Tire Dressing confusion

[exploreco]

Need some help understanding what is tire safe product to put on my tires. I just four Michelin tires replaced under warranty for ozone cracking but the guy at the tire store asked me what type of tire dressing I was using. I have used the clear ones in the past not knowing any different but then switched over to Aerospace 303. That is a great product but very pricy. It was ok at first because I wasn't using it much but now that I am into detailing a little more I am finding the desire to grab the bottle a little more.

So, with that said, I am looking stocking up on gallon supplies of the detailers line and want to make sure I get something that is safe for the tires. So, I assume that all of the water based ones are. I like to have a shine to it but don't want a greasy one that everything sticks too.

Any recommendations?

Looking at D160 All Season, D161 Silicone Free, D170 Hyper Dressing (most expensive), or D171 Water Based Dressing. (are there any descriptions as to what these are on this forum. couldn't find any but might have missed them) Do any of these last?

And, is a dressing multiple use, like tires, trim and engine where as a tire shine is tire only?

Thanks as usual for your education and wisdom!

[Blueline]

Re: Tire Dressing confusion

Michelins are excellent tires and for cracking to occur, it is very, very odd. Was it just the outside of the tires, or both outer and inner sides?

[The Guz]

Re: Tire Dressing confusion

Hyper dressing can be used on tires, trim and engine trim. You can control the gloss level of it based on dilution ratio's. If you are looking for another option, D163 Tire & Trim Gel is another one. It's a water based gel dressing that can be used on tires and trim. I'm sure it would work fine in the engine bay as well.

[exploreco]

Re: Tire Dressing confusion

Michelins are excellent tires and for cracking to occur, it is very, very odd. Was it just the outside of the tires, or both outer and inner sides?

They told me it was just on the outside. It was to the point where one of them was losing about 5 psi a month. They said it wasn't a saftey issue yet but I decided to get them replaced. I agree, Michelins are excellent. I went with the same exact tire so maybe it was just something with this batch of tire. I don't know.

[The Guz]

Re: Tire Dressing confusion

Tires crack with age so that could have been it as well. My current yokohama's are doing that since they are pretty old. I will be swapping them out shortly as soon as I find the new replacement wheels for my car.

One thing I forgot to mention is that D163 doesn't last long on trim. I did a test on a piece of textured trim with 1 coat of D163, D4510 Plastic & Vinyl Coating, Ultimate Black and a couple other products. Out of the Meguiar's products, D4510 and D163 lasted about 2 weeks. Ultimate Black has lasted the longest at just shy of 8 weeks.

On tires D163 is great. With 2 coats i get about 3-4 weeks.

[Eldorado2k]

Michelins are actually very prone to cracking if a tire shine product with certain silicones are used on it. I actually just replaced 1 Michelin tire on my car this past weekend that was cracked on the sidewall and losing well over 5psi. per week.. I had been procrastinating on replacing it, but every tire shop I went to told me "silicone dressings will crack Michelin tires"

That tire was already on my car and cracked long before I got it.

As for what dressing you should choose to go with? Well from what I've heard Hyper Dressing is water based and the gloss can be adjusted to your liking which is great.. But if it's water based, why is there "Silicone Free Dressing"?? Haha, I understand your confusion.

I'm pretty sure Mr. Stoops will help provide the exact details between the different options Megs offers for you. Or you could give the Megs 1-800 line a quik call and have them provide the details as well. BTW Good question/post!

[Blueline]

Re: Tire Dressing confusion

That is sort of what I was about to get at..tire dressings.. Ozone cracking occurs on both sides of the tire, not just the outside as the OP has stated. Tires naturally release chemicals (blooming) to reduce cracking. A few web sites recommend not using anything on tires as it washes off the said chemicals the ooze to protect the rubber. I imagine constantly cleaning them, is not particularly good for tires. I rarely use anything on my tires.... never really likes the shinny Hot Wheels look anyway.....and my Michelins look new with over 80k on them.

[exploreco]

Re: Tire Dressing confusion

Thanks for the replies. The tires in question were right at 4 years old with 39k on them. They did start cracking within the second year and I expect minor ozone cracking around the bead and such. I personally didn't look inside of the wheel for some reason but the outside was very visible and was getting worse as the time passed. The car is in the mid west and garaged at night. I did use cleaners like bleach white for cleaning and products such as Hot Shine or what ever it is called. I didn't used much tire shine but put some on maybe 4 times a year. Didn't realize it was bad for the tires until I started reading about it and then of course the tire place asked me what I had used. I for sure don't use it very often. I am finding myself wanting to use it more, particually because my wifes car is black but now that I am part of a community like this I want to move forward with an educated decison!

[davey g-force]

Re: Tire Dressing confusion

I just can't imagine a company like Meguiars releasing a product which is meant to protect tires, which actually is bad for them.

I would agree with D163 - it's awesome on tires. Nice shine (not too shiny), dries to the touch, no slinging and lasts several weeks.

[Eldorado2k]

It's not All tires... It's actually just 2 certain versions that Michelin released which are known to crack if silicone based tire dressings are constantly applied to them.

Now I hate to put the blame on Michelin, especially since the research shows they actually make tires that outperform the most popular brands [such as Goodyear] But they are the 1st and only tires anyone mentions when it comes to sidewalls cracking due to 'Armor All' being used on them...

I must have been to a handfull of tire shopps, and the moment the guys saw my front tire they instantly began shaking their heads and began telling me what I already knew.. 'Michelins & Armor All'... It's a shame, because even though I know they make a darn superior tire, there's no way I'd ever buy a set of Michelins after blowing their own reputation so bad.

