Just Cleaned up my M-System II's

[TheGeak]

so its a nice day outside and i have a few hours before i have to be at work and i'm trying to think of something i could accomplish (aside from hanging out here all day long)

I decided that since i brought down one of the M5's wheels to see how well i can 'clean it up' i might as well get started.

Off to the garage i go happily carrying a wheel. Damn, it was a lot dirtier than i thought it was. Also, the clearcoat seemed to be flaking off of the black center of the wheel. "Oh Well", i think to myself, "I'm going to repaint them anyway, lets get to scrubbing!"

After an hour or so of hosing the wheel down with brake cleaner and scrubbing with a toothbrush, old T-shirt, and scotchbrite pad, i must say DAMN. Granted since i took off the clearcoat it doesn't have a 'shine' anymore just the flat black of the paint, but it look 10x better!

One thing i noticed is that the 'silver' color on the lip is paint. I thought it was just the bare metal? I'm thinking about taking all the silver off too and starting totally over. Would this be a bad thing?

Also, there is a bit of rash on the lip that i'm going to try and fix up. I saw the site where the guy did it to his Porsche wheel. So i'm assuming it can be done to a BMW wheel. What worries me though is wouldn't that chip/crumble when you change the tires?

I'll post pics as soon as i can get some, need to get my digi cam back.

[George M]

I don't know where to start...so won't. Kinda like taking a garden hose to the interior.
George

[TheGeak]

George: you'd have to understand that these rims were/are HURT. Before i got them it was a city car so lots of knicks/chips/rashes. Lets hear it, if you've got something to suggest?

[George M]

Jason was being glib...brake cleaner on wheels as precious as OE T-stars is the kiss of death....will kill the clear coat...or now what's left of it. Also, scrubbing with a toothbrush will kill the paint...like scrubbing with a toothbrush on your car's body. Your best bet at this point is to strip them down, fix the rash, prime, base and clear coat them if you want to make them look close to original. If you don't feel like doing this..a pretty big job...been there...send them out to be refinished...about $100 a wheel. Perhaps it was your intention to strip them. If not you never want to get brake cleaner anywhere near them. Even alloy wheel cleaner is caustic to remove brake dust and will harm clear coat if left on too long....generally anything long than a minute or so.
George

[TheGeak]

George: it was my intention to strip them. I'm stripping, cleaning rash, priming, painting, repainting, clear coating. I know its a big job, but its something i've been meaning to do for a while. Also, there wasn't much of the clearcoat left. I found a picture, but you can't see what i'm talking about. I'll snap a picture of one of the other rims. But yea, this wasn't just a 'cleaning' job as much as a 'preperation to refinish'. I guess i should edit that title, didn't realize how it came across to others.

[George M]

no big deal...you didn't mention you were preparing them for refinishing. I thought you were cleaning the wheels with brake cleaner as a standard practice...lol.
Good Luck with the refinishing process.
George

[TheGeak]

lol yeah, i realized that when i 'reread' my orig. post. DEFINATELY don't use Break Cleaner as 'standard practice' for wheel cleaning.

[Dick Schneiders]

don't know what to use to clean them. I know from posts that anything abrasive is a no-no. How about a something like Simple Green and cotton towels? Is that mild enough?

Dick Schneiders


Jason was being glib...brake cleaner on wheels as precious as OE T-stars is the kiss of death....will kill the clear coat...or now what's left of it. Also, scrubbing with a toothbrush will kill the paint...like scrubbing with a toothbrush on your car's body. Your best bet at this point is to strip them down, fix the rash, prime, base and clear coat them if you want to make them look close to original. If you don't feel like doing this..a pretty big job...been there...send them out to be refinished...about $100 a wheel. Perhaps it was your intention to strip them. If not you never want to get brake cleaner anywhere near them. Even alloy wheel cleaner is caustic to remove brake dust and will harm clear coat if left on too long....generally anything long than a minute or so.
George

[Jr ///M5]

You guys crack me up.....=) I was on the same line as George when Jason said he was "cleaning" his wheels with brake cleaner!

Lol, I knew for sure he would suffer the, "Wrath of Mann".....=)

Jason drew a pretty vivid picture of himself "cleaning" his wheels with a toothbrush and brake cleaner....for goodness sake, don't post this on the Roadfly detail board, you'll give those boys heart failure...

Simple misunderstanding......but so funnnny! Thanks guys, I could use a little laugh today.

Dick, don't let Jason near your TS's.....=)

[TheGeak]

i should start a T-star cleaning business....

[JohnC]

i used 409 on my tstars and bottlecaps. it might even have been 409 automotive i cant remember.

[Patrick]

The lip is polished so I use Meguiar's Metal polish occasionally just on that part. The rest of the time I clean them once or twice a week, depending on miles driven, with Simple Green and paper towels -works well enough for me.
http://www.bimmer.info/bmw/patrick/Tstars0004.jpg

[George M]

Dick in answer to your question....always err on the side of using the least invasive cleaner to clean your wheels, body or any other aspect of the car. Words to live my in detailing circles. The whole finish on the car...be it wheels or body is precious. Most cleaners have an acidic base...are high in PH etc in an effort to remove contaminants. This spells...degradation to your clear coat...be it wheels or the car's body. The solution is two fold:
1. Clean your car often to remove contaminants as contamination overtime due to sun load and/or due to the heat of brakes...particularly prevalent with brake dust...will bond to the clear coat...etching itself right in. Then your only option is to use an invasive cleaner...like a Simple Green, 409 etc. Alloy wheel cleaner is the worst of course. Also what Patrick does...uses paper towels...they scratch...even when wet...perhaps his agenda however with exposed Aluminum polished lips...to finely brush the aluminum. Personally I would shoot some clear over those polished lips to prevent oxidation of the aluminum and then just wash them like the rest of the car.
In summary, best to clean your wheels a lot. I keep a nice coat of carnuba on my wheels which minimizes brake dust adhesion, makes them much easier to clean and use regular car wash shampoo on the wheels just like the body to preserve the clearcoat.
HTH,
George