Ceramic coating your wheels makes brake dust and road grime easier to clean. In this video, Bradley shows how to prepare and coat matte and gloss wheels with Armour Wheel Quartz Coating, including the inner barrels and backs of the spokes.
Watch the full wheel coating tutorial on YouTube.
What wheel coating does for the cleaning routine
Armour Wheel Quartz Coating creates a protective layer designed for wheel use and makes regular brake-dust and road-grime cleanup easier. The benefit depends on thorough preparation, even coverage, and allowing the coating to cure properly.
The coating does not replace washing or make every deposit rinse away without contact. Think of the installation as the start of a maintenance routine. Barrels and rear spokes deserve attention because they are difficult to reach later and collect contamination during normal driving.
Decide how much access you need
Removing the wheels provides the best access to inner barrels and the backs of the spokes. Face-only application with the wheels installed can still treat accessible areas, but it does not provide the same coverage.
Have removal and reinstallation performed using the vehicle manufacturer's lifting, support, and torque procedures, or use professional assistance. This guide covers surface preparation and coating, not a replacement procedure for safely lifting a vehicle.
Set up the work so you can turn and inspect each wheel without contaminating the cleaned areas. Prepare the coating, applicators, clean removal towels, and lighting before opening the bottle.
Prepare according to the wheel's condition
- Wash thoroughly. Use a compatible Wheel Cleaner and dedicated brushes to reach the faces, barrels, spoke recesses, and edges.
- Inspect for bonded contamination. An older wheel may carry tar, wheel-weight adhesive, and other deposits that ordinary washing leaves behind.
- Remove specific residue only when needed. Use products compatible with the finish. A cleaner that works on one coated wheel is not automatically right for every finish.
- Clay where necessary. If contamination remains, use suitable clay with lubrication. Keep wheel clay and media separate from your paint tools.
- Perform the final surface wipe. Use Panel Prep with clean towels to remove remaining oils and preparation residue.
Bradley compares an older matte wheel with a newer gloss wheel. The older wheel needs more contamination removal; the newer wheel can move on sooner after washing and inspection. Do not add aggressive preparation steps to a clean surface just to make both jobs identical.
Apply in a repeatable pattern
Shake the coating and prime the microfiber applicator. Cover a manageable section with an even film, adding product when the applicator no longer lays down consistent coverage. Avoid starting the entire wheel and then trying to return to all the hidden areas at once.
Bradley's sequence is practical: coat the barrel and rear spokes, level that section, then turn to the front face. Use the valve stem as a reference point and work around the wheel in one direction. That makes it easier to see where you started and where coverage might overlap.
Check small edges, recesses, lettering, and transitions around the center area. Those are easy places to leave excess product or miss a strip of surface. If an applicator begins to stiffen as coating cures in it, move to a fresh side or replacement.
Level with two towels and inspect from several angles
Follow the current product's flash guidance and adjust the section size to temperature, humidity, and removal behavior. The objective is to level at the appropriate point, not to apply the same stopwatch setting regardless of the environment.
- Use a 1st Wipe Coating Removal Towel to remove the bulk of the excess.
- Follow with a fresh 2nd Wipe Coating Removal Towel to catch remaining streaks and residue.
- Turn the wheel or light and inspect the spoke edges and barrel from multiple angles.
- Rotate to clean towel faces as you move between sections and wheels.
A wheel can look clear straight on while a corner still holds a thick patch. Complete the inspection before moving on to another wheel, especially where the geometry makes a second look awkward.
Matte and gloss wheels need different visual checks
The matte wheel uses more product in the demonstration and takes on a deeper satin appearance. Test first so you understand the effect on that specific finish. Do not assume that coating a matte surface always produces no appearance change.
On the gloss wheel, the wet film can be harder to see. Change the lighting angle and use your planned application pattern to avoid missing areas. Do not polish matte finishes as a generic method of correcting coating residue; obtain finish-specific guidance if a cured defect remains.
Layering and current cure requirements
Use the current Wheel Coating directions for timing, even if an older demonstration gives a shorter schedule:
- Wait 1–2 hours between layers when layering.
- Allow at least 12 hours before driving or getting the wheels wet.
- Avoid washing or chemical exposure for 7 days.
Plan wheel access and the vehicle's next use around that schedule. Finishing the final wipe is not the same as completing the cure.
After the coating has cured
Clean the wheels regularly with products appropriate for both the coating and the brake system. Let wheels cool before washing, keep tools dedicated to wheel use, and address buildup before it becomes a heavily bonded deposit.
Our ceramic coating maintenance wash guide covers a wider routine, while the high spot guide explains why catching excess coating early is useful.