Meguiar's D14001 Wheel Brightener - I'm sick of it

BlueBeast14GT

BlueBeast14GT

New member
Joined
Sep 17, 2013
Messages
344
Reaction score
0
I got the stuff to save money since I was spending so much on the Meg's Hot Rims Wheel & Tire Cleaner, but it's just not worth it.

This stuff turns my disks to rust nearly every time. I tried doubling the dilution ratio to 8:1 to no avail. And no, I'm not leaving it on too long. I know the rust comes off after I use the brakes a few times, but that leaves behind dust. And the rust does not come off around the very edge where the pads don't touch.
Plus it has now destroyed 1 Zep sprayer (it was diluted 4:1 as suggested) and one gallon pump only a week after I put it in the jug.
I haven't seen something this corrosive since I was 12 and decided to mix every chemical I could find in the house just to see what would happen. Ended up leaving a divot in the sidewalk.
 
I doubt it is the product. Once the rotor has wear, the coating on the surface is gone. It is the water reacting with the bare metal of the rotor causing the rust, not the product.

I would recommend a chemical resistant sprayer for any wheel cleaner.
 
What kind of wear are we talking? It's a '14 with less than 5k miles.
 
Plus I called Meg's about it and they said the rusting is normal. And besides, that was only one point I made. Anything that corrosive can stay the hell away from my car.
 
I understand what you're saying about the WB reacting with standard disk brakes. On a recent detail I started with the least aggressive approach and worked my way up and even WB wouldn't get the wheels perfect with agitation. Although I have noticed that when using WB if it comes in contact with brake rotors it rusts them and it seems to give an annoying "grabby" feeling when applying the brakes. It can only be removed after the brake pads wear it off of the rotors after a few miles of driving. It's a major downfall to the product when you do need to use it but it is what it is... I believe this is what you're talking about??
 
If you drive your car in the rain, and park it for a day, I would venture a guess your rotors will have surface rust. That is what bare exposed metal does when mixed with water. I am not saying the Megs isn't strong, it really, really is. I am just saying it is not causing your rotors to rust.
 
D140 should only be used on severely neglected wheels period. You should be using a regular wash soap during maintenance washes and if they are fairly bad maybe sonax FE or 1z colourtec. And I will agree with the above statements my new evo is the worst with the rotors rusting even after just rain.
 
Since I currently don't own any Professional sports teams...
I'm going to matter-of-factly say:

I wouldn't touch the OP's thread-starter's
subject matter:{D140}...with a ten-foot Pole!!



Bob
 
D140 does rust rotors, worse than just water or most typical wheel cleaners. There's a lot of controversy on the safety of certain ingredients in the product, mostly ammonium bi-flouride. Don't quote me on it, but I'm pretty sure that's the one. this ingredient has it's own set of health concerns but also reacts with water (again don't quote me on this) to become hydrofluoric acid. HF basically soaks into your skins and leaches the calcium out of your bones. Use this for years without proper protection and you WILL have serious health problems.

I've used this product professionally, regretfully, and luckily did not suffer an ill effects. I used long gloves and eye protection but wish I would have used a respirator.

You'll notice that when this product reacts with brake dust and grime it emits a fog. That is definitely not something I want to breath.

There are now products out that work better and are safer than HF acid and similar chemicals. The only guys in my town using D140 are hack/production shops that don't know any better and don't care.
 
I've noticed with any "serious" wheel cleaner I end up with major rust as well. I wash outside and pull into the garage after the wash. I find myself backing up and going forward a few times to rid the rotors of the rust. Have you tried that Hyde's serum rust stopper?
 
kochdalton87 said:
I understand what you're saying about the WB reacting with standard disk brakes. On a recent detail I started with the least aggressive approach and worked my way up and even WB wouldn't get the wheels perfect with agitation. Although I have noticed that when using WB if it comes in contact with brake rotors it rusts them and it seems to give an annoying "grabby" feeling when applying the brakes. It can only be removed after the brake pads wear it off of the rotors after a few miles of driving. It's a major downfall to the product when you do need to use it but it is what it is... I believe this is what you're talking about??
Click to expand...

I don't know about the grabby feeling, but yeah the rest of it is spot on.

RPPM said:
If you drive your car in the rain, and park it for a day, I would venture a guess your rotors will have surface rust. That is what bare exposed metal does when mixed with water. I am not saying the Megs isn't strong, it really, really is. I am just saying it is not causing your rotors to rust.
Click to expand...

No, it is causing it. This isn't a small amount of rust from moisture. and exposure to air. My disks are a nice silver color before and completely covered in rust after. This does not happen with rain, regular wash product, or even other wheel chemicals.

statusdetailing said:
D140 does rust rotors, worse than just water or most typical wheel cleaners. There's a lot of controversy on the safety of certain ingredients in the product, mostly ammonium bi-flouride. Don't quote me on it, but I'm pretty sure that's the one. this ingredient has it's own set of health concerns but also reacts with water (again don't quote me on this) to become hydrofluoric acid. HF basically soaks into your skins and leaches the calcium out of your bones. Use this for years without proper protection and you WILL have serious health problems.

