Whitewall tires are reminiscent of an era past. At one point in time, it was the epitome of automobile luxury and has remained deeply rooted in car cultures like classics, VW’s, and hot rods.
If you own a car with a set of whitewall tires, then you know just how much work goes into keeping those babies clean. While standard black tires can get away with having a bit of dirt on them, the same can’t be said for whitewalls. You need to use cleaning products that work to not only get them white but also to prevent them from discoloration.
We tested some of the products that are hot on the market right now to bring you our top picks for the best white wall tire cleaner for 2022.
| Duragloss White Wall Tire Cleaner | Bleche-Wite White Wall Tire Cleaner | Car Guys White Wall Tire Cleaner | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best Overall | Best Fast-Acting Option | Best Multipurpose Option | |
Volume | 22 fl. oz. | 32 fl. oz. | 18 fl. oz. |
Surface recommendation | Whitewalls, black walls | Whitewalls, white lettering on tires, black walls | Whitewalls, black walls, rims, exhaust tips, braking systems |
Gets rid of | Dirt, grease, oil, grime, old tire dressing | Brake dust, road film, grime, grease | Dirt, road grime, brake dust |
Dilutable | Yes | No | Yes |
| View on Amazon | View on Amazon | View on Amazon |
Table of Contents
- How We Tested and Compared These Products
- Our Pick: Duragloss Whitewall Tire Cleaner – Best Overall
- Best Alternatives
- Black Magic Bleche-Wite Whitewall Tire Cleaner – Best Fast-Acting Formula
- Car Guys Whitewall Tire Cleaner – Best Multipurpose Cleaner
- Mothers Whitewall Tire Cleaner – Best Foaming Wheel and Tire Cleaner
- How to Choose the Best White Wall Tire Cleaner – Buying Guide
- FAQ
- Conclusion
How We Tested and Compared These Products
First off, we were only interested in products that were specially formulated to work on whitewall tires. At full strength, these products don’t require as much elbow grease as most of the other multipurpose cleaners on the market. That said, we did not exclude cleaners designed for use on both the tire and the wheel if we found them to be effective.
We also tested products from reputable manufacturers. Brands like Duragloss and Black Magic have a proven track record of cleaning excellence, so they automatically made the cut – after rigorous testing, of course.
Finally, we ranked these products based on their ability to get rid of dirt, road grime, grease, oil, and brake dust. We eliminated any cleaning product that was unable to remove those five compounds.
Our Pick: Duragloss Whitewall Tire Cleaner – Best Overall
Features:
- Volume: 22 fl. oz.
- Surface recommendation: Whitewalls, black walls
- Gets rid of: Dirt, grease, oil, grime, old tire dressing
- Can be diluted: Yes
Duragloss is a household name in the world of automobile cleaning products and detailing accessories. The brand, which is a subsidiary of the Brothers Research Corp., has been around for close to five decades and has built a sterling reputation for unmatched excellence in the manufacture of products that do what they’re supposed to do – clean.
The Duragloss whitewall cleaner is no exception. We haven’t come across any other tire cleaner that works with as minimal elbow grease as this one. We had not cleaned the Coker Tire white wall tires on our 1957 Ford Thunderbird for a while and figured we would use it on one of the tires to see how well it would do in getting rid of the grime and brake dust buildup that had been sitting on the tires for a while.
The instructions on the bottle stated that we could dilute the product, so we added a bit of water to the solution just to be on the safe side. We didn’t want to use it at full strength just yet. We proceeded to spray it on the tire surface and let it sit for about five minutes or so before giving it a good scrub down with a sturdy brush.
Right from the moment we started scrubbing, the dirt and grime immediately started to come off. We didn’t even have to scrub for that long either, nor did we have to spray more of the product on. We then proceeded to rinse it off, and the results were phenomenal. The white was gleaming, and it had a bit of shine to it, a little like what you would see on a polished tire. We were pretty impressed, to say the least.
Duragloss is infused with various surfactants and cleaning agents that surround the dirt, grease, and grime particles. It suspends them in the solution, which, in turn, makes it easy to wash off. This works better than purely alkaline-based white wall tire cleaners. We particularly liked how well it got into the hard-to-reach tire crevices. It found its way into the pores and emulsified the dirt leaving the tire brilliantly white.
All in all, we were quite pleased with its performance. The fact that a little goes a long way makes it a great bargain as well. It’s worth checking out.
- Made with a powerful blend of surfactants and cleaning agents that emulsify dirt quite easily
- Gets rid of grime from crevices and hard-to-reach spots on the tire
- It gives cleaned tires a nice glossy finish
- It is versatile and can be used on a wide range of rubber surfaces, including black wall tires as well as black or white rubber mats
- Great value for the money since it can be diluted
- It may not deliver brilliant white results on badly-stained surfaces, in which case you may use an erase cleaning pad to whiten the tire
- Cleans whitewalls, lettering, mats, blackwalls and engines
- Formula can be diluted for cleaning a variety of soiled surfaces
- Spray one tire at a time and agitate with a sturdy brush, rinse after...
