What is the deal with cleaning tires?

[hollerstiltner]

Another thing to think about is just why you need to get the wheels THAT clean? If you are putting on something like tuffcoat, then I understand. However, a silicone dressing like car pro perl or megs enduarance just don't need to be that clean...

+1

 

[MattPersman]

I have been impressed with the mothers back to black tire cleaner there was a review in here that pushed me to buy some and I am happy I did

Give that a try I think you can get it OTC

 

[Legumes]

I've never had a tire bad enough that an application or two of a2z followed with some agitation or scrubbing couldn't get clean.

I don't know how tire-safe it is, but Comet cleaner will clean the heck out of a neglected tire. I used to use it long ago as my regular tire cleaner. I never saw anything detrimental to the tire(s) I used it on. Some of which I had installed for upwards of 10-12 years on my "weekend only" car.

 

[Jlt23]

Right now I'm using Meg's D101, but have used ARO and AG CWC in the past and they all work great at taking the brown out. I'm also using the Tuff Shine brush. My tires are rarely brown though. D101 is cheap so I switched to it.

 

[allenk4]

And did you look at the picture I posted, or are you just challenging my posts because that's your lot in life? The Cyclo brush is too large for about 80% of the tires I see.

Use 2/3rds of the brush on the tire and the other 1/3 will be just fine

If you are uncomfortable with the technique, stick to a scrub brush


Whatever works for you and your car

 

[allenk4]

Wow, I didn't peg you as a guy to be quoting from Full Metal Jacket.

I pride myself on being "un-peggable"

 

[allenk4]

IME you won't need ANY machine to clean a tire - unless your working on BigFoot or something. What you need is the right tools:

- Tuff Shine Tire Cleaner
- Tuff Shine brush

If your just using regular dressings, the tire just needs to be "clean enough". You don't need to get every drop of old dressing out of the rubber - since you will be just adding more dressing.

I agree, you don't need a machine to clean tires

I find it to be faster, more thorough and more FUN with a machine


I also agree with the 2nd point as long as you are not using greasy dressings that attract dust & dirt

 

[SameGuy]

Nothing to do with discomfort, everything to do with using the right tool for the right job. KISS.

 

[808_detail_nut]

Haven't read all posts but I use a PC7242 xp with a 4 inch cyclo grey brush and tuf shine. Used it on 5 cars so far and I love the results.

Sent from my SCH-I545 using AG Online

 

[StuDLei]

Just wanted to update my own thread for future searchers: I have found that using Mother's WHEEL brush works much better than their TIRE brush. So far, the tires I've cleaned with the wheel brush come clean the first time, maybe a touch more cleaning going on the second time I hit it. For the most part though, my second cleaning produces mainly white "foam" or whatever you want to call it (using OPC).

My theory is that the stiff "tire" brush is cleaning the tire too much. You have to be aggressive with it since it's so stiff, and so what happens is, this brown stuff comes out of the tire to heal itself.

I have no idea if that's the case, but using the wheel brush is much faster and require lots less elbow grease as well.

I applied Ultima Trim and Tire Guard to my tires about two months ago and they still look good. I do wash my car (and the tires) with ONR at least once a week, so that probably helps, but it's an absolute snap to do it. They bead up nice and when I dry them, my towel gets just a little black on it, which is no big deal. I'm guessing that even if you cleaned a tire a hundred time, if you rubbed a towel on it you'd get a little black. I don't let it get to me anymore.

 

[Riff]

So let's inject a bit of humor..... or one of my stories if I may.

Got a funny story about brake fluid and tires.

Back in the 70's one of the coolest things to use for doing burnouts was....
you guessed it...... BRAKE FLUID!

Talk about BIG OL' SMOKIN' BURNOUTS!!!!!!!:hotrod2:
(Even from cars that didn't have any horsepower!)

Then there was a "trick" where you could fill your windshield washer reservoir with brake fluid, run a length of fish tank tubing to one (or both) of your rear wheels, take a bit of coat hanger and neatly (ummmm) affix said tubing here and there and sure enough..... you were driving a Top Fuel Funny CAR! Im the MAN

Now I didn't do it, but I knew guys that did. (I'd just dump the fluid on the ground and do it that way.)

So...... I had this 77 Celica liftback and it was oh I dunno'.... somewhere in the mid 80's and I sold the car to my little brother. There was NOTHING wrong with it, averaged about 6000 miles a year I think about 80K on it when I sold it to him.

Well he had heard the story about the brake fluid, the coat hangers, and massive burnouts.

So I get a call from my Mother one day.... yadda' yadda' yadda' about just how big of a piece of junk this car was, and that I had ripped my little brother off. (Although THEY were the ones that always paid his way, well into his mid 30's actually!) So I'm trying to figure out what she's talking about and then my Dad gets on the phone, tells me that the clutch fell out of the car and my (poor little) brother had it up on jack stands and that I NEEDED TO GET MYSELF OVER THERE AND HELP HIM! Say WHAT?!?!?!?!!!!:wow:

So I get there, not to pleased that they had jumped all over me, telling me what a scumbag I was. Get on the creeper, slide myself under the car, and LOW AND BEHOLD...... you guess it..... that jacka$$ had run tubing from the washer reservoir to the back tire(s) and not only was the clutch gone, but BOTH back tires were bald. This was in LESS THAN 30 days!

Needless to say, I snatched that crap off the car, including half a dozen pieces of coat hanger. Then I went in the kitchen, threw it all on the table, told them DO NOT CALL ME, (along with the story of what he'd done) and got into my rollback and left. :nomore:

Hat in hand was the best way to describe my next interaction with my folks. (It was their hat, in their hands!) :dblthumb2:

Hahaha. Great story!