Hi all,
I have just picked up a slightly used Kizashi recently. I am from Australia so the spec of the car would be different compare to American ones.
The car that I have is a "prestige" model, with 18'' alloy. When I picked it up I realised that the rim of my car is darker then normal...
I have noticed that there is a thin layer of black grease on the alloy (all four of them) rims. I have no idea what it is... A google search on this matter points me to "CV boot" leak?
So, I am wondering if this is really the case? The car drives beautifully and I wonder if I should feel it if the CV boots is not working properly? Does anyone has the same issue? Or should I be worried about it?
Thanks guys!
Black grease on alloy wheels?
Hi, welcome.
I feel it would be unlikely to be a CV boot- more likely to be brake dust accumulation with some sort of detailing product that hasn't been applied properly. If it was a CV boot you'd more likely find large dollops of grease sprayed around inside the wheel arch and rear of the wheel (I doubt much would make it onto the face of the wheels due to the disc brake being in the way.)
I'd suggest buying some "Wax and Grease Remover" and getting stuck into the wheels with a damp rag (while wearing gloves...)
I feel it would be unlikely to be a CV boot- more likely to be brake dust accumulation with some sort of detailing product that hasn't been applied properly. If it was a CV boot you'd more likely find large dollops of grease sprayed around inside the wheel arch and rear of the wheel (I doubt much would make it onto the face of the wheels due to the disc brake being in the way.)
I'd suggest buying some "Wax and Grease Remover" and getting stuck into the wheels with a damp rag (while wearing gloves...)
David
Thanks David.
As you can see I know very little about cars.
I feel relieved.... as long as it is not a mechanical problem then I am not worried. The car has only got about 8200 km on the clock, I wonder why that is so much brake dust. Maybe as you said, the dealership guys didn't detail the wheels probably.
Noting that my car is grey the dark rims actually don't look so bad!
Thanks again.
As you can see I know very little about cars.
I feel relieved.... as long as it is not a mechanical problem then I am not worried. The car has only got about 8200 km on the clock, I wonder why that is so much brake dust. Maybe as you said, the dealership guys didn't detail the wheels probably.
Noting that my car is grey the dark rims actually don't look so bad!
Thanks again.
2011 Mineral Grey Kizashi Prestige
It is mineral grey they call it. The tone should be darker then your premium silver colour.
Yes somehow it looks good with rims with lot of brake dust (as shown in my picture)...... :S
I've noticed that you are from Australia also. It is a shame that we don't have more Kizashi on the road. When I was trying to get some quotation for my insurance over the phone, pretty much all salespersons have never heard of the Kizashi!!!
Yes somehow it looks good with rims with lot of brake dust (as shown in my picture)...... :S
I've noticed that you are from Australia also. It is a shame that we don't have more Kizashi on the road. When I was trying to get some quotation for my insurance over the phone, pretty much all salespersons have never heard of the Kizashi!!!
2011 Mineral Grey Kizashi Prestige
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chazyouwin
- Posts: 402
- Joined: Thu Dec 09, 2010 9:57 pm
- Location: Northern New Jersey USA
My guess from looking at the picture and hearing that it is on all four wheels is that after a car wash they slopped some kind of tire slick material on the tire (to make the tire look good), but failed to let it dry. Then as the wheels revolved the slick material distributed.
On the other hand, if that had happened you would notice the blackening around the well and on the paint as well. So maybe it is the tire dust.
I agree that it is very unlikely to be CV boot covers - in addition to showing a different kind of blackening, CV boots typically don't fail at the same time. Also, aren't CV boots only on the front wheels? I had CV boot covers fail on my Honda Accord on the front. The rubber/plastic material breaks over time and the sludge distributes.
On the other hand, if that had happened you would notice the blackening around the well and on the paint as well. So maybe it is the tire dust.
I agree that it is very unlikely to be CV boot covers - in addition to showing a different kind of blackening, CV boots typically don't fail at the same time. Also, aren't CV boots only on the front wheels? I had CV boot covers fail on my Honda Accord on the front. The rubber/plastic material breaks over time and the sludge distributes.
2010 Kizashi SLS FWD Gray; 2013 Grand Vitara 4wd red; 2012 SX4 blue; 2021 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV black
Previous: 2002 XL-7 Limited (2); 1992 Accord; '91 Volvo; '85 Toyota; '84 Celica; '73 Mercedes.
Previous: 2002 XL-7 Limited (2); 1992 Accord; '91 Volvo; '85 Toyota; '84 Celica; '73 Mercedes.
On your car yes, but most of the other people on here would have CV boots all the way around. (Or equivalent.) The AWD models have drive axles to all four wheels so all four have a rubber boot on each end. It would be fairly uncommon to see the rear ones fail without a couple hundred thousand miles on them.
