You may be surprised to hear that cleaning the wheels and tires comes first but amoung many reasons the main issue is if you completely dry the body first and then work on the wheels, there is a chance that dirt and overspray will sling on to the clean paint. To prevent these, we recommend cleaning the wheels and tires as the first step

Seperate bucket for cleaning wheels that is not used fot the body of the car to reduce risk of bringing dirt from the wheels to the bucket then onto the car and causing those unwanted swirl marks.

Choose a proper cleaning product depending on type of the wheels and tires. For example, you cannot clean chrome using all cleaner types, especially harsh ones. Mothers Wheel & Tire Cleaner is a product that can be safely used on all types of surfaces. Work on one tire at a time. Spray the cleaner and use a soft-bristled brush to remove grease, dirt, and old tire shine.

Follow with tire shine. You can also polish the chrome to give the wheel that extra shiny appearance. However, save these steps for until after you have washed the exterior fully and dried the tires and wheels completely. Applying tire shine on to wet tires increases the chance of product sticking onto the paint.