Does Tire Shine Speed Up Dry Rot?

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I got some Turtle Wax brand tire shine but haven't opened it yet or used any of it. I have 15k miles on my tires that are guaranteed for 75k, but it may take me 15 years to get to 75k on them. I'm wondering if this stuff will speed up dry rot if I use it. I don't want to lose the tires to dry rot if I can help it. I store the car in the garage a lot of the time, which protects the tires from sunlight, cold weather, etc.

TIA for any info on this.
 
Have heard that about armor all as well. Am interested in if the chemistry changed lately.

You want the UV protectant without the side effects, but as you say UV isn't a big deal. Ozone from appliances in your garage may also be a problem.
 
Hi,

It says on the back of the bottle :

"Helps prevent drying and cracking. Lasts weeks."

I guess I'll use some. I've thought about getting some of this for a long time.

They say the car sitting for long periods can cause dry rot to set in. If the car is driven regularly, the tires get flexed and that helps prevent dry rot.
 
The theory of how armor all used to mess things up was it "wicked" softeners out of the middle of the tire up to the surface. Once they evaporated the tire was worse off than before.

Am sure someone could explain it better.
 
U may end up spendng more for tire shine than U wood 4 a new set over 7 years ...
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Heard it about Armor All. I don't believe Eagle One products cause it though. If anything they feed the tire with an oil, whereas the Armor All was(possibly still is) acidic.
 
Due to ozone damage and drying/hardening/cracking of the rubber I would not trust my life to 15 year old tires at freeway speeds. To the best of my knowledge the NHTSA does not list a maximum age for tires, but I believe industry recommended maximum tire age is around 6 years.

Tire Rack link, one of many
 
The six year figure is a worst case, desert heat scenario. They're still working on the guidelines.

Since OP looks at his tires (closely!) he's way ahead of most car owners in maintenance.
 
There might be something to that-my Ram has THREE tires starting with sidewall cracking at exactly TWO YEARS old-and I have used tire shine products on them, although they are Mastercraft Courser A/Ts (off-brand Cooper junk!).
 
Originally Posted By: ARCOgraphite
U may end up spendng more for tire shine than U wood 4 a new set over 7 years ...


Who is this "U" you're speaking of?
 
Originally Posted By: eljefino
The theory of how armor all used to mess things up was it "wicked" softeners out of the middle of the tire up to the surface. Once they evaporated the tire was worse off than before.

That's also my understanding. Basically, once you start using it, you have to keep on using it regularly/frequently to keep the rubber lubed. If you use it a few times and then you stop or you use it very infrequently, then the dry rot ensues.
 
Jeez, when will this all stop, i've been using Armor All since the 70's when it came out and not once has my dash or tires cracked or rotted, all these urban legends crack me up
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Originally Posted By: Malo83
Jeez, when will this all stop, i've been using Armor All since the 70's when it came out and not once has my dash or tires cracked or rotted, all these urban legends crack me up
crackmeup2.gif


I had one set of brand new tires (bought in mid 90s) that dry rotted within about 4-5 years. Whether it was related to my use of ArmorAll on them, I don't know. It was the only set of tires that dry rotted and the only set that I used ArmorAll on.
 
I have tires that are 22 & 30 years old and have been using tire dressing on them since new and no dry rot to be seen!
I also had/have OE tires that have been on vehicles for 6-7 years sitting outside. Although the vehicles were driven daily(just not alot), there is or wasn't any dry rot while using tire dressings. Maybe some age gracking along the sidewall but, not much of that either!
 
They say the best way to prevent dry rot is to "exercise" your tires by simply driving the car regularly. I think the main cause of dry rot is tires that sit and don't get used enough.

I applied it and the tires look good and quite black. I may be wrong, but it doesn't seem to me that so many companies (Armor All, Turtle Wax, Meguiar, etc.) would continue to make a product if it's known to cause tires to deteriorate or dry rot.

Thanks for replying.
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I bought some 2-3 year old falkens on factory rims off someone who shined them once a week. I just wanted the factory rims and he was upgrading to 18's.

I was going to give the tires to a friend that needed that size.

I get to the tire shop a couple weeks later and the inside sidewall of the tires looked like new (side facing engine)

the outside sidewall where they were shined was so dry rotted they were ridiculous

Made me wonder what the [censored] he was shining those tires with.

looked new on the inside sidewall and 8/32 of tread left.. and garbage..
 
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Silicone is in most products and will wreck dashboards and probably tires.
It does look nice and wet but in the long run it can do more bad than good.
 
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