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Help Cleaning aluminum Rims

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Old Jan 3, 2004
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Help Cleaning aluminum Rims

Just wondered if any one has any ideas on cleaning aluminum that seem to attract brake dust very badly, I have had aftermarket aluminum rims and once I polish them these rims stay clean, or just spray off the dust , but I have some factory rims 16" on a toyota tacoma that are the factory aluminum and they seem to attract brake dust dirt ect and I cant get all the garbage out of them , I have tried about 4 different wheel cleaners that are supposed to be for aluminum rims that you spray on and let sit about 60 seconds and then spray off but they dont help either, has any one seen and good aluminum wheel cleaner that gets in the poors of the aluminum and gets the brake dust and dirt out so they look new, I have even used the spray on wheel cleaners and a tooth brush and they still dont get clean ,I didnt want to use straight muratic acid and discolor the rims or ruin them but I havent found any thing that works, if any one has any ideas I would appreciate any help, thanks,
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Old Jan 4, 2004
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They don't "attract" brake dust. Aluminum is not really magnetic nor is it porous. They get hot, and as the pads dust, it gets caught on the rotating spokes. Chances are if you can't get all the brake dust off, its cuz its worked its way into the wheel, and you're pretty much screwed. Brake dust is corrosive, which is why you need to keep them clean.
You're gonna have to get them acid dipped and re-clearcoated to get the dust out. Other than that, just go at it with a tooth brush. Maybe try Simple Green or a strong degreaser, but once that stuff works its way in, its pretty much impossible to get out.
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Old Jan 4, 2004
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Or even a citrus based cleaner like Goo Gone or Orange Solv may work well too, I know the Simple Green that Boilermaker1 mentioned works very well at cleaning just about anything.

When and if you do get them clean make sure you put a good couple coats of wax (carnuba paste or liquid) that you use on your paint, that helps repel the brake dust too, and if you wash them once a week or so that will give extra protection as well.

Try to stay away from Muriatic Acid, that is very strong and will eat avay the clear coat and raise hell with the aluminum. You probably already know that Muriatic Acid is used for etching concrete so if its stong enough to eat through concrete and masonry, imagine what it will do to your wheels.
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Old Jan 4, 2004
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I havent tried the simple green cleaner or orange solvent , I think I have tried about every other cleaner on the market though and nothing seems to work to get the rims clean,and I have tried most commercial wheel cleaners in the spray bottles and they dont do much of any thing but run off. Since the rims are not polished that helps since I wouldnt want to ruin a polished rim , I will have to try a couple of the other cleaners you mentioned, thanks
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