Stuff on my wheels

[Blitzkrieg]

Hey all,

I have had my car under a car cover parked outside for a few months....I went to take her for a spin the other day when I noticed what looked like dirt on my front wheels...tried to wash them off but it didn't come off.

I thought it might be brake dust but I had washed the car and then put the car cover on it so it's not that. It almost looks like mould but I'm not sure.

The back wheels are fine, no issues or marks at all so I'm confused what it is and why it's only on my front wheels.

Does anyone know what it is and how i get it off? I'm based in Melbourne, Australia, so a cleaning product available here would be good.

If anyone could help me, that would be awesome!

Thanks everyone!

Con

[bigel]

Looks like oxidation...try using metal polish.

[wayne robson]

My guess is its a petroleum substance , like tar or similar,
go buy small tin of prepsol or autosolv degrease from paint store,this wont hurt car finish,
your rear wheels may have been covered by tarp,and did not get splashed
by passing tar truck.

[Blitzkrieg]

that's the weird thing...after i washed the car to put the cover on it, the wheels were fine......the car cover wraps around the whole car, including front and rear wheels.

the car hasn't left the driveway in about 6 months since i covered it....and it's parked a far distance from the street, so no tar trucks.

I thought oxidisation would leave white stains, these are black.

[zedsn]

Maybe try some gasoline on a rag and see it it helps to remove the black stuff.

[DanielDudley]

If those are clear coated, that is oxidation bloom under the clear coat. If there is no clear coat, it will be a lot easier to buff that out. I had an idiot mechanic drive one of my cars in a salty slush, and my BBS wheels corroded like that in two days.

I Hope I'm wrong for your sake...

[Blitzkrieg]

hmmm ok, thanks for your help guys....I'll try out your suggestions and see how it goes. Hopefully it comes off because I'm about to advertise the car to sell it.

[Canada Kev]

That's on the anodized portion of your wheels. I suspect that if it is corrosion, buffing or polishing might remove the anodization. I'd follow suggestions, and try the non-invasive solvents or cleaners first.

Good luck.

[DanielDudley]

Originally Posted by Canada Kev

That's on the anodized portion of your wheels. I suspect that if it is corrosion, buffing or polishing might remove the anodization. I'd follow suggestions, and try the non-invasive solvents or cleaners first.

Good luck.

It doesn't look like anodizing in the picture. But what you say is true for anodizing, because if you use a fast cutting polish, you can work through the coating, as hard as it is.

[fiminod]

Another reason not to use car covers....

[john walker's workshop]

Kangaroo piss.

[tcar]

Porsche says to wipe them down with petroleum jelly (Vaseline) and wipe all all of it off.
See your owner's manual.

Worked like a charm for me.

[911h20]

Cat piss

[RSBob]

It looks like the rims were polished at some point, removing the anodizing. What you see, like the others said (other than dirt) is corrosion. If available use Mothers wheel polish or a metal polish which will lessen the appearance but will not completely remove since the metal is already pitted.

[Bill Douglas]

Yep, that's good ole Melbourne sea air caused oxidation.

[kevin930t]

You dont want to polish the wheel,you just want to remove the corrosion.Go get yourself some navel jelly from a hardware store put some on a clean towel also a bucket of soapy water and a hose,apply to a small area let it sit for a few and wipe off.

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[kevin930t]

This is the results.

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[Bob Kontak]

Originally Posted by Bill Douglas

Yep, that's good ole Melbourne sea air caused oxidation.

Listen to this man.

Try lacquer thinner. Alternatively, paint remover won't even touch the anodized surface. Try that.

You will rub your natural "ask" off trying to get through an anodized surface.

[Fixer]

Short story is car covers are bad outdoors, they hold moisture around your car.
Get creative and make a roof over the car somehow.
Many years ago while building a carport for my first 911, I did this between three trees with a tarp.
Worked great until the port was complete.

[DanielDudley]

Originally Posted by kevin930t

You dont want to polish the wheel,you just want to remove the corrosion.Go get yourself some navel jelly from a hardware store put some on a clean towel also a bucket of soapy water and a hose,apply to a small area let it sit for a few and wipe off.

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I'm impressed.