Best Wheel Cleaners For Your Car: Let Those Wheels Shine

One of our top picks when it comes to a wheel cleaner spray that delivers top-notch results quickly and easily is Jay Leno’s Garage Wheel Cleaner spray. It’s safe to use on your chrome, alloy, aluminum, painted, powder-coated, and clear coated wheel surfaces. It’s a thick and dense formula that clings tightly to the wheel surface to actively attack tough caked-on dirt and grime. You’ll know it’s working because the formula will change to a deep purple color as it does its job.

Most gunk and dirt will come off independently, but tougher tar or grime may take a little elbow grease. This formula specifically reacts with iron particles in the brake dust to loosen it and easily rinse it away. It’s even safe for use on carbon and ceramic brake pads and rotors. However, use caution not to leave the formula on the wheels for too long, as prolonged exposure could lead to wheel damage.

The first thing you may note is that nowhere in the name of this spray bottle does it state that it’s a wheel cleaner. That’s because this incredible product from CarGuys is designed to replace all your individual cleaning products, including your dedicated wheel cleaner product.

It’s safe to use on all surfaces except [glass and instrument panel screens](../best-auto-glass-cleaners/). Aside from that, you can spray it on your vehicle with happy abandon and get incredible results from this non-toxic, surprisingly mild product. It’s pretty cost-effective to have the ability to clean nearly every surface with just one product. It even comes with a free towel. What more do you want?

Do you remember the scene in the film Ghostbusters 2 when the characters spray pink slime over the Statue of Liberty to make it walk? That could be an application guide for this product.

First of all, it’s a far nicer product than paranormal slime, but when it is sprayed onto your wheels it foams up nicely and is designed to cling to surfaces even when they are vertical, i.e. a wheel. This makes application super simple: just spray it on and let it soak in and do its job, breaking down dirt and grime that’s easy to wipe off.

Its mild formula is safe on factory paint, trim, and rubber, so you don’t have to be too picky about where you spray it. This is one of the cheaper products on the list, but is it a great overall product that’s easy to use and will leave your wheels sparkling clean.

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This product from Mothers is one of the cheapest on the list, but don’t let that fool you. There’s a lot going on in this bottle. It’s more than meets the eye and more than you would expect for the price.

This product is specially formulated to be safe to use on a range of surfaces – including paint and chrome – making it easy to apply. It foams up nicely to penetrate caked-on dirt and, despite being mild enough that you don’t have to worry about your paint, it is tough enough on dirt that it rinses right away without any scrubbing. For a bargain price, you get a top-level wheel cleaner.

This great product from Trinova provides a really deep clean that makes it perfect if you’re working with older wheels that didn’t receive all the care and attention they needed over the years.

Cleaning the wheels is a hassle sometimes, and we can’t always be bothered, right? If that sounds familiar this could be the product for you. It’s specially formulated to bring back shine and restore luster to dull and dirty wheels. It’s specially formulated to tackle those irritating [stains left behind by snow and road salt deposits, making it the perfect product for keeping your wheels looking sharp in colder weather.

Turtle Wax is a widely revered manufacturer of automotive detailing products. With the Turtle Wax 50814 Wheel and Tire Cleaner, you get an acid-free formula suitable for use on all types of wheels and tires. It’s got a tough power foam formula that penetrates and removes even the most demanding and most stubborn dirt and brake dust. It will restore that showroom quality shine, even removing annoying tire browning.

This formula is also safe for factory-painted calipers and powder coating, thanks to its synthetic active grease-cutting ingredients. It’s not recommended to let this clinging cleaner stick to your wheels longer than 30 seconds. It’s also not suitable for use on non-factory painted wheels or wheels warm from recent driving.

Just because you’re on a bit of a budget doesn’t mean you need to sacrifice cleaning power for price, especially with the Black Magic No Scrub Wheel Cleaner. It makes short work of stubborn road grime, dirt, and brake dust, getting your wheels ready for a good polishing. It promises not to leave behind any hazing or discoloration. This is one of the few wheel cleaners on our list that is also pH neutral and safe for use on not just chrome wheels but also on ABS plastic, wire, and mag wheels. It also works great on polished, painted, anodized, and clear coat finishes.

It’s got a super easy application, like many of the other options on our list. You just spray it onto cool, dry wheels, let it work its magic for 1-2 minutes, then hose it off with cool water to remove dust and debris without a ton of effort on your part. Some really stubborn deposits may require a bit of scrubbing, however.

Griot’s Garage has a reputation for producing premium car cleaning products, and this wheel cleaner is no exception.

It is a remarkably mild, PH-balanced formula that is not only safe to use on a variety of materials such as aluminum and paint, it is also non-toxic and environmentally friendly. That means when you rinse the product away, you don’t have to worry about where the runoff is going.

Coupled with that is the fact you are getting a high-quality finish with deep cleaning capabilities that will leave your wheels looking incredible, and this really is an excellent product. Price-wise it’s toward the top end of the scale, but not really any higher than you would typically expect to pay for a premium brand of this type.