Wheels & Tires
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Wheel Finger
My absolute favorite product when cleaning wheels!
Our hands are incredible tools and generally they do what we want them to. Cleaning a wheel is very satisfying, but even more so when you don’t miss a spot. This product provides you some insurance in that department because you can use it to contact every surface on the wheel face.
They come in a pack of four, I have had mine for years and still using the first one. If you want to clean your wheels thoroughly the first time, you need these.
Detail Factory (4 Pack)
These are my favorite brushes to date.
Now I use them in the following way:
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Small soft bristle for interior work
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Small boar’s hair for lug nuts and intricate caliper areas
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Large soft bristle for leather and larger plastic panels
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Large boar’s hair for wheel face.
The boar’s hair brushes will shed, this is normal. Great brushes, very ergonomic, and last a long time. Worth the price.
TUF SHINE Tire Brush
I have used many different brushes in the past to scrub tire faces, and this one is by far the best I have used. It lasts forever and gets the job done.
Bristles are aggressive enough to scrub our tire but not so much that they would damage your wheel face should you make contact. Absolutely needed for your wheel cleaning tools.
EZ Detail Brush
If you are not cleaning your wheel barrels, in my opinion, you are not cleaning your wheels. The overall finish and look of a clean wheel face AND barrel will set you apart. Period.
Now, this tool makes that an absolute breeze and is the perfect combo of aggression and flexibility so that you can get to as much of the barrel as possible. The wire inside the tool is also thin enough that you can still get in between most wheel spokes and behind most calipers (some not so much). Get this tool, clean your barrel, and enjoy TRULY clean rims.
Gtechniq W5 Citrus APC
This is an incredibly useful APC and I have used quite a few of them. This one is my favorite. Now, it is dilutable which is great so you can control how aggressive it is. Now for tires, I usually go 4:1. You can also use it of course for interiors and other areas, but I would cut it to 10:1.
If you buy the gallon you are good to go for quite some time. If you do this, you will need multiple bottles and just label them as APC along with the dilution you’ve chosen. Another beautiful use for this APC is that it is safe on paint, at a lower dilution, and does a number on bug guts. You will be very happy with this APC and how versatile it is.
CarPro Iron X
This is a dual use chemical for me: you need to use this to decontaminate your paint (iron fall out) and to really clean your wheels if you have allowed them to get away from you. This is an expensive product and you really only want to use this when it is necessary. You don’t need too much either, so do not get carried away. If you are unsure about how this works, feel free to YouTube: Iron X Fallout removal. Now, this is something you do not want to use in sunlight in any circumstances because it can dry onto the surface. After you have applied this to either your paint or your wheels, agitate If desired, rinse it off as thoroughly as possible with a pressure washer and you are good to go.
P&S Brake Buster
Now this is your ultimate wheel cleaning product. It is dilutable 5:1 and is perfect for wheels that have been well maintained. It can be used on the wheels and on the tires. This is safe on all kinds of wheels and is a little more forgiving in the sun, but still try to avoid it as much as you can.
If you need more strength, then you can use the product straight or 3:1. It really depends on how dirty you let your wheels get in order to determine how much concentration your batch needs. A gallon is very inexpensive, so go ahead and order the gallon and you will be set for quite some time.
Stoner Terminator
Now, they do have tar removers out there that you can spray over the whole car, let it dwell, and then spray it away. I have used these in the past and while they do a decent job for light tar, it takes quite some time for the chemical to actually break everything down.
This product is very strong and concentrated. The way I use this is by applying a good amount to a microfiber towel then go straight to the tar that you see. It involves a bit more work but gets what you need accomplished much more efficiently.
Meguiar’s Hyper Dressing
There are more tire dressings out there then I can count. So many promise to last the longest, to shine the brightest, and to apply “dry to the touch”. I have used a good amount of them, and generally they do not deliver. In my experience, the shiny-forever lasting tire shines have a lot of silicon in them and they can damage the tire wall over time (ever seen those brown tires rolling around on the road?).
This tire dressing is water based. This has so many different benefits. Being water based, you can apply to taste. The more you apply the shinier it can be. Being water based, it will not last as long, but your tires will keep their natural matte sheen over time.
Adam’s Tire Shine Applicator
Now, I have used a variety of tire shine applicators, even a grout sponge. None of them last as long or are as ergonomic as this incredible little tire shine applicator.
The handle they have is far away enough from the tire shine application area to keep your fingers clean. The application area is also ridged enough that it will last a long time. If you are only applying tire shine to your personal cars, 1-3 of these will last you long enough.
