De-ironing products

[kaanage]

Just wondering what peoples experiences have been with these products, especially on wheels that have been poorly maintained for a couple or more years.

I have found that Einszett 1Z ColourTec Wheel Cleaner does a great job on wheels that are a year or so old (just tested with my neighbour's Cruze today) but with our 3 year old Golf, there are iron deposits embedded in the paint that take many, many applications to dissolve.

I also tried some Iron-X paste and found that this is stronger but the deposits still require many applications to remove them.

After checking with Car Care Products, I also used the Einszett 1Z ColourTec Wheel Cleaner to decon the paintwork on our Golf (and my neighbour's Cruze) and it was amazing the amount of fallout that was on the bonnet, rear and even the roof. The most surprising thing was that my neighbour's 1 year old car had more contamination than our 3 year old one (both are white so the purple streaking really shows up).

[kaanage]

Just to add to the list, other de-ironing products I've heard of a Wolf Chemicals Decon Gel, Sonax Full Effect Wheel Cleaner and Bilt Hamber Korrosol.

[QBDentFree]

Most people seem to be using Iron-X, but I just bought the Wolf Chemicals one and it worked pretty well for me too. My wheels were reasonably clean to start with though. I haven't used it on the paint yet, but just clayed the car a couple days ago, so it'd be interesting to see how much it picks up

[kaanage]

That'd be interesting since the claying may only shave off the top part of the fallout if it's embedded firmly in the paint.
It definitely seems quicker to clay a car after it has been de-ironed.

I just "detailed" my dad's 7 year old white Peugeot today as a father's day gift and EVERY panel had loads of fallout when sprayed with 1Z ColourTec after a snowfoam/rinse/2 bucket wash/rinse.
Strangely, the wheels cleaned up very well after a single, heavy spray of the 1Z ColourTec so either the VW brake pads have loads more iron or driving style greatly affects how firmly the brake dust crud gets embedded in the wheels.

[Wolfgang]

I use Wolfs Decon Gel for bodywork and wheels on my own car when I give it a full detail every six months. When I detail someone else's car I use Wolfs on the bodywork and Einzett Colourtec on wheels because I found the Einzett colourtec faded my factory painted calipers slightly.

[kaanage]

Interesting.
Does the 1z fade any of your customers calipers? And did you manage to restore the colour on your calipers?

With the white cars, I didn't find any effect on the paint work (tested on a small patch at the base of the rear valance in each case) other than the de-ironing effect.

[QBDentFree]

I've heard of some products turning red calipers pink as well. Not sure if it is product specific or all iron-dissolving products across the board

[Polo GTEye N9]

I've heard of some products turning red calipers pink as well. Not sure if it is product specific or all iron-dissolving products across the board

So remove the wheels and de-iron, yes a bit more effort but calipers and color stay as equipped.

[QBDentFree]

So remove the wheels and de-iron, yes a bit more effort but calipers and color stay as equipped.

One option, yes. But I'd be interested to see if only certain products affected the calipers. It'd be easier to buy a different product than to remove the wheels every time

[kaanage]

Yes, that's why I was hoping Wolfgang would come back and answer my followup questions in light of his detailing business.

[kaanage]

A finding from last weekend with an old car - 1Z ColourTec can cause SOME single stage paints to fade.
My neighbour and I experiemented with his XF Falcon and found that the resprayed bonnet faded compared to the rest of the paintwork (some of which had also been resprayed but at other times). He now has a red car with an orange bonnet

I'm betting that Wolf Chemicals Decon Gel (and Sonax Full Effect Wheel Cleaner and Iron-X) would have the same effect since the de-ironing agent is the same

[Wolfgang]

Interesting.
Does the 1z fade any of your customers calipers? And did you manage to restore the colour on your calipers?

With the white cars, I didn't find any effect on the paint work (tested on a small patch at the base of the rear valance in each case) other than the de-ironing effect.

It hasn't discoloured any other calipers because I diluted it slightly with water (about 10-20% water). I've read that red VW callipers are prone to fading, mine were already on their way, the Einzett just accelerated it. The only way to fix it is a coat of paint.

[kaanage]

Thanks - my friend's bonnet also stayed faded, even after I polished it back with a light compound (my training ground for the DA polisher)