Removing dried wax

I bought a set of new take off black PP wheels. Unfortunately they were used to roll around a car while it was detailed and a large quantity of polish/wax was allowed to dry on the wheels.

I got the wheels mostly clean with some car wash soap and a microfiber. A thin layer of gray polish is stubbornly staying on the paint. I've tried detail spray, vinegar (I've read vinegar works for removing wax from black trim), and windex (I was desperate). Nothing seems to be removing the dried on polish/wax.

What else can I use to get the wheels black again?

As hard as I try not to get wax on the black plastic parts (tires would be the same issue) I always slip up once in a while.

I've used:
Chemical Guys Diablo Gel wheel and rim cleaner
Chemical Guys Tire and Trim gel for plastic and rubber

Both bring it back to black and does a good job for me.

Thanks, I'll look into those. If I wasn't clear in my original post, the stubborn polish/wax is on the wheels. The tires don't seem to have been affected as much as the wheels.

Still - Diablo should get it off with a bit of rubbing.

I use a pink (doesn't have to be pink but easier to see) eraser to get wax off the trim. Not sure how well it works on the wheels but worth a try.

You sure it's dried wax or etching in the paint?

I tried every car cleaning product I had. The only thing that touched the haze was rubbing compound. The paint must be damaged.

I'm not going to polish every one of these spokes by hand. I'll swap the tires to use these wheels as my autox wheels and use my original wheels for daily driving.

Thanks to everyone who weighed in with advice.

Mothers Back To Black should take it off. You might also try crappy silicone based tire dressing.Spray it on a cloth and wipe it on.It sucks on tires but works good on the black finish on Harley motors. The heat may help with the greasy feel.
Try it,it wont hurt anything and should work.

Dawn dish soap is good for removing old wax products. After using it, you will have to reapply wax and polish.

Griots Garage has a product that will remove dried wax as well.

Clay Bar.

PatrickGT said:

Clay Bar.

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A clay isn't the proper tool for flat paint or plastic.

daytripper said:

A clay isn't the proper tool for flat paint or plastic.

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That's a good point except op is trying to get wax off the PP wheels which are a gloss black paint.

Jay-rod427 said:

That's a good point except op is trying to get wax off the PP wheels which are a gloss black paint.

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Oh,Ok, I didn't know that. Hell the wax should just wipe off with enough effort.

MrMagnetic said:

I tried every car cleaning product I had. The only thing that touched the haze was rubbing compound. The paint must be damaged.

I'm not going to polish every one of these spokes by hand. I'll swap the tires to use these wheels as my autox wheels and use my original wheels for daily driving.

Thanks to everyone who weighed in with advice.

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Ya it's something else dried wax isn't going to put up any kind of fight like you're experiencing.

Mr. Clean Magic Eraser