WD40 + tyres

S3SR · 17-10-2006, 01:07 PM

i looked on the WD40 website and in their tips it said to spray your tyres with WD40 which would give it more grip......???

anyways just want to know if anyone has done it, and if it works id do it because even with a slight drizzle of rain the road and roundabouts are dangerous and im not the only one that ends up in the garden or sideways.

[Tonko] · 17-10-2006, 01:09 PM

i was under the impression WD-40 was supposed to do the opposite...

ratter · 17-10-2006, 01:17 PM

The main thing is to get better tyres or change your driving style.

I raced RC cars and we used to WD-40 our tyres to get more grip, we used to spray them and then wiped them clean. I dont think I would be trying it with street rubber and I think the wet roads would make them lethal.

big_pete · 17-10-2006, 01:35 PM

Try it

if it doesnt work and you crash....

you can sue them for telling you to do it!

the_scotsman · 17-10-2006, 03:12 PM

hahaha...yea try it!

TZENU · 17-10-2006, 03:26 PM

funny thing is i used it once as a tyre shine

:
and the writing on the side of the tyre disappeared... It was a pretty shitty tyre but i wonder why it did that!!??!!

17-10-2006, 04:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TZENU

funny thing is i used it once as a tyre shine

:
and the writing on the side of the tyre disappeared... It was a pretty shitty tyre but i wonder why it did that!!??!!

It made the rubber so soft and brittle that it just fell off.

Thats probably how it gives rubber extra grip, it makes it softer.

castek · 17-10-2006, 04:28 PM

i am pretty sure some oil on your tyres works a treat lol.

i agree with ratter. get better tyres or adjust to driving in the wet

4.9 EF Futura · 17-10-2006, 04:48 PM

Haha, yes I do this to my offroad RC vehicles which are raced on an oiled loam surface (when dry and hardened, this surface is very similar to tacky bitumen).

WD40 actually softens the rubber compund. i.e. it changes the properties of the rubber itself - it's not just a temporary traction compound. The whole tyre feels softer and stickier.

The down side is that softer rubber wears a LOT quicker.

I think it would work on a 1:1 scale. You'd prob need a lot more than what i use on 1:10th scale (10 times as much? lol) and would prob take a while to soak in.

I also think it would increase your tyre wear!!

BUT i dont know if it would work in the wet. Do racing cars (V8SC, F1 etc) have a harder rubber compound as well as wet weather tread for wet conditions? Or is it similar compound, just with tread?