Impurity of Car Tires

Question

A question regarding the impurity of car tires after they come into contact with sewage water.

Answer 1

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings.

Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Khamenei (may God protect him):

Anything that comes into contact with an impurity becomes impure. If it then touches something pure while still wet, the item it touches also becomes impure. Similarly, if this impure item touches something pure with moisture, it is also considered impure, although it is safer to avoid contact. However, anything that touches this third impure item does not become impure.

In your example, the car becomes the first impure item because it was contaminated by the water that touched the impurity on the tire before it dried. If your hand touches the car after it has dried, it becomes the second impure item. If this hand then dries and touches something else, it will not render that item impure, although it is safer to avoid contact with what the hand touches.

This applies if the car tires were still wet from the sewage water during washing; otherwise, if they were dry, the second impure item becomes the third, and so on. In any case, the rule is now clear.

Source: Answers to Inquiries, S283 + Tahrir al-Wasilah, Impurities, Discussion on How to Become Impure, M1 + Special Inquiry.

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Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Sistani (may God protect him):

An item that becomes impure by touching an impurity acts like an impure item and will render anything it touches impure if there is moisture present. Likewise, an item that becomes impure by touching another impure item will also render what it touches impure, provided there are no multiple intermediaries between them; otherwise, it does not render it impure, although it is safer to avoid contact.

In your example, the car is the first impure item because it became impure from the water that touched the impurity on the tire before it dried. If your hand touches the car after it has dried, it becomes the second impure item. If this hand then dries and touches something else, it will not render that item impure, although it is safer to avoid what the hand touches.

This applies if the car tires were still wet from the sewage water during washing; otherwise, if they were dry, the second impure item becomes the third, and so on. In any case, the rule is now clear.

Source: Minhaj al-Salihin, Vol. 1, Issue 415 + Issue 414 + Special Inquiry.

May you be successful in all good.