Surprising white wall tire cleaner

[JonW]

I had the Mark V up on the lift today polishing the wheels. I noticed the white walls were a little grungy, but I didn't want to get it down from the lift to take it outside to scrub the white walls. Plus, it was raining. So I looked at my wash bay supplies and decided to try a few things. Most of them did not work well, but the one that really surprised me was 303 All-Surface Interior Cleaner. I used it and a terry cloth towel to scrub the white walls, and I was blown away by the results. This really isn't marketed as a white wall tire cleaner, and I didn't use a brush, just a terry cloth towel. What a nice surprise!

 

 

[John_S_in_Penna]

I don't know that product, but I was advised by a

professional restorer never to use Comet cleanser

on a tire.  Other cleansers, such as Bon Ami, would

be fine, but evidently Comet has a different chemical

composition.

 

So just because a cleaner works, it doesn't mean it's

unharmful to tires.  So be aware.  Maybe others can

tell you more.

[TerryB]

It’s a spray on multi surface cleaner and advertised to be safe on most everything.

[Paul Dobbin]

I use Simple Green on whitewalls when I clean them on the lift.       Seems to work better on Diamondback whitewalls than on Cokers.   I drive my cars year round and washing wheels and tires outside is a winter no no,  because the hose

is frozen.    

[Joe in Canada]

I bought a set of 700 X 19 wide white from Universal past Dec. and they recommended 303. My luck is there is no distributer up here for 303.   Also told to use nothing that has silicon in the cleaner.

Edited April 28 by Joe in Canada (see edit history)

[Reynard]

32 minutes ago, Joe in Canada said:

I bought a set of 700 X 19 wide white from Universal past Dec. and they recommended 303. My luck is there is no distributer up here for 303.   Also told to use nothin that has silicon in the cleaner.

It might be available online in Canada as it is in the US. 

[John_S_in_Penna]

3 hours ago, JonW said:

I had the Mark V up on the lift today polishing the wheels.

Jon, do you have any pictures of your Lincoln

that you can post on this thread?  As you may know,

your fellow car fans love seeing car pictures!

 

I myself have a 1978 Lincoln Mark V, in "ice blue" paint.

It's more comfortable than any car that I know today.

 

Edited April 28 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[John_S_in_Penna]

34 minutes ago, Reynard said:

It might be available online in Canada as it is in the US. 

Good idea, Reynard.

And if the postage across the border is too expensive

to make the purchase worthwhile, consider buying 

several containers of "303" to share with fellow car fans.

Postage cost divided among several containers might be

less per container.

[JonW]

Here's a photo of my '79 Mark V. It is all original and in pristine condition. It had 21,000 miles on it when I bought it. It now has 28,000 miles. I drive my cars.

 

 

[TAKerry]

Curious as to why not comet. I have used that for years on my motorcycle tires and they come out whiter than white and never created a problem.

[John_S_in_Penna]

3 hours ago, TAKerry said:

Curious as to why not comet. I have used that for years on my motorcycle tires and they come out whiter than white and never created a problem.

I don't know why he advised against Comet.

But he was definite.

[Oldsmobile 83]

4 hours ago, TAKerry said:

Curious as to why not comet. I have used that for years on my motorcycle tires and they come out whiter than white and never created a problem.

I am also curious about the use of Comet on tires as i have used it for years on several cars and have not experienced any issues that I am aware of.

[JFranklin]

I once washed a car ('48 Chevrolet) with dull oxidized paint with Comet. Shined it up considerably!

[ABear]

Westley's Bleach White is what I have used for white walls..

 

I believe Westley's changed hands or names, product is now called Black Magic Bleche-White

 

Found here at https://www.amazon.com/Westleys-800002224-Blech-Wite-Tire-Cleaner/dp/B016W1IRSC

 

Original Westley's worked very well, have not used the Black magic version but I suspect it will work well enough.

[Grimy]

Original Westley's is VERY good at removing striping from your wheels...just sayin'......

[Paul Dobbin]

I found that is Bleach-White stayed on a painted surface to long it would stain the paint.    It made it a one

wheel at a time process, with a quick wash and rinse before going to the next wheel & tire,

[ABear]

23 minutes ago, Grimy said:

Original Westley's is VERY good at removing striping from your wheels...just sayin'......

 

9 minutes ago, Paul Dobbin said:

I found that is Bleach-White stayed on a painted surface to long it would stain the paint.    It made it a one

wheel at a time process, with a quick wash and rinse before going to the next wheel & tire,

Not sure what you were doing to cause that.

 

Spray on, scrub lightly with a bristle brush then rinse off with water and done. No harm, no foul done.

 

70's car I had with whitewalls had PAINTED steel rims AND PAINTED hub caps, Original Westleys never removed/harmed/faded/damaged the paint from said rims or hub caps.

 

Now, if you blasted it on and left it sit for a few hrs before rinsing off you might have something to your story..

 

If you keep the white walls fairly clean there was no need to soak for extended times.

[Grimy]

3 hours ago, ABear said:

Not sure what you were doing to cause that.

I was using Westley's per the instructions.  I have cleaned a few wide whitewalls since entering the hobby over 60 years ago.  What makes you think it's MY fault?  Are you Westley's chemist?

[ABear]

1 hour ago, Grimy said:

What makes you think it's MY fault?  Are you Westley's chemist?

I think your handle should be grumpy?

 

IF you followed the instructions correctly, you only NEEDED to spray on, then brush the hard stains and then SPRAY OFF.

 

Takes a whole 30 seconds to do.

 

Did that for YEARS on the SAME CAR with SAME rims and hub caps from early 1980s up till I parked the vehicle in 1999.

