I took my bass boat out in some brackish water, tide was up, and got some stagnant water all over my wheels.. didn’t think much of it, as I fish all the time and never have issues with my wheels.. Well, I rinsed them lightly with the hose when I got home and went on my way. I don’t drive my truck that much lately, so a few weeks go by before I notice. I see a light brown film on them, and figure it’s just mud/dirt so I try and clean it. Nothing. I quickly discover its surface rust.

The wheels are 22x9.5 Painted black, chrome center and chrome lip Boss 335. I tried Turtle wax cleaner/polish on a Mother’s power ball.. nothing.. I ordered some stuff I saw on YouTube also, called Gord’s.. and it worked okay.

Suggestions on how to get this crap off without ruining my wheels? Please.

So far, Eagle Alloy cleaner, turtle wax, and Gord’s cleaner/polish have been tried.

 

The wheels when they were clean/rust free

 

I've had good luck cleaning up chrome wheels with S.O.S. pads. The soap in the steel wool pad does a good job of cleaning & lubricating so the chrome doesn't get scratched to hell, and the steel wool removes the rust. Then I follow up with a coat of Turtle Wax.

I'm not too sure about using that on the painted part though.

 

clay bar

 

The Gord's cleaner that i used actually came with the soap filled steel wool pad and a shop rag.. which i used for over an hour. massaging the cleaner/polish in with the steel wool lightly, removing, and repeating. it cleaned the chrome up fairly well, but the painted part of the wheel is still covered in surface rust.

the Clay Bar suggestion - have you tried this before? i am down to try if it yields results on this issue!

 

i did on a set of centerlines on a vette. came out fantastic. had brakedust and other **** in the wheels

 

i am down to try it! thank you for the suggestion

 

i didn't think it would work either. i was running out of idea's. so i threw everything i knew at em. worst case scenario i had to polish the wheels back out.

 

I am gonna try this evening with the Clay!

 

So how did the clay bar work for you? I'm late to the party but I would think the clay would work best on the painted surface since it is likely contamination anyway as the paint nor the aluminum beneath it is going to "rust".