Rim sealant in a long-term test: Is the effort worthwhile?
We start the test of the Gtechniq C5 Wheel Armour rim sealant on two brand new rims. Will the protection last for half a year?
(Image: Martin Franz / heise Medien)
From a sober economic perspective, affording a new car privately is usually difficult to justify. On the other hand, it opens up the opportunity to lay a sustainable foundation for long-term preservation from the very beginning. Two cans of underbody wax, for example, applied after purchase, can potentially prevent rust in areas not visible daily. With rims, there is also the possibility of at least reducing the burning in of brake dust. That's why I'm starting a long-term test with a rim sealant again.
What speaks for a sealant
Brake dust is, of course, hardly visible on black rims. But it wasn't just about appearance for me. On the one hand, the paint lasts longer there; on the other hand, in the ideal case, cleaning requires no more than the high-pressure cleaner in the wash box. Aggressive rim cleaners are thus unnecessary, or at least they should be. Rim protection, easy cleaning, and the avoidance of environmentally harmful cleaners are, in my opinion, good reasons for such a sealant.
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The range of rim sealants is much smaller than that for paint protection products. This makes the idea of using a wax or sealant for paint on rims seem plausible. However, a rim sealant promises to cope better with hot brake dust. For this test, I chose “Gtechniq C5 Wheel Armour”. This is a comparatively expensive product: at the time of purchase, 15 and 30 ml packages were offered, and including shipping, even the small bottle costs almost 40 Euros. Online and in stores, you can easily find cheaper alternatives – and also considerably more expensive ones. The reason for deciding this sealant was that it is supposed to last longer than, for example, the spray from Sonax. It is by far the most expensive product in my private care collection.
Thorough preparation is absolutely necessary. Anyone who shies away from this or is sloppy here can save themselves the final sealing.
(Image: Martin Franz / heise Medien)
Thorough preparation is essential
I ordered a set that included a degreasing agent. It doesn't necessarily have to be exactly this one, but thorough preparation is indispensable for a long-lasting result. The rim must not only be clean but also thoroughly freed from any wax or grease residues. Otherwise, the sealant cannot adhere, and the desired effect will quickly be lost. Without really thorough preliminary work in this regard, you can practically save yourself the trouble of sealing.
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Work quickly, use sparingly
The sealant itself is applied in a wafer-thin layer and polished off after about half a minute. I would recommend inexperienced users to start with only a part of the rim – for example, with the inner half. The sealing itself is not a lot of work, provided the user observes two things: the sealant should not dry but should be processed immediately on the rim. And of course, one of the oldest tips for car care also applies here: good products can be used extremely sparingly. For processing on two 20-inch rims, I estimate I used about a quarter of a 30 ml bottle. Someone who does this professionally every day would certainly have used even less. There will be an update in the fall as part of the switch to winter tires.
The rim sealant was purchased privately. The manufacturer is not involved in this test.
(mfz)