I am having a tough time removing the baked on brake dust from the chromed wheels of my 1998 E320. I have tried multiple wheel cleaners from P21, Eagle, Meguiars wheel brite, all with no luck in removing the baked on dust. It does fine for the majority of the wheel, but I want all the areas to be brite and like new. Any Ideas? Someone from a detailing shop recommended Hydrofluric acid, but I am afraid of wrecking my brakes, or other damage. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Lionel,

I would recommend using P21S Multi-Surface Finish Restorer Polish (must be a word-for-word German translation). It is essentially a metal polish that I have used very successfully on my own chromed rims and various chrome trim. Excellent results. Just be careful not to get it on black trim as it will tend to make the black lighter.

Good luck-

Terry

By the time the brake dust is baked into little nubs or pits there is little you can do. By then it is burned into the surface of the wheel. Even if you removed it there would be a depression that would just fill up rapidly again. Since the Chroming process weakens the wheel by over 30% you are not starting out with the best foundation. BTW, NO german manufacturer sells wheels that are chrome as OEM as they do not meet TUV standards. Someone in the pipeline had to of bought chrome wheels or had the OEM's chromed. Depending on how bad the burn marks annoy you it might be time to call Rennsport. Sorry I can't be the bearer of better news.

Hope this helps...Lee

Just to update everyone. I tried a sample of Flitz'z metal polish, and it removed the baked on brake dust. It took a little bit of effort, but the chrome wheels look better than new. I would suggest anyone needing a metal polish to check the web site, they will send you samples for only the shipping charge ($4).

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I recently bought an 89 300E with chromed factory alloy rims. The recesses were caked with the "baked-on" brake dust.
I bought some Eagle One Chrome & Wire cleaner and a nylon "parts brush" and went to town on them. I found that the bristles were too long (2.5 inches) to be effective, so I cut them down with a razor blade to around 1.5 inches.

I had to really spend some time on them (maybe 4 hours total) but now all of the crusty stuff is gone and I keep 'em shining bright with a quick touch-up every week.

It was definitely worth the effort because they now look REALLY GOOD!

Two words, "Simple Green". It desolves the brake dust in 2 seconds flat, and with a nylon brush each wheel should take 1 minute max. Also a good tire sidewall cleaner but a bit too harsh for every car wash. Good luck,
P.S. You don't have to feel bad rinsing it down the driveway either, its non-toxic.

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96 C280

Do be VERY careful with Simple Green on wheels. I've seen that stuff kill the paint on a factory wheel. If the offending crud is to the point where nothing else is touching it use it and get it off the finish as quick as possible but be very careful when using cleaners like that. Certainly not for everyday use on a painted wheel.

Lee

Sorry!!!

Didn't read the post close enough, I only use on Chromed wheels. Also, is you use try diluting to 3:1 with water.
Try http://carcareonline.com/howto_articles.html , very helpful for all beautification!

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96 C280

Wenol is the best on the market.

There is a Wenol application specifically for chrome and billet applications. One use and you will agree that it is far better than the rest.

I sell them for $11 tube. Give me an email for more info...

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Cayette Apostol
1989 260E - 105K +
"Smooth as Glass"