NISSAN; INFORMATION ON PAINT STAINS CAUSED BY TIRE DRESSING
APPLIED VEHICLES: All 2000 and later Nissan

SERVICE INFORMATION

An aftermarket chemical product called “tire dressing” is sometimes used on tires. When the tire dressing is applied, it may combine with an anti-ozonant compound (applied by tire manufacturers) to form a new compound that could stain vehicle paint. The paint stains occur if the wet tire dressing/anti-ozonant compound slings onto the vehicle paint when the vehicle is driven.

Paint damage stains caused by application of the tire dressing are NOT covered by Nissan warranty. Therefore, Nissan does not recommend the application of tire dressing to vehicle tires.

If a customer requests application of tire dressing to his/her vehicle, they should be informed that the vehicle
paint may be stained if the tire dressing is applied to the tires and that Nissan warranty does not cover the
repair of these stains. If the customer still requests the tire dressing be applied, consider the following:

Water based tire dressing may reduce the amount of anti-ozonant that will be mixed/dissolved in the tire dressing compared with oil based dressings.
A light coat of the tire dressing may reduce the amount of dressing that could enter the tires grooves/treads.
To reduce the amount of dressing that could stain the paint: Use a dry towel to wipe off excess tire dressing from the tire, including grooves and treads. Then allow the dressing to dry completely.

This is just crap. I guess not more tire dressing on the tires since its not coverd under warranty if it stains the paint.

 

how about just apply sparingly and allow them to dry before driving. you know just like how the directions say to?

 

damn, I use tire wet all the time. not from the dealer but I buy it from auto zone or so.. I have yet to see any damage to my paint.. maybe bacause the wax I got put on is protecting the paint from it.

good info..

 

I have done that and waited overnight before driving and still has some dressing get on the car. I guess I will have to go back and wipe off any excess. Seems like double work.

 

I use back magic tire wet. maybe the tire wet wipes will cut down on over spray..

 

I have Zaino and it never splatters. even if it did, I would wipe it off when I check.

 

When I had my tired rotated by a local tire shop, I had them check for cracking on the inside wall (I have RSA's), however they did not find any. I was then told that tires don't usually crack unless some kinds of tire dressings are used, and he recommended that tire dressings NOT be used. Is this true? Will tire dressings cause cracking?

Thanks

 

I doubt it, cracks were found on the inside of the tire in some cases..

 

Ditto on the Black Magic (not the foam, just the spray). I've used it for several years on several different cars (including the Max for 1-1/2 years) wiht no paint damage. Even a clean car looks like crap if the tires are a dull grey.

 

I hear that, I can't stop using tire wet.

that a true fact...

 

I've never had a problem with sling or paint stains. I use a light application of 303. The next day, I usually do another light application. I believe the 303 is water based, but correct me if I'm wrong....

 

I've never had a problem with the Meguires gel product. Goes one well. Doesn't sling. And has a tasty grape smell to it too.

 

I also use Meguires gel product followed by a wipe down of the excess with a shop towel (after it had some time to work its magic). Lasts a reasonable amount of time and no slinging that I have noticed.

 

You want a water based tire dressing. Dressings with "petroleum distallates" are the ones that cause browning/cracking as well as what will sling. There are two types of petroleum tire dressings...one of which is ok to use, but I'm still a little confused on this.

Water based dressings that I've read are fine and plan to try are zaino z-16, 303 protectant (evidently washes off as soon as it gets wet, so not too good for tires...I really like it on the dash though), lexol vinylex, and armor all original (evidently it's been reformulated since the days it had a bad rep). Unfortunately water based dressings don't last too long (2-3 weeks if you're lucky), but that's a small price to pay to avoid damaging your tires or in this case paint IMO.

 

I think 2-3 weeks is a long time for tire dressing. What brand(s) last longer than that?

 

yea thats way too long, I would love to have dressing last that long.. the one I use goes bout 4-5 days, less if it rains.

I did try one that had a sponge with it, I forget the name that lasted 1 week or so even in rainy days.. but thats it..

 

I don't have those issues because I tend to apply it quite sparingly and I use a water based product.

 

Maybe it was days then. I'm just repeating what I've read and could very well have confused the time. I've only gotten my hands on 303 thus far and didn't use it on the tires.

 

In my experience, the 303 will last up to 2 weeks in dry weather. They will still look good through one rain. A second rain and you'll have to reapply it.

 

Really? I heard it was crap on the exterior, so I just used it on my dash...maybe I'll try it on the tires.

 

I just use a good bucket of water and soap to get it black, but not shiney...like how a new tire would look like without the shiney tire dressing.