Cleaning Rotor Hats/BMW WHEELS

**swanicyouth** · 05-27-2012, 08:16 AM

So, I'm finally sending the wheels out on my BMW M Roadster to get refinished via powder coating. A few times I've mentioned here how these BMW wheels in particular had a problem from the factory with the finish, mainly clear coat failure. For anyone interested here is how these wheels look after 35k and only being cleaned with car wash soap:

And spots the factory (Austria) completely missed when painting:

I'll take the blame for this one:

Anyway, the way these wheels are, you can see sections of the rotor hats through the wheels on the car. The the rotor hats are embedded with grease and brake dust. I tried cleaning them with APC + (Megs) with little improvement. So, I got some Megs Chrome Wheel cleaner which I believe is their strongest, at least it smells like it. I haven't had a chance to use it yet, but does anyone else have any ideas of what would work that is OTC? Before you ask, I don't have any Iron X or the turn around time to order any. Unless I pay for super fast shipping. Maybe...What about Wolf's Decon Gel???

**AudiTTman** · 05-27-2012, 09:17 AM

Now being that this is an area that does see some heat, I wouldn't recommend using this next solution unless the rotor hats are off the car and are cleaned completely. RainX does one heck of a job removing build up grease and dirt on rotor hats. It literally melts off the grease and brake dust (make sure to have a nice stiff brush with ya to work it. The moment you drip the RainX on the hat, it should start breaking it apart immediately

**swanicyouth** · 05-27-2012, 03:19 PM

??? Rain X removes grease??? Really? I hope this isn't a joke because I have some Rain X and I hate it. The would be great. Getting Rain X on a microfiber towel is the worst, IMHO it never comes off. Thanks for the tip! I'll also try Brake Clean.

**AudiTTman** · 05-27-2012, 03:22 PM

Originally Posted by swanicyouth

??? Rain X removes grease??? Really? I hope this isn't a joke because I have some Rain X and I hate it. The would be great. Getting Rain X on a microfiber towel is the worst, IMHO it never comes off. Thanks for the tip! I'll also try Brake Clean.

Ohh no joke. I actually cleaned a friends MV Agusta Brutale chain, sprocket, and nasty greased filled wheel parts with that an a whole box of Qtips. And you're right, rainX never comes off those towels, so if you do try it on the rotor hats, rinse them off with water.

I actually dripped the rainX directly on the chain and it was amazing to watch it break apart the grease. Now I can't guarantee its going to work, but from what ive personally seen, it does a good job

**pital** · 05-27-2012, 04:01 PM

are the wheels not covered under warranty?

**swanicyouth** · 05-28-2012, 07:51 AM

Ok, decided to get up and tackle this job this morning, when I couldn't find the Rain X. I think I threw it out when I got the Griots Glass Sealant. Anyway, these where the products I thought I'd try:

That's Meg's Chrome Wheel Cleaner, Simple Green 1:4, and Meg's APC+ 1:4, and Wearever Brake Clean.

Here is a before:

Here is the after:

The Meg's Chrome Wheel Cleaner did the brunt of the work. Oddly enough, there was stuff that only came off with APC. Then, I sprayed everything down with Brake Clean. Wheel "finishes" are not covered under BMW warranty, or so I was told. The BMW dealer "re-finished" them once as a good wheel gesture. In a few weeks it was peeling again. Im not sure why. I only use car wash to wash them. It must be the pressure washer water being sprayed at high pressure. However, this exact wheel BMW makes is known for having a shoddy finish. Once they are refinished, they will only see a hose.

**swanicyouth** · 06-03-2012, 07:48 AM

Got the wheels back from the powder coater. Washed them with Dawn, and coated them with Opti Coat 2.0. Here are some pictures. The color is called Hyper Silver, a little brighter than the factory BMW color, and hopefully more durable. Overall, I'm very pleased. Wheels look brand new, and tires were remounted and balanced correctly (staggered set-up). While I had the wheels off, I took the chance to change the brake fluid with the Motive bleeder using Pentosin Dot 4 HD fluid. The wheels:

Some close ups:

New center caps ($100.00 !):

Re-installing the emblems with 3M Emblem Adhesive:

Thanks for looking.

**BobbyG** · 06-03-2012, 09:34 AM

My God those wheels are absolutely GORGEOUS!!

Applying everything off the car especially when new is the best way to get this done. You have the opportunity to place the wheel and tire directly in front of you and take advantage of the light and location.....

**swanicyouth** · 06-03-2012, 07:48 PM

Thanks! Opti Coat on BMW wheels is awesome. When I bought this car the wheels would get dirty after 1 drive. I mean dirty. I switched to very low dust brake pads and OC'ed the wheels. I went from having the dirtiest hardest to clean wheels, to the easiest / cleanest wheels overnight. But the damage to the finish was done prior to the switch. Anyone who likes or spends a lot time cleaning wheels should Opti Coat them. Even the barrels get clean with little more than a hose. Awesome product.