If you front ones are dead they make a clunking/popping sound when you turn.
On a lot of cars they throw a ring of grease around the inside long before they fail. I have a ring of grease around both sides on the inside boots of my saabaru. No clunking sound yet and still going strong for 6000 miles since I noticed the grease the first time.
If you front ones are dead they make a clunking/popping sound when you turn.
On a lot of cars they throw a ring of grease around the inside long before they fail. I have a ring of grease around both sides on the inside boots of my saabaru. No clunking sound yet and still going strong for 6000 miles since I noticed the grease the first time.
Just to beat a dead horse: Yes, it's not your CV boots. The CV boots are basically rubber covers that hold grease in the axle joints. You find them on the axles where they connect to the wheel knuckle area and also towards the transmission or differential. When they tear, they can spew grease, but it would be under the car and near the inside of the wheel, not the outside. You can't really tell from the outside when you have a torn CV boot.
A noise as described by Moto often follows when the grease is gone.
I have dealt with a number of torn CV boots in my former Impreza. The boots just tear with age as they are made of rubber.
The best way to tell is to get under the car and look at them. That's how I check them. At every oil change (I do them myself), I check the CV boots, hoses, and check for all kinds of leaks.
Also, since it was brought up in this thread: You will have CV boots on all axles that drive the wheels. On an AWD model, you will find CV boots on both the front and rear axles. On a FWD, only the front. Chazyouwin, this is why you only had them on the front for your Accord. Accords are FWD.
On my Subaru Impreza, I had CV boots on all four corners as it was AWD.
CV boots tend to last a while and I did not have any issues until the car had over 100,000 miles.
Regarding the greasy wheels: I bet the previous owner or dealership used an incorrect product to polish the wheels. Perhaps the previous owner purposely coated them for a darker hue. Either way, sounds like someone did a bad job in wheel appearance. A degreaser may be the best start.
A noise as described by Moto often follows when the grease is gone.
I have dealt with a number of torn CV boots in my former Impreza. The boots just tear with age as they are made of rubber.
The best way to tell is to get under the car and look at them. That's how I check them. At every oil change (I do them myself), I check the CV boots, hoses, and check for all kinds of leaks.
Also, since it was brought up in this thread: You will have CV boots on all axles that drive the wheels. On an AWD model, you will find CV boots on both the front and rear axles. On a FWD, only the front. Chazyouwin, this is why you only had them on the front for your Accord. Accords are FWD.
On my Subaru Impreza, I had CV boots on all four corners as it was AWD.
CV boots tend to last a while and I did not have any issues until the car had over 100,000 miles.
Regarding the greasy wheels: I bet the previous owner or dealership used an incorrect product to polish the wheels. Perhaps the previous owner purposely coated them for a darker hue. Either way, sounds like someone did a bad job in wheel appearance. A degreaser may be the best start.
2025 Mazda CX-50 Preferred Hybrid
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Sold)
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Sold)
Hi all
Thanks for reassuring that it is not a CV boot leak - and yes the car is FWD only.
I think KuroNekko nailed it. It is probably them not doing the tyre blackening probably. Brake dust is possible, but considers the "evenness" of the black grease and the age of the car, I think the former is more likely.
I will try to have it removed - but if I can't I think it is no big deal. As i said the overall appearance of the car is somehow better with darker rims!
Thanks for reassuring that it is not a CV boot leak - and yes the car is FWD only.
I think KuroNekko nailed it. It is probably them not doing the tyre blackening probably. Brake dust is possible, but considers the "evenness" of the black grease and the age of the car, I think the former is more likely.
I will try to have it removed - but if I can't I think it is no big deal. As i said the overall appearance of the car is somehow better with darker rims!
2011 Mineral Grey Kizashi Prestige
Just an update on this.
The underlying reason is probably that the dealer has used some sort of aggressive cleaning agents on the wheels to when detailing the car. Dealers have a lot of cars to get through in a day so they tend to use strong detailing products.
I bought the car used so I cannot get anything out of the dealer. It is not anything to do with the engine etc so it is not covered under warranty.
I am likely to have the wheel respray to black by a professional panel shop. Black rims should look nice against grey body. Will post pictures when done.
Thanks guys.
The underlying reason is probably that the dealer has used some sort of aggressive cleaning agents on the wheels to when detailing the car. Dealers have a lot of cars to get through in a day so they tend to use strong detailing products.
I bought the car used so I cannot get anything out of the dealer. It is not anything to do with the engine etc so it is not covered under warranty.
I am likely to have the wheel respray to black by a professional panel shop. Black rims should look nice against grey body. Will post pictures when done.
Thanks guys.
2011 Mineral Grey Kizashi Prestige