adam thanks for the response. i don't believe the wheels were cold, but i know that they were not hot, so i am sure that does not help in answering the question. the car was outside on a warm (70's) day for about 2 hours prior to cleaning the wheels.
Also, i left it on long enough to do all of the wheels prior to rinsing, not sure why i did that but just did. i will have to buy some polish and try out the fix........