[MidLifeCrisis]

Anybody have any idea as to what these streaks might be, what caused them, and more importantly how to remove/get rid of them? Looks to me like maybe someone (not me) sprayed wheel cleaner on it and didn't rinse it off before it dried or a dog pissed on it? Just theories. It actually looks a little worse in person.

 

[Kornercarver]

Have you taken the car through any automatic car washes? That looks kind of like the damage their wheel cleaners cause.

 

[USMC350]

I also got some weird streaks on my wheels that look just like that, but a little Mothers and some elbow grease took it off.

 

[scathing]

Have you tried to wash/rub them off and they're still there, or is it first observation?

If it's first observation and you haven't tried anything yet, then it could be brake pad dust + water splashing onto the rims driving through puddles (or, instead of brake pad dust, road grime in the puddles).

If you've already tried to clean the wheels by hand and the stuff keeps coming up after the wheels dry...get better wheel cleaner.

 

[MidLifeCrisis]

Have you taken the car through any automatic car washes? That looks kind of like the damage their wheel cleaners cause.

I personally would never take the Z thru an automatic car wash. Maybe someone else did.

I also got some weird streaks on my wheels that look just like that, but a little Mothers and some elbow grease took it off.

Thanks USMC350, I'll try that.


Scathing, which wheel cleaner do you suggest?

 

[idrm350]

I would try a little rubbing compound if normal cleaners (like car wash soap) won't take it off.

 

[idrm350]

Another thing that you can try is Plastix by Meguiars. It is intended for polishing plastic but I have found it's uses to be endless. It's a very fine abrasive (finer than rubbing compound I think) but it also has some kind of cleaner(s) that are very effective at loosening "contaminates".

 

[scathing]

Scathing, which wheel cleaner do you suggest?

I'm not sure, but not that one if it doesn't clean properly

In seriousness, I use Meguiar's Acid-Free Wheel & Tire Cleaner. If I have grime baked on and impossible to shift with that, I'll hit it with Bug & Tar remover first. Then I use a wheel wax afterwards.

 

[USMC350]

Im telling you, mine looked just like that. Just get yourself a little jar of Mothers wheel polish and it should come off.

What I did was rub it on and let it sit for like five minutes then just rubbed the crap out of it and they came out good as new.

 

[MidLifeCrisis]

I hate to :deadhorse:and sound like a dumb a$$, but USMC350 which of these products did you use?
Search: mothers wheel polish | Polish | AutoZone.com

 

[USMC350]

Mothers/5 oz. mag and aluminum paste polish

The one the comes in a jar

 

[MidLifeCrisis]

Thanks alot USMC350. I'll try that. Nothing else has worked, ( wheel cleaner, bug & tar remover, chrome polish and mothers aluminum cleaner) so if this doesn't work, maybe a new set wheels are in the near future.:biggrin:

 

[tanabe350z]

Don't polish to much. Nissan did it again. They mixed matched the primer to the paint coat, just like the white scratches on the doors and dash. (From what I've been told, this only happens to the 06' model)

This time they went ahead and thought it was a bright idea to primer the wheel in black and paint it silver. This is for Nissan:finger:. My v2 five spoke rims are showing signs of black primer on certain edges.


You do know polish is meant for bare metals and wax is for paint with clear coat. Polish is more abrasive, that's why it shines metal and aluminum. Wax will never do that . With the polish, I see myself reaching the primer.

 

[smoothz]

So I searched this site for the same problem, and voila! I used some Plast-X and was happy with the results. I think I'll use it more often.

Basically, I thought I had ruined my wheels and machined lips. Fortunately, that wasn't the case and was able to 'salvage' my error.