 

It was specifically sold FOR use on tires, black wall, whitewall and even white raised letters, if it was as hazardous as you claim my same rims and hubcaps should have been stripped bare of paint, which did not happen.

 

That stuff is NOT Brake fluid..

[Grimy]

42 minutes ago, ABear said:

I think your handle should be grumpy?

 

IF you followed the instructions correctly, you only NEEDED to spray on, then brush the hard stains and then SPRAY OFF.

 

Takes a whole 30 seconds to do.

 

Did that for YEARS on the SAME CAR with SAME rims and hub caps from early 1980s up till I parked the vehicle in 1999.

 

It was specifically sold FOR use on tires, black wall, whitewall and even white raised letters, if it was as hazardous as you claim my same rims and hubcaps should have been stripped bare of paint, which did not happen.

 

That stuff is NOT Brake fluid..

There are a few variables involved:  type paint on wheel, age of paint, type and age of striping paint.  Two cars, restored 25 years apart, different types of paint on wheels (acrylic lacquer one one, delstar (?) on the other)--but I didn't do the striping but speculate that it was One-Shot.

 

Just because YOU had good luck does not make your experience a universal.

 

I get grumpy when I continually read nonsense from the same person, ABore.

[CChinn]

I find it interesting that occasionally a new forum member will seem to come across as know it all, condescending and arrogant. They Also make a point to insult long standing over decades of well respected members of the hobby and this forum. A little humility and respect would be a much more effective and better approach IMO

[John_S_in_Penna]

36 minutes ago, CChinn said:

...humility and respect would be a much more effective and better approach IMO

Good point!  In discussing a topic, it's best for 

everyone to be gracious.  We may disagree on

one automotive point, but be in total agreement

on 99 others.  And we are gentlemen and ladies!

[CarNucopia]

I think the formulation has changed with the ownership. My recollection of the last time I used it was less effective then it used to be. It did still do a number on my driveway though.

[mcCat1962]

Wow! Looks cute.

[60FlatTop]

I use Westley's and jackstands. There is also a folded piece of 800 grit sandpaper for the edges.

[JACK M]

17 hours ago, Grimy said:

There are a few variables involved:  type paint on wheel, age of paint, type and age of striping paint.  Two cars, restored 25 years apart, different types of paint on wheels (acrylic lacquer one one, delstar (?) on the other)--but I didn't do the striping but speculate that it was One-Shot.

 

Just because YOU had good luck does not make your experience a universal.

 

I get grumpy when I continually read nonsense from the same person, ABore.

Three weeks in and almost 300 posts.

Should know by now that this is not your typical forum.

Lots of longtime friends and good advice.

No one likes to be told flat out that they are wrong. New friends or old.

[BobinVirginia]

18 hours ago, Grimy said:

There are a few variables involved:  type paint on wheel, age of paint, type and age of striping paint.  Two cars, restored 25 years apart, different types of paint on wheels (acrylic lacquer one one, delstar (?) on the other)--but I didn't do the striping but speculate that it was One-Shot.

 

Just because YOU had good luck does not make your experience a universal.

 

I get grumpy when I continually read nonsense from the same person, ABore.

So tell me @ABear what experience do you exactly have? I’m curious to know your base of knowledge on such a wide array of topics? I come here to learn other people’s ideas. What is your stake in being on the forum? 

Edited April 29 by BobinVirginia (see edit history)

[Charles Hipp]

I used the new Westley on my whitewalls before going to the Charlotte Zenith Meet, it took a lot more work to clean than i remembered, i did not spray, product on the painted (enameled) wheel slightly stained but polished off. On the other hand, the product spilled on the old nitrocellulose painted fenders (side mounted tires) required some careful work with white compound to remove!

Will try some of this 303. 

[76 Caddy]

For what it's worth, I only use SOS pads on my tire's whitewalls.

 

Tim

[avgwarhawk]

1 hour ago, 76 Caddy said:

For what it's worth, I only use SOS pads on my tire's whitewalls.

 

Tim

I used the same back in the 80s.  Firestone 721 tires had a wider white wall then usual. SOS worked great. 

[60FlatTop]

Oh, one more thing. I replace the tires on my old cars at ten years maximum. Most recently it was eight.

[Joe in Canada]

On 4/28/2024 at 3:02 PM, Paul Dobbin said:

I found that is Bleach-White stayed on a painted surface to long it would stain the paint.    It made it a one

wheel at a time process, with a quick wash and rinse before going to the next wheel & tire,

It will also take some of the paint off the rim. I found that when I used a white towel from the motel we were staying at. The towel was pink after wiping off the tire and red rim.  

[Tom99]

I use Black Magic Bleach-White on all the tires on my cars. It whitens the white, and makes the black look blacker.

Also, on a side note, I restore old 1/25 scale models. I soak the parts I want the paint removed in the Bleach-White for several days, and it removes the old paint.

[Pfeil]

On 4/27/2024 at 3:22 PM, JonW said:

I had the Mark V up on the lift today polishing the wheels. I noticed the white walls were a little grungy, but I didn't want to get it down from the lift to take it outside to scrub the white walls. Plus, it was raining. So I looked at my wash bay supplies and decided to try a few things. Most of them did not work well, but the one that really surprised me was 303 All-Surface Interior Cleaner. I used it and a terry cloth towel to scrub the white walls, and I was blown away by the results. This really isn't marketed as a white wall tire cleaner, and I didn't use a brush, just a terry cloth towel. What a nice surprise!

 

 

Like you and on the lift, I use this on a narrow white wall;

 

[cutlasguy]

I've had luck using EZ Off Oven Cleaner. I just spray it on the whitewall and the grime just runs off. I finish with a few swipes of a Brillo pad and a thorough rinse, and they become white as snow!