Cosmetic Aluminum Wheel Repair

Aluminum wheel repair and maintenance is much the same as any other repair to a bent wheel. You have to take care of them to make them last long, it drives me up the bloody wall to see someone cruising around in a nice car that I will never be able to afford, only to see them treating it worse than the toys I left in the sandbox all winter. If you have a set of sharp looking aluminum wheels on your car, keep them looking their best by following these simple steps, doing so will make it possible for you to maintain them and not have to take them into any wheel repair specialists in the future.

A list of things you will need are: rubber gloves, a bucket, five cups of all purpose automobile cleaner, 4 cups of warm water, a sponge, a soft toothbrush, 2 lint free cleaning cloths, an automotive clear coat, and for that last classy touch some spray wax.

Start out by putting on your rubber gloves and combining the 5 cups of any all purpose automotive cleaner and those 4 cups of warm water in the bucket. Soak your sponge in this and then saturate the aluminum wheel. This will be to remove any loose dirt or debris, getting rid of the bulk of the dirt and grime on your wheel. Next comes the real elbow grease work where you get out your toothbrush and start scrubbing in a small circular motion over the entire wheel. Give extra attention to any area that is particularly dirty or damaged.

Now rinse the entire wheel off with clean water. This is to rinse off all the soap to prevent build up. Just as you can get a buildup of dirt you can also get a buildup of cleaning products. Then you'll have to clean off the cleaning products and that is just a vicious circle that makes my head spin. That is not what we want. We want clean spinning wheels. Was that a pun? I'm not sure, but it is intended as a poor joke.

Dry the wheel off using the lint free cloth. I've always believed that drying everything you wash is just as important as washing it in the first place. It helps eliminate water marks and shows you those last areas you may have missed sooner so you can get right back at cleaning them if need be.

Now we're going to really make them shine. Put a small amount of clear coat on a second lint free cloth. Rub it in smooth circular patterns over the entire wheel. Add clearer coat to get the look and shine you are after. You can now add a thin layer of spray wax if you want even more shine. Be sure to wear gloves the entire time to prevent your hands from becoming dry from the chemicals, and read all labels and warnings on the cleaning products. This piece was for an aluminum wheel repair, I don't want to write one for a chemically damaged human repair too.