I've used this product professionally, regretfully, and luckily did not suffer an ill effects. I used long gloves and eye protection but wish I would have used a respirator.

You'll notice that when this product reacts with brake dust and grime it emits a fog. That is definitely not something I want to breath.

There are now products out that work better and are safer than HF acid and similar chemicals. The only guys in my town using D140 are hack/production shops that don't know any better and don't care.
Click to expand...

Holy friggin crap! Well I'm never using this again.

parttimer said:
I've noticed with any "serious" wheel cleaner I end up with major rust as well. I wash outside and pull into the garage after the wash. I find myself backing up and going forward a few times to rid the rotors of the rust. Have you tried that Hyde's serum rust stopper?
Click to expand...

I have not, but I don't get rusting with anything else so I shouldn't need it as long as I stop using the Wheel Brightener.
 
BlueBeast14GT said:
Holy friggin crap! Well I'm never using this again.
Click to expand...

A side-effect of the internet--people can easily buy products that were once only easily available to professionals who are supposed to understand the dangers and protect themselves--same for pest control products, etc.
 
Setec Astronomy said:
A side-effect of the internet--people can easily buy products that were once only easily available to professionals who are supposed to understand the dangers and protect themselves--same for pest control products, etc.
Click to expand...

Well now I feel embarrassed. I only used gloves with it a couple times, but I don't think I got much of it on my hands. I never used a mask though. I've only used it a handful of times, I'd estimate less than 10 since I bought it, so hopefully I don't experience any health effects, but I'm pretty freaked out now.
 
There is no need for wheel acid in maintenance cleaning. Wheel acid is only for long term neglect. No enthusiast should ever need it. That's why it's sold in gallon.
 
BlueBeast14GT said:
Well now I feel embarrassed. I only used gloves with it a couple times, but I don't think I got much of it on my hands. I never used a mask though. I've only used it a handful of times, I'd estimate less than 10 since I bought it, so hopefully I don't experience any health effects, but I'm pretty freaked out now.
Click to expand...

Don't be embarrassed--don't take me the wrong way, my comment wasn't aimed at you, it was a commentary on how products are sold through the internet. I have spoken before about my feelings on HF/ABF wheel cleaners and how easy it is for newbs to get them.

In the old days you would likely have to buy a product like this thru a distributor that would only deal with business accounts, so you as an individual wouldn't be able to buy through them. If they did have a cash counter, you would be there in person and the counterman might size you up and ask you if you really wanted this or warn you how to protect yourself. There are no PPE recommendations made on the product page in the AG store for D140, nor have I seen that in any other online store.

OTOH, I'm pretty sure some years ago I looked at some wheel cleaner in Target that listed ABF as an ingredient, so that's not to say that you couldn't buy these types of cleaners OTC and maybe still can. It is definitely true that they clean like no others.
 
Setec Astronomy said:
Don't be embarrassed--don't take me the wrong way, my comment wasn't aimed at you, it was a commentary on how products are sold through the internet. I have spoken before about my feelings on HF/ABF wheel cleaners and how easy it is for newbs to get them.

In the old days you would likely have to buy a product like this thru a distributor that would only deal with business accounts, so you as an individual wouldn't be able to buy through them. If they did have a cash counter, you would be there in person and the counterman might size you up and ask you if you really wanted this or warn you how to protect yourself. There are no PPE recommendations made on the product page in the AG store for D140, nor have I seen that in any other online store.

OTOH, I'm pretty sure some years ago I looked at some wheel cleaner in Target that listed ABF as an ingredient, so that's not to say that you couldn't buy these types of cleaners OTC and maybe still can. It is definitely true that they clean like no others.
Click to expand...

Oh no I wasn't taking it like that. I was just feeling embarrassed that I made that mistake, especially since it could actually affect my health. I should have been more careful. Luckily, I usually sat back a couple feet when spraying, so hopefully I didn't inhale too much.
 
BlueBeast - i'm curious - does your stang have the Brembos? :D

If I really dose my tires and rims with water when I'm cleaning them (especially if I foam my rims w/ foam cannon) then my rotors on my cars will be completely rusted over. But I pretty much have to try to spray them with water, otherwise I only get about 1/2 covered in rust or so. Though, it wasn't as bad when they were new, but my Camry has 11k and it has been doing it since before 5k and my RAV has 6k and it has definitely been doing it before 5k. Mind you, they would certainly get rusty prior to me even having wheel cleaner, so it is just the water/soap that did it.

But it sounds like you've gotten your answer about the D140. It also sounds like it was rusting more than it normally does when you are just normally washing them and not purposely spraying the crap out of your rotors with water :laughing:

On a side not - I'm glad they mentioned the risks of D140. That stuff sounds dangerous, and I agree with you, I would have no desire for something that corrosive to be on my car either!
 
I've never understood the point of some of the seriously powerful wheel cleaners like D140. A regular degreaser and some muscle have always worked for me.
 
PapaChop said:
I've never understood the point of some of the seriously powerful wheel cleaners like D140. A regular degreaser and some muscle have always worked for me.
Click to expand...
•Time issue.
-Don't have time to use safer, slower working products/processes.
-Don't have time to worry about damages to the Human body.

Bob
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top