jkoh

2002 C240

Hello,

I notice every time I wash my car that my front wheels are much dirtier than the rear wheels. Basically the metal in the front wheels turned black, and the real ones stayed silver. Is this something to worry about?

Thank you much.

mdp c230k

this is normal. The front brakes do most of the stopping in a car as the weight is transfered from the rear wheels to the front as the car stops. More weight = more dust.

Mark08859

What you're seeing is almost certainly brake dust. The front wheels of almost any vehicle sustain 80% of the braking force when you stop. There are several things you can do from cheap (wash your wheels regularly) to inexpensive (polish wheels - there is a gel product recommended on other posts) to somewhat expensive (replace brake pads with a low dust brand such as Porterfield).

I don't know how well dust shields work. Does anyone have any experience or opinions?

tommy

I've heard that dust shields aren't worth it, as they trap heat (pads are cheaper than brake assemblies).

FWIW

trench

tommy's right, these things are only good if you think it's a good idea to keep dust off of the wheels by warping the rotors.

Cheers, BT

Fuzzo

ive heard bad things about the dust shields as well and some said that MB doesn't recomend it....

I would try and find what products make the whole cleaning process easier.. basically what I would like to see is something that can be sprayed on and then washed off with no "scrubbing"

revstriker

When I polish my car, I put a coat on the rims as well. This does not prevent the brake dust, but it sure makes it easier to clean! You still have to hit it with a sponge/brush/cleaning mitt though. As posted ealier, the fronts are always worse than the back due to the added weight over the front when stopping.

BlackC230Coupe

i would never get dust sheilds even of they were recomended they look ugly IMHO i would rather just wash my car more often.

and yes the front wheels always get more brake dust. just like my jaguar i see BMW's have the same problem to.

Vince

california car duster at costco...

it comes with the small duster as well.

i use that on my wheels every morining

BlackC230Coupe

i hate that thing when i used it on my black car it left little streak marks from the wax on the duster all over the dam car.

revstriker

I try to use mine everyday, and I've never had this problem. Did you let the duster air out for 48 hours when you first got it?

I don't have the little duster, but that sounds like a good idea. I do have the Calf. Waterblade though. This works really well. It cuts my drying time in half.

Lynn

I had been using the CA Waterblade just on the glass, but last night I used it on the paint because it was getting dark. Are you seeing any marks in the clearcoat caused by the Waterblade?

I haven't used my CA Dashduster yet. Instead of the dash, I think I'll try it on the wheels.

revstriker

I'm very careful when I wash my car, and I make sure that I rinse it WELL! I have not seen any marks at all from the waterblade. I do have about 4 coats of zaino on there now, and the water just "slides" off with the blade. You don't need any pressure at all.

As for the duster, I think this works well too. You have to let it "air out" on some newspaper for 48 hours before you can use it. The newspaper absorbs a lot of the resin (or whatever is on there). Then you give it a good shake, and lightly dust, shake again, and put it in it's storage bag. I only use this on very light dust though. If it looks heavy, then I wash it.

I don't have a dashduster, but I think it's a good idea to get one for the wheels! I'll have to go to Costco this weekend....

hokusbenz

as long as you air out the duster it works fine. even if u dont the first time the wax marks are easlily buffed away. i am going to get my hands on the waterblade soon too.

FrankW

i was gonna say what they say...

anything for a post

viper

You would think that it in this day and age MB and BMW for that matter would come up with some innovative wheel designs that would direct brake dust away from the wheel surface. Or at least some type of wheel design that would be a breeze to clean. Those multi-spoke turbine style wheels on some BMW's must be a real challenge to keep clean.

BlackC230Coupe

i had the california water blade to it was ok but i would rather a towel i had trouble always getting the wather out of the cracks even with a towel so what i did was return the waterblade and i went to home depot and bought a electric blower and to dry it i first blow the whole car, and its great it gets all the water off easy and out of the cracks i then use a towel to just finish it up.

by the way is there a difference in the dash duster and car duster or is it just the size?

kineda

Try changing your pads to Mintex or Porterfields for less brake dust. It helps immensely!!

Vince

i'm pretty sure that the only difference is the size on the car dusters.

Mark08859

What about the stopping power of these brands compared to stock. Better, worse, or the same? Thanks.