Ok..... When I got my Mini, I loved the white 17" wheels with the white top and white side mirrors. Sexy, I thought. little did I know, my white wheels would be white for a total of 1 trip after I wash them.

I think it's brake dust that's causing my wheels to go black. And I'm afraid it's going to stain them. I don't know what to do... I scrub every wheel for at least 15 minutes. I try to do it at least every 3 days -- but I don't always have the time, but I can't stand to have them dirty.

Anyone have the same problem with their white rims? Anyone have a solution? I plan on getting black rims -- but not any time soon.

WHAT DO I DO?!

 

Wheel wax may protect them but I don't have white. Makes it easier to wash off the brake dust. Good luck.

 

yeah, white deffinetly isnt the problem, silver is really bad as well, and i hear black is worse yet. Gunmetal works tho, my mustang has gunmetal rims and they always look clean (until you touch a part of them of course). I dont really think there is anything to do to prevent it. Unfortunaly i find standard paint wax makes it worse (the static in the wax). Never tried wheel wax tho, i think i have heard respones on that stuff from both ends of the spectrum tho, you could always try it tho.

Beecher

 

Waxing the wheels helps, I dust mine between washings with an old towel. As long as it doesn't rain and the brake dust doesn't get wet, you can dust the wheels in about five minutes, I usually do it when I get home at night. I have an old pair of gloves and use the same towel over and over again, it seems to work better the dirtier it gets. Just shake it out after each wheel. In the summer I 've gone weeks with out a wash dusting the wheels each day and using the Cali Duster every couple of days.

 

oh yeah, thanks jimbo i forgot, you can just wipe them clean if they dont get wet. The rims on my stang do have a silver lip, that always looks dirty, and i just run a towel around the edge to clean it (being very careful not to touch teh rest, otherwise your in for a full cleaning). So yeah, as long as it doesnt get wet, just wipe em down.

come to think of it, you might even want to do that before you wash them, less mess to try to rinse that way

Beecher

 

Do a search in the detailing forum - LOTS of info there on this topic. Short version:

1) Wheel wax helps - several options
2) some good products that are spray on, rinse off. you could do this every few days.
3) QD your wheels every day or two (I do)
4) get brake pads that dust MUCH less than stock - some do.

 

It doesn't really matter what color your wheels are - the stock brake pads give off serious dust as is the case with all BMW's. Waxing your wheels helps - I've heard that Greenstuff pads produce way less dust but I haven't had the chance to personally try those out -there's a ton of threads on this very topic.

 

I have Hawk ceramic pads. Much, much less dust, and the dust that exists is lighter in color - more of a "bronze" that doesn't show as badly.

That, combined with a waxing with Wheel Shield every 5,000 miles when I rotate the wheels, and a spritz of Slick QD and wipedown every few days keeps my wheels CLEAN.

 

The stock pads give off dust for a reason. They have great stopping power. I do not race & never will so I am not concered with fade & such but the Hawk HPS pads are very low dusting & now that I have gotten my brake caliper problem fixed I would say that they have very very close to the initial bite of the OEM pads. With my OEM pads my wheels would dust in one day. With the Hawks I don't even notice dust after 1 week.

 

Hawk Ceramics and Wheel Wax and a dedicated Cali Duster will fix your problems. Don't wait until your OEM pads wear out, replace them now. Ensure rotors are scuffed and fluid is changed while you are at it.

 

No thanks, trying to cut down.

 

Why do i need to replace the pads? something wrong with them if they're giving off a lot of dust? I thought that was normal? hmmm... now, i'm confused. lol :impatient

 

German OEM brake pads are known to cause brake dusk. Especially if you've owned a mercedes. I clean my wheels a-lot but, my s-lites are stained and speckled so I figured I'd buy the mothers polishing ball to take off the speckles and dust becuase traditional washing only takes off the present layer of dust.