Tire Shine - Yeah or Nay?

[e90steve]

This is my first SUV with 4WD. And also first SUV with large 35" tires.

My question is, what does everyone do about tire shine? When the dealer delivered it, there was slop all over the tires. Way more than I usually put on a vehicle. With the size of these tires, the amount of tire shine you have to put on to cover them is considerable. And that tire shine, well a good bit of it ends up on the car.

So what is the general consensus with Broncos, Jeeps/off-road vehicles. Is it just a given that we don't put any sort of tire shine or tire treatment on? I personally think it does look nice to have a deep black (but not glossed up) tire. But at the same time, the amount of slop that you have to apply along with what gets all over your car, makes it kind of not worth it IMO.

Is there an alternative to shine, that keeps tires black but not sloppy? I really dislike when they look "Dirty"/rusty/brown colored.

Thanks in advance!

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[Bruzer22]

Clean is fine. Shine is ok for street tires, I don’t care for it on all terrain/mud terrain tires.

 

[buzpro]

Once you actually start 4 wheeling and off-roading you will care less about that stuff

 

[AK SNO RIDER]

They key is to use a good product. Dealers don't. They use trash like armor all or some generic bullshit in a spray can.

My personal favorite is Optimum Opti-Bond. Put it on with an applicator sponge and don't over do. If I need to drive the car right away I'll go back and wipe each tire down real quick in order after I've finished the last one.

No mess, no ridiculous shine, just a nice clean black tire.

It can also be used on trim, though i prefer 303 Aerospace for all my plastics.

 

[iamchewby]

I never use shine, just get a good brush and scrub the tires at the end of your wash and they'll look good. I personally use a dish brush.

I'll also note that I live on a gravel road, so shine will only make the dust stick to my tires and they'll be gray before I even get out of the driveway. That's my main reason for no shine.

 

[Jdyount]

Once you actually start 4 wheeling and off-roading you will care less about that stuff

I second this.

 

[JT58Bronc]

The key is not using too much of the product. I use tire shine on all of my vehicles tires. I first clean the tires, then apply tire shine sparingly. Then I use a damp or wet rag to massage the stuff around the tire. The stuff cleans well and will present a semi-shine at first then it will lessen into a super clean tire with little to no gloss as it dries. It removes all the brown nicely. Dealers and some people use way too much of the stuff- they cake it on in layers and it makes more of a mess and then the tires are a dirt magnet. And the stuff slings on to the fender flares and body. When I have taken delivery of a vehicles of the stuff caked on, first thing I do when I get home is to remove it- and it's quite dirty and messy!

The foam stuff is also good- key is also not applying too much.

 

[BroncoAZ]

I’m old school on tire cleaning. In the warmer months I clean the sidewalls with SOS soap pads to get all the grime off. I probably do this every third or fourth wash, more frequently if the tires have raised white letters that are exposed. The SOS pads clean well enough to make the tires black rather than the brownish rust color (which I think is mostly brake dust on the rubber). I then treat with 303 protectant for UV protection a couple times per year and I’m done. On my inbetween car washes in the driveway I have a tire brush I use with normal car wash soap that gets the sidewalls clean enough.

If I take a vehicle in for service I specifically request “no tire shine” as I don’t want it all over the fenders.

 

[BudgetBronco]

Nay! I had the same experience...dealer used way too much and by the time I got it home the sides of the truck were covered in that slimy junk.

I like the no shine look. Just keep them clean with a scrub brush.

 

[ifrankyr]

If you do add tire shine, just make sure to give the tires a good scrub down after off roading in mud/dirt. Overtime it’ll build up on the tire and leave brown patches if you don’t scrub them well.

 

[truckatologist]

Agreed I have never liked shine products. I do put 303 on tires if I want to make them look a little younger, though

 

[USAGUY]

Nay

 

[604Bronco]

Nope.

Like @Bruzer22 mentioned - Not for off-road or truck tires. I used to use tire shine on some of my nicer performance/luxury vehicles. I think it would look awful on the Bronco, unless it was parked at a car show or Starbucks parking lot.

 

[Sighlense]

Nay

 

[WuNgUn]

I'll probably use a cheap tire dressing like Armor All, prior to washing....
Cake it on, brush it in, let it sit. Then wash the truck like I normally would.
Clean, black rubber, no shitty shine.

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