Hot tire pickup happens when a vehicle pulls into a garage on a hot day, and heat from the tires softens the epoxy coating underneath. As the tire cools and the rubber contracts, it can lift, tear, or leave a permanent imprint in the floor.
Why Hot Tire Pickup Happens
Standard epoxy resin softens slightly under heat, and tires can reach much higher temperatures than the surrounding air after highway driving on a hot day. When a soft tire sits on a coating that has not fully cured or is not built for that kind of heat cycling, the rubber can bond to the coating surface and pull at it when the vehicle is moved. Coatings applied too thin, cured in cool weather, or driven on before they reach full hardness are the most common victims.
Which Coatings Are Most at Risk
Standard 100% solids epoxy is more prone to hot tire pickup than polyaspartic or polyurea topcoats, which cure harder and handle temperature swings better. This is one reason many contractors finish an epoxy flake system with a polyaspartic or urethane topcoat rather than leaving straight epoxy as the final wear layer, especially in garages.
Preventing Hot Tire Pickup
Give a new coating the full cure time listed on the technical data sheet before parking on it, even if it feels dry to the touch. Choose a topcoat rated for hot tire resistance if the floor will see daily vehicle traffic. In hot climates, avoid parking directly after a long highway drive on a coating that is less than a year old. If pickup does occur, small marks can sometimes be buffed out, but deep tears usually need a patch or recoat.
