OK, guys...

What do you guys use to make your tires look nice & shiny? I've heard (and used) Armor All before, but I heard that stuff is bad for the rubber, so I'm avoiding it. There was another brand that I recall that had some glittery-colored stuff in it that used to come off the wheel and onto the paint and was an absoulte **** to get off, so I'm looking for some good, quality stuff to use that I can, preferably, wipe on instead of spray on. I've scanned the wheel & tire section and hadn't run across this topic, so I figured I'd bring it up. If I missed the thread, let me know.


This is the stuff that I'm using right now to clean the wheels & tires. It's made by DuPont and it is supposed to keep brake dust off the wheels and make future cleaning jobs easier because it claims it has teflon in it. It's relatively new, and the Kragen Auto Parts guy said it was one of the few items in the store that he had yet to try, so we'll see how well it works, but I can attest to the fact that it does a pretty good job at cleaning the wheels & tires.

Thanks in advance!

 

This really belongs in the detailing forum even though it involved wheels and tires.....

 

for tire dressings, i use black magic spray-on foam (not sure of the exact name, but that's the gist of it). spray, leave it on for 10 minutes, doesn't do anything to the wheels, and gives you VERY shiny tires for a couple weeks.

i just use car wash soap for my wheels... but they don't show brake dust anyway.

 

Black Magic.

 

Stoner's "More Shine Less Time" for tires. Does an excellent job shining up the tires. I use regular car wash liquid for the wheels and wax them 3 or 4 times a year to keep them looking nice.

 

Sorry about that... I didn't think about the detailing forum since I was looking at wheels & tires.

Thanks for the suggestions, though.

 

or you can use soda/pop coca-cola ! :P

 

I'm currently using Meguiar's Hot Wheels? Tire shine. I just use normal carwash soap and handwash my rims.

 

303 Aerospace Protectant.

Medium non-gloss finish.

 

MOCC VLR...The stuff all delearships use.

 

All fine suggestions by all... how much shine you want is up to you though, some producs being shinier than others, depending also on how much you apply. It's usually recommended to stay away from petroleum containing products, although gels seem to be the accepted exception from this. Foams are fine to use, but I'd make a wheel shield out of cardboard to prevent overspray on your wheels. Armor All original isn't bad for rubber anymore and hasn't been for decades. Every company seems to make a petro based product though (see above).

Wheel cleaners are okay to use as long as you follow instructions, rinse well, and don't let the stuff dry out on the finish! Don't use as part of your regular routine if you wax the wheels of course...

Cleaning the tire well prior to applying a dressing is important for the final finish. Even though some products like tire foams claim to clean the tire at the same time don't rely on this ability, as it is limited.

To tell you the truth, you can actually apply any dressing to a tire by spraying the product onto a foam sponge or applicator first and then using that to wipe it onto the tire. With many products this works best for even coverage.

BTW, I'm still currently using up a large stock of Turtle Wax tire gel, as well as playing with products like 303 and Armor All, depending on the car and my mood. Haven't done much detailing lately due to the cold and business though.