Tire "dressing"

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GreeCguy

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While happily chewing away on the last of yesterday's collard greens, I couldn't help but ruminate on a "dressing" question.

Recently, (as in a few days ago,) I hammered two used tires onto the vehicle formerly known as "Thunder the Wonder Pig." They're "Primewell" brand 195/70/14's and they look pretty good. Though used, they still have plenty of life left in them with nary a crack on either the tread or sidewalls.

Now I'm wondering, how do you guys feel about "Tire dressing"? I've seen it in the stores and am now curious if this will keep my tires from cracking, the way the last set did.

I've looked at several kinds, the spray on stuff and the "lotion" kind.

What say you guys? I'm not after looks as much as I'm after "longevity" and "perseveration."

Thoughts? (Boy, these greens are good).
 
From what I've read here, best to avoid. Bad to the tire. Somehow.

I did see in a Fluid Film ad that one could wipe down the tires with it, and since FF isn't hard on rubber I doubt it would cause problems.

I've read about your cars. Do they really need shiny tires?
 
Tire dressing actually speeds up the aging and cracking of the rubber.

The best thing to keep your tires' sidewalls in good condition is to drive the vehicle daily. As the rubber flexes it releases oils which protect the surface.
 
Originally Posted By: supton
I've read about your cars. Do they really need shiny tires?


Whatever do you mean? My fleet is like the ugly lady at the end of the bar, after a few beers, they look great!
 
I got stuck on the thought of you ruminating collard greens
37.gif
 
Originally Posted By: GreeCguy
Originally Posted By: supton
I've read about your cars. Do they really need shiny tires?


Whatever do you mean? My fleet is like the ugly lady at the end of the bar, after a few beers, they look great!


Ha! Maybe I oughta do the same on my car.
 
I go through tires in 15-20k miles so even if the tire dressing harms the tire Im done with the tire before its a problem but anyhow better tire gels are not going to harm the tire.
 
As Dufus2 stated, water based is fine if it doesn't have silicone. My all-time favorite for tires is Griot's Garage Rubber & Vinyl Dressing. Water based, beautiful natural look (just looks like really clean rubber), and UV protectant. Never had a problem with cracking, even with Michelins.
 
I'm not a fan of tire dressings. Too many of them dissolve the rubber in order to make the tire look good.

First, there are waxes in the rubber matrix which form a barrier to outside contaminants - including oxygen. They form a dull finish because they are sitting just off the surface. You can actually scrape some off if you are careful. And, of course, dissolving the wax speeds up the aging process.

There are also antioxidants (AO's) in the rubber matrix. If you see a reddish brown color, that's used up AO's - and I've always thought that they are this color because they used some form of iron and what you are seeing is rust. If someone has a better explanation, I would appreciate the discussion.

And lastly, rubber absorbs petroleum and that process changes the physical properties of the rubber.

So I think any dressing that doesn't have AO's is not really beneficial - and any dressing that has petroleum products can cause damage - and any product with silicone (which can cause traction and rim slip issues) - and any product that dissolves the waxes (or worse the rubber) is causing harm.

I think there will be very few products that meet the above.
 
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I don't see any differences when using tire dressings or not. For example, I dress the tires ONLY on the outside of the tires. But, when I remove my tires for rotation purposes(or tire replacements), the tires are either cracked on both sides, or not...they all crack at some point to some degree!

Now, on the inside of the tires, they don't see any sun nor tire dressing and, if the outside of the tire is cracked, so is the inside...Or not!

My tires either develop bad sidewall cracks or they don't!

My buddy and I recently did a test! He only drives his vehicles through the local car wash and never gets any tire dressing. His tires developed sidewall cracks just the same way mine did(on both sides!)

In my experience, the tires either develop cracks, or they don't!

In our circle of family & friends, our Good/Year and Michelin seem to develop worst cracks in a shorter period time(2-3 yrs) than any tires that we've owned.

Again, all tires develop cracks at some point to some degree!
 
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I use the Meguiar's Natural Shine, once known as Clean, Shine, and Protect. Water-based; no grease as far as I know. And I've never had tires crack before I had to replace them from wear or from a puncture where the puncture couldn't be plugged.
 
I once bought some used wheels for my car, the guy had put on tire shine frequently.

The inside sidewalls looked dirty but new, the outsides were so checked and cracked they were a safety hazard.
 
It seems to me most of us will wear the tires out before the dressing has time to have any negative effects.
 
Originally Posted By: CapriRacer
I'm not a fan of tire dressings. Too many of them dissolve the rubber in order to make the tire look good.

First, there are waxes in the rubber matrix which form a barrier to outside contaminants - including oxygen. They form a dull finish because they are sitting just off the surface. You can actually scrape some off if you are careful. And, of course, dissolving the wax speeds up the aging process.

There are also antioxidants (AO's) in the rubber matrix. If you see a reddish brown color, that's used up AO's - and I've always thought that they are this color because they used some form of iron and what you are seeing is rust. If someone has a better explanation, I would appreciate the discussion.

And lastly, rubber absorbs petroleum and that process changes the physical properties of the rubber.

So I think any dressing that doesn't have AO's is not really beneficial - and any dressing that has petroleum products can cause damage - and any product with silicone (which can cause traction and rim slip issues) - and any product that dissolves the waxes (or worse the rubber) is causing harm.

I think there will be very few products that meet the above.


I think we can agree that most shops/users are dressing tires for appearance purposes only.

Very few dressings are formulated without silicone. This is the only one that I am aware of:

http://www.meguiars.com/en/professional/products/d16101-silicone-free-dressing/
http://www.meguiars.co.uk/attach/downloads/d161_detailer_siliconefree_dressing__dx77b__eng_eu.pdf
 
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