to remove the stain marks, it will take some hard work second use 3M # 05937 swirl mark remover and follow it by a good wax.If you keep the wheels waxed the road crap and brake dirt will wash off much easer. Then take the leftover cans of wheel cleaner and trash them.
If your wheels are not clear coated there is no better aluminum polish in the world then Simichrome, bets the shit out of anything else on the market by far. Also works on brass, chrome, and stainless

[502ci]

How did it dry like that? Did you spray it like that, then the phone rang and when you came back...surprise


Also was the wheel hot when you applied it, just curious?

[99Z28 1LE]

A piece of advice about wheel cleaners……they should all be outlawed …….The chemical in them is strong enough to etch into any finish, painted or clear. Why would you use sometime on your wheels you would never consider using on your paint.

Umm... no. It depends on what wheel cleaner you get, and whether or not you follow the instructions on the packaging. Sure some wheel cleaners are strong, but they need to be in order to get the job done. The only time there's a problem is if you use the wrong wheel cleaner on the wrong wheel. It takes a bit of chemistry knowledge to know what cleaner will react with what material...

thelastz28, I think your best bet here is going to be (1) go get either Eagle One A2Z or Meguiar's Hot Rims All Wheel Cleaner, and try those. DO NOT give them much dwell time before rinsing. If etching still remains, grab for a clay bar and try using that. the picture almost looks like the problem is stubborn surface deposits rather than etched/stained clearcoat (or metal).

[01 Red WS6]

I've got the same problem on mine. I got polished aluminum zo6 wheels and tried the powerball and nothing! The ball does turn black and if i use a rag it also turns black.

What polish did you use? I really don't like the power ball because it really doesn't do as well as polishing by hand IMO.

You could try a more abrassive polish and see if that helps. If not you could try to wetsand the wheels with 2000 grit paper. I would try it 1st on a small area. It might take a little work but once you wetsand you can polish the area up with some polish, I like to use Mothers billet polish with a microfiber rag. You will be suprised how good that area looks compaired to everywhere else. If it were day light I would take a picture of my wheels and post them up so you could see how much of a difference it can make.

[01 Red WS6]

Umm... no. It depends on what wheel cleaner you get, and whether or not you follow the instructions on the packaging. Sure some wheel cleaners are strong, but they need to be in order to get the job done. The only time there's a problem is if you use the wrong wheel cleaner on the wrong wheel. It takes a bit of chemistry knowledge to know what cleaner will react with what material...

thelastz28, I think your best bet here is going to be (1) go get either Eagle One A2Z or Meguiar's Hot Rims All Wheel Cleaner, and try those. DO NOT give them much dwell time before rinsing. If etching still remains, grab for a clay bar and try using that. the picture almost looks like the problem is stubborn surface deposits rather than etched/stained clearcoat (or metal).

Eagle One A2Z is the one I like best. I've used it on my wheels and never had a problem.

[99Z28 1LE]

You could try a more abrassive polish and see if that helps. If not you could try to wetsand the wheels with 2000 grit paper. I would try it 1st on a small area. It might take a little work but once you wetsand you can polish the area up with some polish, I like to use Mothers billet polish with a microfiber rag. You will be suprised how good that area looks compaired to everywhere else. If it were day light I would take a picture of my wheels and post them up so you could see how much of a difference it can make.

Agreed, if the wheels aren't clearcoated. And if all else fails, all I can say is "Noxon 7." Easily the strongest and most aggressive metal polish I've used, bar none.

[myk02k]

Did you use a product that's for specifically chrome? I bought a "wheel cleaner" that said in small writing "do not use on polished aluminum surfaces". It was something sulfur-based I believe.

[99Z28 1LE]

Did you use a product that's for specifically chrome? I bought a "wheel cleaner" that said in small writing "do not use on polished aluminum surfaces". It was something sulfur-based I believe.

Probably sulfuric acid. If you use an acid-based wheel cleaner (not all are acid) you want something using hydrofluoric acid. And again, be sure to dilute properly!

[rotwiler]

Most spray wheel cleaners say do not used on aluminum. I did a simular thing a few months back and sprayed some degreaser cleaner(castrol stuff) in purple bottle, to clean the motor and it stained it like that. There is a metal polish called Heavy Metal that will do it with some hard rubbing