Best Alternatives
Black Magic Bleche-Wite Whitewall Tire Cleaner – Best Fast-Acting Formula
Features:
- Volume: 32 fl. oz.
- Surface recommendation: Whitewalls, white letters on tires, black walls
- Gets rid of: Brake dust, road film, grime, grease
- Can be diluted: No
Sometimes, you just don’t have enough time to sit around and wait for a whitewall tire cleaner to do its job. You want something you can spray on, leave it for a minute or two, and then wipe it off. That’s where the Black Magic Bleach White white wall tire cleaner comes in.
We are always skeptical of spray-and-wipe cleaners because, in our experience, they hardly ever work. Given all the rave reviews we read about this particular cleaner, we decided to give it a go, and boy did it over-deliver.
We sprayed it on a portion of the second tire on our Thunderbird and let it sit for two minutes before wiping it off with a damp sponge. White wall wipes would have worked as well. It dissolved the road film, grime, grease, and brake dust, and we didn’t even need to scrub.
We did rinse with clean water, though. It is never a good idea to leave chemical-based cleaners on your white wall tires, as this might compromise their quality in the long run.
A quick look at the ingredients reveals that Bleche-Wite contains proprietary cleaning agents dubbed Primascrub, which work remarkably well to get rid of dirt, grime, and particles that adhere to rubber surfaces.
If you’re looking for a product that doesn’t require quite as much elbow grease to get your white wall tires clean, then this is the wide white wall cleaner you want. Granted, it did not deliver the same shiny results we got from Duragloss, but it did get the job done.
- Quick and easy to use
- Its fast-acting cleaning formula gets you sparkling clean tires in a matter of minutes
- No scrubbing required
- The proprietary Primascrub technology is the only one of its kind on the market
- Works on all kinds of rubber surfaces
- It may require a second application and a bit of scrubbing for severe scuffs
- Fast-acting, easy-to-use formula dissolves brake dust, grime, and road...
- Cleans black walls, white walls, and white lettering on tires
- Fortified with Primascrub, tough cleaning agents designed to attack...
Car Guys Whitewall Tire Cleaner – Best Multipurpose Cleaner
Features:
- Volume: 18 fl. oz.
- Surface recommendation: Whitewalls, black walls, rims, exhaust tips, braking systems
- Gets rid of: Dirt, road grime, brake dust
- Can be diluted: Yes
The two products we’ve reviewed so far are specially formulated for rubber surfaces. CarGuys wheel and tire cleaner piqued our interest because it is supposed to be a wheel cleaner. This means it is meant to clean both the rubber surface and the rims. Most of the white wall and black wall tire cleaners we’ve come across are too harsh to use on aluminum, chrome, and alloy rims.
While we were a little skeptical about using our Thunderbird as the guinea pig, we decided to give it a go and sprayed it on the third wheel – tire and rims included. We then let it sit for about 10 minutes, gave the tire a good scrub, and then proceeded to rinse off the cleaner. We must say, it worked a lot better than we had initially expected.
The chrome rims on our 1957 Thunderbird were super shiny, and the tire was quite clean as well, although it didn’t have a brilliant white shine like the results we got with Duragloss and Bleche White.
That said, its performance was several times better than the other wheel cleaners we tested. The pack says that the cleaner can also be used on exhaust tips, rotors, and calipers, and based on the way our rims were looking, we can confidently say that it would be safe to do so.
All in all, if you’re looking for a multipurpose cleaner for your white wall tires and rims, the Car Guys wheel cleaner would be your best bet.
- Versatile and multipurpose
- Leaves rims and other metallic surfaces clean and shiny
- Effectively removes dirt, road grime, and brake dust from the surface, leaving you with clean white wall tires
- It can be diluted to extend its longevity
- Each spray has minimal runoff, which increases its cleaning power
- The strong chemical-like smell
- ✅ CAR GUYS Wheel Cleaner is a versatile brake dust cleaner that is...
- ✅ Safe on Rims and Tires! – Our advanced pH Neutral formula,...
- ✅ Quick & Easy to Use! – Nobody likes wasting time and money. Our...
Mothers Whitewall Tire Cleaner – Best Foaming Wheel and Tire Cleaner
Features:
- Volume: 24 fl. oz.
- Surface recommendation: Whitewalls, black walls
- Gets rid of: Dirt, grease, oil, grime, brake dust
- Can be diluted: No
Last but certainly not least on our list is the wheel and tire cleaner from Mothers. Its special non-acidic formula works on black wall and whitewall tires and chrome, modular, color-coated, clear-coated, and painted wheels tires, rims, hubcaps, and other related items.
