After a scant three days of MINI ownership and my 16" Bridgespokes have already gone from white to brake dust gray. Talk about powder coated.

I noted all of the various comments on how dusty the OEM pads were, and how hard the white wheels were to keep clean and got them anyway.

Luckily it didn't take much (a couple sprays of Slick and a little wiping with a cheapo MF towel from the Target) to get them looking good again. I guess this is going to be an every other day ritual.

I do have a couple of questions though:

- Do the pads tend to dust more when they're new, or is it going to be like this until I run out of pad? (Which can't be too much longer.) My MA's wheels (His MINI's wheels technically. My MA himself had feet.) look dusty, but not this bad.

- What do people use to get at the dust around the lug bolts? I could get everything with the towel, but the lugs are recessed and thus not towelable.

- Any recommendations on what to use (as in a mitt, or a specific brush, etc.) when it's finally time to wash the wheels? It's butt **** cold outside, but I think I could probably handle a wheel washing.

- I was going to use Hydro on them until I ordered some Wheel Shield or similar product, but I do have my Banana Gas sample. Hrm... Interesting or boneheaded idea?

- Speaking of Wheel Shield, what kind of thang would I use to apply it to the wheels?

 

1) They do dust less as time goes on...but they're still pretty bad. Replace them when they're worn (or when you just can't take the dust anymore) with ceramic pads or EBC GreenStuff pads...they dust a LOT less.

2) I use q-tips. Not particularly fun, but I don't do it as often as I do the rest of the wheel.

3) I have two things I use: a cheapie MF mit (from "the Target" ) and some long-handled wheel brushes (they look more like nylon scrubbie pads on a stick) from Griot's to get back a little further.

4) You can try the BG...it won't hurt anything and it might make the dust rinse off a bit easier.

5) I apply Wheel Shield (and all waxes, in fact) with just a MF pad...one of DP's "skinny" pads, actually.

 

i use a boar's hair wheel brush from Griots for washing wheels. but
if its' only after a drive or two, i just use slick and papertowels.

it helps A LOT to have Hydro coated on your wheels after each wash.
after you wash your wheels, just spray hydro over your wet wheels and
wipe down using your MF towel... I just use a papertowel. after several
applications of Hydro, it turns into a super slick teflon like finish.

as far as wheelsheild, i use those short haired cotton towels from
Griot's. use one section to apply, another section to buff.

 

Here are a couple of very good products that work great and also help repel the dust. I use my power washer to get to all the hard to reach spots, or go to one of those self serve car washes, and clean them every morning with my QD as part of my morning ritual . I know, I'm **** . But, I finally gave up on that and have replaced my pads with Rotex Gold pads, and NO DUST. I know, some folks here don't like them because they think they wont bite as well as the OEM pads, but I can tell you I think they are great. I have no issues with the performance I get out of them.

 

i can confirm that FPM's wheels were very clean when i met him
a few weeks ago.

hi FPM!

 

I'm sure I'll break down and get some different pads eventually, but I just can't do it yet. Not when the car's less than a month old. Plus I don't know if any of the aftermarket pad makers have pads for the R56. At least they didn't a couple months ago when I was in full research mode.

Thanks for the tips! Were the only things you mentioned the No Dust spray in the picture and the Rotex Gold pads? It almost seemed like the html in your post was messed up (when you click the picture, the link goes nowhere).

 

Here's the other product. I don't know what happened the first time.

 

This is quickly turning into the Detailing 101 equivalent of this thread.