ADAC on the “Cola trick”: You shouldn’t wash your car like this

What’s the best way to get rims clean? If you dump this question on the Internet, thousands of answers will come back. These range from sometimes very expensive special cleaners to inexpensive home remedies – or even drinks. But is Cola really suitable as a cleaning agent? He’s skeptical.

In a guide, the club not only deals with the correct cleaning of aluminum and steel rims, but also with inexpensive means of removing the usually extremely stubborn film of dirt that accumulates on the wheels. According to the ADAC, tips on social networks often include oven spray, vinegar essence and even cola.

After all, Cola is harmless – but equally useless. “Surface dirt can be removed in this way, but stubborn dirt and especially brake dust cannot be dealt with effectively,” writes the club about the cleaning performance of the soft drink. In addition: If you use the sweetened cola, wasps will quickly become interested in washing your car, especially in summer.

However, the club must clearly warn against vinegar: in the wrong concentration, according to the ADAC, the popular household remedy can specifically attack aluminum rims. The experts advise against this too.

If in doubt, you should probably stay away from anything that doesn’t explicitly say rim cleaner. When it comes to aluminum rims or paint, you should also make sure to “under no circumstances use acidic or alkaline rim cleaners,” it says.

The general tip is: “Ph-neutral products or normal all-purpose cleaners with high fat-dissolving power are better suited. Less chemicals are effective here, but the mechanical power of manual work dominates.”

Cleaning the wheels is by no means easy. For a really good result, the ADAC recommends first pre-cleaning in the car wash. Then you should dry the rims and treat them with the right cleaner. After the prescribed exposure time, you should take a washing brush and rinse the rims as well as possible. The last remnants in hard-to-reach areas can be reached with a brush.

The club then recommends sealing the rims – here too you should take a closer look when selecting products.

According to the ADAC, you should clean rims regularly – then the effort will be limited. At the very least, the experts recommend using the annual tire change to intensively clean the wheels.