With that in mind, we sprayed a generous amount of the foam on the fourth tire and rim and let it sit for 10 minutes. We gave it a gentle scrub before hosing away the cleaner to reveal the results. For a tire and wheel cleaner, we were quite impressed.
The foam penetrated the tire’s pores, emulsifying and suspending road grime and grease, leaving the tire spot-free. The white walls also appeared whiter than they were before, so bonus points for that. If you have a problematic zone on your tire, the hose-like spray design allows you to spray the foam up close so that as much of the product as possible can get into the hard-to-reach tire crevices.
All in all, the results were outstanding. The tire didn’t get as white as the first two in our tests, but it was still brilliantly whiter than the results we’ve had in the past using other white wall tire cleaners. We would give it a solid 8.4 out of 10.
- The gentle, foaming, non-acidic formula
- Safe for use on a wide range of surfaces, including chrome, modular, color-coated, clear-coated, and painted wheels tires, rims, and hubcaps
- A little foam goes a long way for longevity
- Gets rid of stubborn dirt, grime, and grease with minimal effort
- Great value for the money
- It cannot be used on billet or anodized wheels, and roughcast or polished aluminum
- Foaming, non-acidic spray, formulated to quickly and easily clean both...
- Safe for painted, clearcoated, color coated, steel, modular, chrome,...
- Unique spray on, hose off design safely penetrates, dissolves and...
How to Choose the Best White Wall Tire Cleaner – Buying Guide
With so many tire cleaners on the market to choose from, picking the right one holds the key to getting the best possible results. By "best," we mean the "whitest." Below are three things you need to keep in mind when choosing the best white wall tire cleaner for your car.
Acidic vs. Alkaline Cleaners
When choosing a white wall tire cleaner, always go for alkaline-based products. While this might seem counterintuitive since acidic cleaners cut through dirt and grime like a hot knife through butter, these products end up doing more harm than good to your tires in the long run. These cause irreversible damage to the tire coating and may continue to eat away at the rubber when those microscopic cleaning agents get lodged deep in the tire’s pores.
Cleaner Type
Some cleaners are specially formulated for use on whitewall tires, while others can be used to clean the entire wheel – tire and rims included. Ensure you read the instructions on the bottle carefully before spraying the cleaner on your wheels with reckless abandon.
Cleaners like Duragloss whitewall tire cleaner, Black Magic’s Bleche-Wite, and Car Guys tire and wheel cleaner should only be used on non-metallic surfaces, specifically the rubber section of the wheel. They are too harsh to use on aluminum, chrome, and alloy rims. Others like Mothers wheel and tire cleaner can be used on both rims and whitewall surfaces.
Keep in mind that the more “multipurpose” a tire cleaner is, the less effective it will be in achieving the brilliant white results you seek.
Cleaning Strength
Finally, you might come across white wall tire cleaners that allow you to dilute them and others that don’t. Concentrated solutions give you more control over the cleaning strength.
If your tires are overly dirty and you haven’t cleaned them in a while, you can use the cleaner at full strength. This means you don’t need to add any water to dilute it. You’ll use significantly less elbow grease to get your tires clean.
On the other hand, if you simply need it for routine cleaning, you can dilute it. Diluting a cleaner extends its longevity.
FAQ
What is the best way to get clean whitewall tires?
You’ll need a whitewall tire cleaner, a scrub brush or an SOS pad, and water. Start by spraying the cleaning solution onto the tire and let it sit for about 10 minutes. Then, use a stiff-bristled brush and give each tire a good scrub before hosing them down with clean water. Whatever you do, don’t use bleach.
Can I use bleach to clean white wall tires?
It is not a question of “can you” because, let’s face it – you can do whatever you want to do – but rather “should you," to which the answer is no. Bleach is an extremely harsh chemical and will most certainly ruin your Detail King Tire whitewalls or any other white wall tire you have. Use cleaning products like Duragloss whitewall tire cleaner or Black Magic’s Bleche-Wite that are specially formulated for white wall tires.
How do I get my white wall tires to shine?
An easy way to do this would be to use a tire cleaner like Duragloss whitewall tire cleaner that leaves whitewalls with a nice, glossy, wet look. Alternatively, you could take your car or bike to the shop and get it detailed with a tire dressing to restore the original tire shine of your white wall tires.
Conclusion
If we had to pick one whitewall cleaner, it would undoubtedly be Duragloss. It doesn’t just get white wall tires clean; it gives them a shiny finish you just don’t with other cleaners on the market. That said, any of the other three options we reviewed would make an excellent alternative as well.
