Originally posted by Tourige:
Originally posted by RogerB:
Originally posted by 00_HO_Contour:
Those rims didn't really look good online but on the car they look HAWT



Ditto.

Tire shine is overrated, although it does photograph well. In person, I don't really know if you need it.

I succombed to the temptation and shined my tires last summer. Well, a little bit-o-that got on the outside edge of my tread. Stuff definitely will reduce traction, esp under hard cornering. Won't do that again.







I can see that you're skeptical. Let me explain.

I use Falken Azenis in the summer, and my car is lowered.

I never had this traction issue on any other tire or when I was at my stock height.

But, my Azenis are a little wide, and with the increased neg. camber on the rear, the outside edges of my rear tires ride a little, um, high.

Ordinarily, you spill a little tire shine on the tread, and it wears off after a few miles and then you're golden until you go autocrossing and roll the tread over onto the sidewall.

In this case, the stuff just sat there and didn't wear off. Only I didn't really think about that before I raced ahead to make the light, where I was turning left, before it changed. I'd driven these tires for a while and I knew their limits, and let me tell you it's a high limit. Or at least it had been a high limit.

Result was more fun than scary but the people waiting at the cross-street probably thought I was crazy kicking out the rear end to make that left. I guess that outside edge finally hit pavement.

The stuff is definitely slippery. There's a good reason the can tells you not to use it on motorcycle tires.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Function before fashion. '96 Contour SE "Toss the Contour into a corner, and it's as easy to catch as a softball thrown by a preschooler." -Edmunds, 1998