Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General General Need something really cheap and good to clean wheels and rims.

I know it has been asked countless times and I apologize for asking again and wasting bandwidth lol.
I'm only a high school graduate with little/ no money so I need a really good solution to clean my wheels. All that brake dust is making it look orange! You know, after the clean it should look really shiny and slickkk.

Anyway can someone recommend a store and what to buy, no internet either since I have no credit card.

Heh ThankQ

PS. What should I get to clean the body, I heard soap/ dishwasher stuff aren't the kindest on the paint and wax. Usually I just clean it with water with cloth but I want a complete clean.

Thanks again for reading this long post.

I use Zip Extreme car wash. I have no problems with it. I can't really recommend what to use, but I will say you should NOT use dish soap.

As for the wheels, use whatever soap you buy and add some elbow grease.

I also want to clean the engine. Also you see the top with all the air tunneling. How come theres nothing inside but it takes so much space.

http://www.empireofgames.com/~gladiator/engine/ please check the page, I really want to clean everything including the funky headlights.

For cleaning the engine, I've heard the CD-2 engine detailing kit works good. You can get that at Target. It has one can that you clean the engine with, and another shines and details it all.

For wheels, I use a combination of dawn, hot water, and/or castrol super clean or simple green. Works pretty good.

I'm not sure about the engine cleaning. I've used a couple of different cleaners on my 'ol Five-O both worked about the same.

For carwash avoid dishwasher soap!! It'll strip off any protective finish you've put on. Use a good quality carwash soap. I use Zymol. Some use a sponge but I prefer a washmit. A sponge can trap the dirt IMHO.

As for your wheels, I generally use only products that I would use on the painted areas of the car. Once clean, wax 'em so all you need to do is spray them off or wipe them down gently. It takes some elbow grease to start but its worth the pay-off in the long run. Wheel cleaners can be pretty harsh and can remove the clearcoat over time. I've found the key is to wax 'em and wash them off often.

Just my $.02 ($3.65 Cdn.)

I wouldn't exactly recommend cleaning a filthy engine bay with CD-2.
I would recommend cleaning it with Simple Green Automotive. works like a charm.
THEN CD-2 it.
CD2 seems to work more like a show car shine/polish instead of a degreaser.

For heavy brake dust, we use plain old Simple Green. we spray it on and rinse with the high pressure nozzle on the hose right before a full car wash. It doesn't always get it all off, so sometimes scrubbing with a sponge helps.
since we wash our rims so frequently, the brake dust really isn't too caked on, so by the time we come to the end of the car wash, we just wash with the remaining bucket of suds and the rest of the filth comes right off.

Did you actually use the product or are you going by what you heard? The reason I ask is that your information is totally wrong. The CD-2 kit is all that is need for cleaning your engine properly. The kit includes a very strong degreaser that will clean any engine.

Next time come correct with the facts before you spew information that is incorrect. In regards to the wheels. I would use any car wash shampoo like Mothers, Meguairs Gold Class, etc.

-Antonio

I apologize, I misread that he said "kit" as I've only used the cd2 detailer alone. I actually went back and reread and didn't get a chance to edit my post yet.
thanks for pointing that out.
my bad.

and yes I've used CD2.
in fact, I believe Elky and I were with you in the autoparts store across from the car wash at SZ this year and helped you find a can of it in the store.

get the new issue of motor trend it has a section about cheap cleaning stuff.