"Nissan does not recommend the use of tire dressings. Tire manufacturers apply a coating to the tires to help reduce discoloration of the rubber and prolong tire life. If a tire dressing is applied to the tires, it may react with the coating and form a compound. This compound may come off the tire while driving and stain the vehicle paint." - Quote taken out of owners manual for a 2009 Nissan Frontier

I personally hate tire dressings. You know how your brand new tires look.. I like that much more than tire dressings. Anytime I have ever used tire dressings I ended up with crap slung all over the freshly waxed paint. Not to mention the tire dressing is a dirty magnet and it turns dookie brown after driving in the rain.

What are your thoughts.. do you use tire dressing or not? Whats your favorite product to clean the tires with that isnt a wet dressing? I like to use bleach white every 3-5 months.. it makes the tires look like they are brand spanking new again and they stay clean for a very long time if you dont apply a dressing. The rest of the time I just use hot soapy water to remove the carbon black that has come to the surface of the tire and discolored.

I've been doing some reading about carbon black and the other protectants that are impregnated into tires. It seems the majority of the autozone tire dressings actually do more harm than good. Here is a interesting read on all that goes into tires to protect them..
http://www.ferrarichat.com/velostrad...Caring_for.htm

the have flat tire dressing

I've been using ArmorAll Tire foam forever...Instead of just leaving it there to flick up onto your paint, just wipe around the tire with it after the foam disappears.

I have heard the tire dressing is bad for the paint but never heard it was bad for the tires. I don't remember the brand i use, its a gel that i put on a foam applicator pad.

If you drive without allowing the tire dressing to dry of course its gonna sling the crap every where.

My practice is to dress the tires before hand washing the car. Then i dry the car. Then move the car out of the water puddles, then clean the rims. Then wax. Takes me about an hour depending on the amount of bugs i have plastered on the bumper and mirrors. Plenty of time for it to dry.

I like tire dressings to a point. i dont like glossy plastic looking tires. I like a satin or matte finish. I also prefer gel tire dressing compared to spray on. My fav is Megs #38 but it is discountinued and luckity I have a bottle left. Next would be Wolfgang and Poorboys bold and bright. Main thing is people dont let them set in and wipe off excess.

I've had decent luck with Black Magic tire dressing (the gel). Like everybody says though, if you put it on "heavy" and don't give it time to setup, it will sling all over the car. I have noticed that it is not as much of a problem with the gel as it is with the liquid/spray.

I use Meguiars tire dressing and like the look.

I use simoniz tire cleaner. Its a flat black once it dries. You dont have to do any wiping and it looks great. I have no splatters on the car from it.

Ah darn wish I saw this thread sooner! Haha

I was a dumb dumb silly poo poo, and decided to go the store right after spraying my tires with that Turtle Wax tire shiner spray, and today when I went to go wash and detail my car I noticed some black spots on the inside of the fender and a little on the bottom of the outside fender where it meets the door on all 4 wheels. The front had it the worse while the back I didn't spray too much and so it didn't get affected too badly.

I am not positive if its REALLY the tire shiner, but I didn't notice the black spots while washing my car before I used the tire shiner and so...

It seems like I left it on there too long because no amount of scrubbing will get it off, I used a green scrubbing pad for dishes with dish soap as a last resort but it still wouldn't come off and the area where the spots are, is now dull because of the scrubbing and so I think it fused into the paint somehow, or I need to step it up a notch and wet sand the area. But I think I will just compound and polish the area just to shine it back up and leave it as it is...

i use the flat tire dressing, it looks sweet and not all shiny. i spray it on and let it dry. looks great

I perfer the flat tire dressing as well. If I use the "shiny" kind, I usually wipe most of it off so its semi-shiny at most. I THINK the quality tire dressings are suppose to hydrate the tires so they don't dry out.

I have used many tire dressings over the years and experienced many of the problems listed here. I am now using a product called VRT from Adam's Polishes. It's a water based product with UV protection It gives your tires that black satin look. I also have a different method of applying tire dressings. I use a 2 1/2" good quality paint brush. Just apply the product to the brush then brush it on. No over spray on your rims or fenders. You use less product because the brush allows you to spread the product evenly over the surface of the tire. You can also work the product easily into the lines and designs of the tire.

thats a dang good ideal dude, im going to have to try that

I use the Meguiars nxt tire dressing.It still looks like it was just applied even after driving in wet weather.Never had any problems with it getting onto the paint cuz I usually let it sit for awhile.

I use Black Magic Gel Tire Wet Titanium.. Stays on after a good rain..

I gave up with tire dressing products themselves.

I use Meguiars Supreme Shine protectant and apply with an applicator pad. Provides UV protection and stays on after water hits it, as well as no fling.

Most tire shines / protectors will "fling" depending on how much is applied to tire. Never put on to much.

I use that Meguiars NXT stuff as well, I haven't had any problems just like the above poster since I usually let the foam sit on the tires for 15-20 minutes before driving.

i use black magic spray. if you wipe it onto the tires with an applicator, and, once again, LET IT DRY, it wont look wet or sling everywhere.

you mean like the instructions tell you to?

agreed. bling bling!