Mike Phillips
Active member
- Dec 5, 2022
- 51,004
- 6
Review: 303 Multi-Surface Cleaner as a Tire Cleaner + 303 Protectant as a Tire Dressing by Mike Phillips
303 products and a few tools of the trade
Real-World Detailing =Real-World Reviews and Ho-Tos
I recently had the pleasure to restore the original paint on a 1965 Corvette. This is the real-deal, I don't do mock-up.
One of the first things I do when inspecting a car before detailing is I take my hand and give the tire sidewall a good wipe and then look to see what comes off the tire and onto my hand. In this case, a black, oily, dirty film came off. This is a sign that at some point some brand of tire dressing was applied to the tire sidewall.
Before
Machine Cleaning and Machine Dressing
I've been very impressed with the safe cleaning power of 303 Multi-Surface Cleaner for a number of projects lately and because I already had these product out, and because I could not use a tire coating on these tires I chose to use the 303 cleaner and protectant to clean and dress these iconic muscle car tires. Of course, I machine applied both the cleaner and the protectant using separate dedicated machine tire scrubbing brushes on a FLEX cordless PE14
Here's before machine scrubbing - the rubber is dull and lifeless looking....
Cotton Terrycloth Scrap Rags
Every detailer should have some plain, simple cotton terrycloth scrap rags like you always see me using. These work best for this type of cleaning work and microfiber towels actually suck at this type of work plus it ruins the towels.
After machine scrubbing, I spray a little of the 303 Multi-Surface Cleaner onto the face of the towel and then give the scrubbed sidewall a thorough wipe-down.
And here's what I don't want on my nice microfiber towels. :dunno:
Then I blast any excess residue out of the lips of the rims and around the lettering.
After that I machine apply the dressing. I machine apply the dressing TWICE and after the second application I again wipe the tire with a clean scrap rag so there's nothing on the surface to sling-off. I also blow-out all the lettering again as well as blow out around the lip of the rim. Sorry no pictures.
Here's the final results...
Ahh.... that looks so much better than where we started.
Review
What can I say? 303 makes great products and while I don't think they position their multi-surface cleaner as a dedicated tire clean - it works great. Both the cleaner and the protectant make a great dynamic duo for so many things and they are so easy to use. Also at this point - now that the tires have been surgically machine cleaned and dressed - moving forward it will be super easy to REFRESH the crisp look with a simple hand application of the protectant. Maybe once or twice a year re-clean by hand with the cleaner and your scrap rag and then re-dress.
Simple processes like this work to maintain your car's tires because they are fast and easy to do.
On Autogeek.com
303 Multi-Surface Cleaner 16 oz.
303 Automotive Protectant
https://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/redirect-to/?redirect=https://www.autogeek.net/ravicotopca.html
Heavy-Duty DA Carpet Brush – Long Bristles
The Heavy-Duty DA Carpet Brush features deep 1.5-inch nylon bristles that are stiff enough to remove stains, and gentle enough not to damage delicate surfaces. Attach the Heavy-Duty DA Carpet Brush to a 5-inch hook and loop backing plate and you’ll be able to clean carpet faster than you ever thought possible!
FLEX PE-150 Cordless Rotary Polisher
The FLEX PE-150 Cordless Rotary Polisher has a 1400 watt motor with a no-load speed range of 150 - 1,450 rpm. When powered by the 5 amp battery pack, the FLEX PE-150 Cordless Rotary Polisher can use a cutting wool pad at full power for 30-35 minutes – the perfect amount of time to polish a couple panels. The average charge time from dead to fully charged is approximately 40 minutes – and you can have a back-up battery on hand to keep going while the other battery is still charging!
303 products and a few tools of the trade
Real-World Detailing =Real-World Reviews and Ho-Tos
I recently had the pleasure to restore the original paint on a 1965 Corvette. This is the real-deal, I don't do mock-up.
One of the first things I do when inspecting a car before detailing is I take my hand and give the tire sidewall a good wipe and then look to see what comes off the tire and onto my hand. In this case, a black, oily, dirty film came off. This is a sign that at some point some brand of tire dressing was applied to the tire sidewall.
Before
Machine Cleaning and Machine Dressing
I've been very impressed with the safe cleaning power of 303 Multi-Surface Cleaner for a number of projects lately and because I already had these product out, and because I could not use a tire coating on these tires I chose to use the 303 cleaner and protectant to clean and dress these iconic muscle car tires. Of course, I machine applied both the cleaner and the protectant using separate dedicated machine tire scrubbing brushes on a FLEX cordless PE14
Here's before machine scrubbing - the rubber is dull and lifeless looking....
Cotton Terrycloth Scrap Rags
Every detailer should have some plain, simple cotton terrycloth scrap rags like you always see me using. These work best for this type of cleaning work and microfiber towels actually suck at this type of work plus it ruins the towels.
After machine scrubbing, I spray a little of the 303 Multi-Surface Cleaner onto the face of the towel and then give the scrubbed sidewall a thorough wipe-down.
And here's what I don't want on my nice microfiber towels. :dunno:
Then I blast any excess residue out of the lips of the rims and around the lettering.
After that I machine apply the dressing. I machine apply the dressing TWICE and after the second application I again wipe the tire with a clean scrap rag so there's nothing on the surface to sling-off. I also blow-out all the lettering again as well as blow out around the lip of the rim. Sorry no pictures.
Here's the final results...
Ahh.... that looks so much better than where we started.
Review
What can I say? 303 makes great products and while I don't think they position their multi-surface cleaner as a dedicated tire clean - it works great. Both the cleaner and the protectant make a great dynamic duo for so many things and they are so easy to use. Also at this point - now that the tires have been surgically machine cleaned and dressed - moving forward it will be super easy to REFRESH the crisp look with a simple hand application of the protectant. Maybe once or twice a year re-clean by hand with the cleaner and your scrap rag and then re-dress.
Simple processes like this work to maintain your car's tires because they are fast and easy to do.
On Autogeek.com
303 Multi-Surface Cleaner 16 oz.
303 Automotive Protectant
https://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/redirect-to/?redirect=https://www.autogeek.net/ravicotopca.html
Heavy-Duty DA Carpet Brush – Long Bristles
The Heavy-Duty DA Carpet Brush features deep 1.5-inch nylon bristles that are stiff enough to remove stains, and gentle enough not to damage delicate surfaces. Attach the Heavy-Duty DA Carpet Brush to a 5-inch hook and loop backing plate and you’ll be able to clean carpet faster than you ever thought possible!
FLEX PE-150 Cordless Rotary Polisher
The FLEX PE-150 Cordless Rotary Polisher has a 1400 watt motor with a no-load speed range of 150 - 1,450 rpm. When powered by the 5 amp battery pack, the FLEX PE-150 Cordless Rotary Polisher can use a cutting wool pad at full power for 30-35 minutes – the perfect amount of time to polish a couple panels. The average charge time from dead to fully charged is approximately 40 minutes – and you can have a back-up battery on hand to keep going while the other battery is still charging!
