Who Makes The Best Water Based Tire Shine?

When looking for the best water based tire shine on the market there is a lot of competition and products to choose from.  You will want to choose a long-lasting product so that you don’t keep having to apply tire shine to your tires in between car washes.  

My Water Based Tire Shine Recommendations

TriNova Tire Shine Spray No Wipe

Chemical Guys TVD_107_16 V.R.P. Vinyl, Rubber, and Plastic Tire Shine

High Gloss or Low Gloss

Depending on if you want to have a high gloss tire shine or just a bit of gloss shine would be a factor in which type of water-based tire shine product that you go with.  

I personally prefer a higher gloss tire shine rather than just a dull shine but that is my preference.

In some products, the amount of gloss can be adjusted by wiping off some of the product off of the surface before it gets a chance to dry.

The amount of time the product will last

Another factor on which tire shine you would want to go with is how long that the tire shine will last on your tires without getting worn off.  

I want my hard work to last as long as possible so I look to go with a product that is at least going to last 4-5 days on my tires rather than being worn off in a couple of days.  

If it rains a lot where you live then the type of tire shine that you go with will also affect how long it lasts on your tires as water will typically make the tire shine wear off quicker than if it were just sitting in the sun.  

Water based tire shine spray or Gel

One thing you don’t want to have happen when using a tire shine product is having it flick off of the tire surface onto your clean new car.  I’ve had this happen in the past when using some lower grade tire shine products but it also comes down to how you apply the tire shine to your tire surface.  

If you leave a lot of tire shine on the surface of your tire when you go to drive it next it is going to sling that onto the fender of your vehicle. This is especially a problem if you have a white vehicle.  

The best option to take care of this issue is to go with a water based tire shine or find a gel that does not sling from the tire surface.  If you are going to be using a gel it’s also important to apply the gel to the surface of your tires using an applicator pad or a towel to make sure that you don’t have a lot of extra gel leftover on the surface.

With a water based tire shines they can either come in a spray or as a coating.  With tire shine sprays you do not need to worry as much about the tire shine getting flicked off of your tires as long as you make sure that the tire surface is dry before you drive.  

You can either wait for the tire shine to dry or you can use a towel dry off the surface before you drive if you do not have time to wait.

With a lot of the water based tire shines you can control how glossy the end product will be on your tires if you use a towel at the end of the process to remove some of the product.  

A lot of the gels out there the end product will still be glossy though, it really just depends on the product. Water based tire shines should do a better job of holding up after a rainstorm because they are a water based product themselves.  

A lot of tire shine products are also designed to act as a barrier to help protect your tires from building up any dirt or dust on the surface.  They are also typically designed to offer UV protection from the sun to keep the suns rays from breaking down your tire surface and cause them to brown over time.  

Who Makes The Best Water Based Tire Shine?

I personally would recommend the TriNova water-based tire shine spray out of all the products in this list.  It seems to do the best at lasting the longest and dries without leaving any greasy residue.

This keeps it from slinging all over your car when you go to take off.  TriNova’s spray will also protect your tires from UV rays and can be adjusted depending on how much shine you want on your tires by wiping it off a portion of it or by leaving it all applied.  

Some people have said that this spray has lasted on their tires for up to two weeks which is one of the better performing tire shine products on the market.

Related Questions

Is it bad to use tire shine?  No, it is not bad to use tire shine product on the sidewalls of your tires to help enhance the look.  However, you would not want to apply tire shine product to the tread of your tires as this would decrease the traction of your tires.  

You also want to stay away from petroleum-based tire shine products and aerosol tire shines as they do contain harmful chemicals that can damage the surface of your tires.

Do tire shine products damage tires?  Water-based tire shine products won’t damage your tires but petroleum-based tire shine products can potentially damage your tires.  The harmful chemicals in petroleum-based tire shine products can seep into the surface of your tires and leave them looking brown and faded.  

That’s why I always recommend using water-based tire shine products on your tires to protect them from damage.

Does tire shine prevent dry rot?  Tire shine products are not designed to help prevent dry rot.  However, there are other products like 303 protectants that are designed to be sprayed on rubber tires to help protect against dry rot and maintain the elasticity of the tire.  

I recommend spraying down your tires with 303 protectants after cleaning them once or twice a year to help protect your tires against dry rot and to help maintain the rubber on the sidewalls of your tires.

Is Meguiars Hot Shine water based?  No, Meguiars Hot Shine is not water based and it does have one main drawback when compared to the other tire shine products on this list.  In my experience in using Meguiars Hot Shine, it left a greasy residue on your hands after touching the product. With the Trinova spray their tire shine spray is not greasy and still has a good shine to it.  

One thing that the Meguiar tire shine did excel at was the shine it produced when dried. If you want to have the absolute shiniest tires then I would go with the Meguiars. It is worth noting that Meguiars does have water based dressing that can be used on tires.

How to Apply Tire Shine

Tire Prep

The amount of prep that you do to the tire surface will also be a factor in how long the tire shine sticks to the surface of the tire.  

I recommend taking a brush or a towel to clean the surface of your tire before applying new tire shine so that it sticks directly to the surface of the tire instead of dirt or dust that may have accumulated on the surface of the tire.  

That’s why it’s always a good idea to clean your wheels and tires before you look to apply any new tire shine to your tires.

Dry and Cool

After washing your tires it’s important to dry them off before applying any tire shine products.  You would also want to make sure that your tires are cool to the touch to give the tire shine product the best chance to bond to the surface of the tire.

Apply Spray

You can then apply your tire shine spray to the tire by spraying it on the surface of the tire making sure that you apply it to the whole surface area of the tire and being careful to not miss any spots.  

Now you would want to take a towel to remove any excess spray that may have landed on your wheels during this process.  Next, use the towel to remove any excess spray to make the shine not as glossy.

Apply Gel Using Applicator Pad

If you are going with a gel or tire shine dressing then you would want to have some sort of applicator pad to use to apply the tire shine.  

They make specific tire shine applicator pads if you wanted to get one built specifically to apply tire shine but I just went and bought a pack of cheap car wax applicator pads and then used one of them as my designated tire shine applicator.  

Just make sure that if you go this route you don’t mess up and use it to try to apply wax to your car down the line.

Benefits of Using a Tire Protectant

Some water-based tire shine products can also help prevent your tires from dry rotting like 303 protectants.  

I’ve seen videos online where an older gentleman used 303 protectant on the surface of his tires after taking his car through car washes and it allowed the tires to last a lot longer, he had driven a lot of miles on them and they still looked almost brand new even after a lot of mileage.  

I have two sets of wheels and tires for my car, one set that I use during the summer months with summer tires, and another set that I use during the winter months with my cars stock wheels and all-season tires.  

I have since started applying 303 protectants to my different car tires when I go to store the different sets depending on what time of the year it is and 303 protectants has done an excellent job of making sure that the rubber remains pliable.  It also seems to last on the surface of the tires throughout the storage months.

303 (30313-CSR) UV Protectant Spray for Vinyl, Plastic, Rubber, Leather

303 (30382) UV Protectant for vinyl, rubber, plastic, tires and finished leather

In Conclusion

If you are looking for the best water based tire shine out there hopefully this guide was able to give you some ideas of different products to look at so that you can make a decision as to which would work best for you.  

Depending on if you are wanting a high gloss or low gloss shine is going to be the next main consideration.

If you are wanting your tires to last as long as possible you may also want to spray your tires occasionally with a rubber protectant like 303 protectants to keep the rubber on them lasting as long as possible.