Btw, the Michelin tire I replaced this past Saturday only had cracking on the outer sidewall, the inner sidewall was just fine.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Tire Dressing confusion

If you are truly concerned with putting anything on your tires that has silicone in it, then stick with D161 Silicone Free Dressing. But really, silicone should not be the huge issue that so many people make it out to be. Silicone is an inert ingredient that is added to a product to enhance or modify some characteristic of that product. That can mean easier spreading of the product, or easier wipe off, or increased gloss. Just because a product has silicone in it does not mean that it has to be super glossy and greasy - far from it. M40 contains silicone (it's a water based product) yet it's not very glossy at all and will dry totally dry. It also won't last super long due to its water based nature, but it's extremely popular and we've never had a complaint about sidewall cracking even with repeated use. In fact, M40 is the product of choice around Meguiar's HQ for tire dressing simply because it leaves a clean, black satin appearance.

We used to have 4 cars at home, and each car had a different brand of tire on it. I treated all 4 cars the exact same way, cleaning the side walls with the same APC on a regular basis and dressing the tires with the same tire dressing (M40 or Endurance) on a regular basis. The one car with Michelin tires was the only one that showed heaving browning of the sidewalls and I was constantly fighting that appearance. That's not a knock against Michelin as these were the only tires that were designed for long life (the other brands were all more sporting in nature and hence had a shorter mileage life expectancy) which means they most likely contained more anti-ozonants that would leech to the surface - as designed - and cause that browning (blooming, technically). These anti-ozonants are what protect the sidewall from the effects of ozone, which is detrimental to the rubber. But they only leech to the surface when the tire is in motion and under load, which is why in the RV industry they recommend changing tires after a certain amount of time, regardless of mileage (or lack there of). It's also why there is a lot of talk lately about tire dealers selling "old" tires and why it's important to check the DOT specs on the sidewall as that will give you the build date of the tire. Tires will age just sitting there, with cracking from ozone exposure compromising their integrity even with 100% of the tread still intact.

None of our tire dressings will cause damage to the tires - they won't cause the sidewalls to turn brown and they won't degrade the rubber. But they can make cracking more visible, and those with any sort of cleaning ability can release the excess anti-ozonants and reveal that brown look. But proper cleaning of the side wall will eliminate this - in fact, the cleaning process itself will reveal and release all the brown material from the sidewall. Just try using Hot Rims Wheel & Tire Cleaner and watch all the crud run off the sidewall. That's obviously a mixture of road grime, old tire dressing, brake dust and anti-ozonants. But even if you've never used a tire dressing of any kind, you'll still get a brown appearance if you don't clean the surface from time to time.

[The Guz]

Re: Tire Dressing confusion

Well said. It's actually amazing how fast Hot Rims Wheel & Tire Cleaner or D143 Non-Acid Wheel & Tire Cleaner react on any tire. They simply work.


exploreco have we confused anymore on which tire dressing to go with . You really can't go wrong with either of them. Buying them in bulk will be more cost effetive.

[Blueline]

Re: Tire Dressing confusion

Michael, when you write something about waxes, I consider your words close to gospel. However if I want information on tires, I go to a tire expert, and this is what one (TireRack.com) says about tire cracking:

"Additionally, some sidewall cracking has been linked to abrasion from parking against a curb, or the excessive use of tire cleaners/dressings that inadvertently remove some of the tire's anti-oxidants""

From tire-information-world.com : Petrochemicals and silicone oils can also remove protective waxes and increase the rate of decay. Common automotive protectants and tire dressings can contain chemicals and/or silicone oils which dissolve protective waxes and can actually attack the sidewalls. In the event of failure, one of the first things tire manufacturers look for is evidence of the use of these types of products. If it is found it may be a cause for invalidating a warrant against manufacturing defects.

Read more: http://www.tire-information-world.co...#ixzz38tBFurwY

So in my opinion, cleaning tires excessively or using dressings (silicone or not) will contribute to tire cracking, and possibly void warranties.

[davey g-force]

Re: Tire Dressing confusion

This is my opinion:

It's way too easy for tire companies to scapegoat tire dressings as the reason for sidewall cracking. I've used tire dressings on all of my cars weekly for more than 20 years and have never seen a cracked sidewall. So I'll continue to use them.

[The Guz]

Re: Tire Dressing confusion

This is my opinion:

It's way too easy for tire companies to scapegoat tire dressings as the reason for sidewall cracking. I've used tire dressings on all of my cars weekly for more than 20 years and have never seen a cracked sidewall. So I'll continue to use them.

Same here.

"Additionally, some sidewall cracking has been linked to abrasion from parking against a curb, or the excessive use of tire cleaners/dressings that inadvertently remove some of the tire's anti-oxidants""

From tire-information-world.com : Petrochemicals and silicone oils can also remove protective waxes and increase the rate of decay. Common automotive protectants and tire dressings can contain chemicals and/or silicone oils which dissolve protective waxes and can actually attack the sidewalls. In the event of failure, one of the first things tire manufacturers look for is evidence of the use of these types of products. If it is found it may be a cause for invalidating a warrant against manufacturing defects.

So in my opinion, cleaning tires excessively or using dressings (silicone or not) will contribute to tire cracking, and possibly void warranties.

I highlighted these words as they stood out to me. What is considered excessive? hourly? daily? monthly? weekly?

I'm not saying tire rack is wrong or any tire expert for that fact. But I see this as them protecting themselves. I'm sure they have dealt with a few who have gone through a replacement process due to cracking and those folks said they use tire dressings. Tire rack or whomever sees this as a small trend and says lets state that tire dressings cause cracking so they don't have to pay but rather the consumer pays.

I'm fairly certain that the folks within Meguiar's have done their research. We all know they release safe products. Another thing to note is the advancement of car products today. Some tire dressings on the market offer UV protection.

In the end it's one's personal choice. I for one will continue to use them as I have not experienced any ill affects.


This is indeed an interesting topic.