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When the tread depth gets too low or your tires hit the six-year mark, it's time for new rubber.
By
Whitney Vandiver
Whitney Vandiver
Writer | Small business, payments
Whitney Vandiver is a writer at NerdWallet. She previously wrote for the oil and gas industry and has been published in national journals and international magazines. She earned a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Central Oklahoma and a master's degree and doctorate in linguistics from Purdue University. When she's not writing about finances, she enjoys reading, writing her second novel and cuddling with her Irish wolfhound.
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Edited by Julie Myhre-Nunes
Julie Myhre-Nunes
Assistant Assigning Editor | Auto loans, consumer credit
Julie Myhre-Nunes is an assistant assigning editor at NerdWallet. She has been working in the personal finance space for more than 10 years. Before joining NerdWallet, Julie oversaw editorial teams at NextAdvisor, Red Ventures and Quote.com. Her personal finance insight has been featured on Forbes, The Boston Globe and CNBC throughout the years.
Julie’s writing has been published by USA Today, Business Insider and Wired Insights, among others. Email: <a href="mailto:[email protected]">[email protected]</a>.
Many or all of the products featured here are from our partners who compensate us. This may influence which products we write about and where and how the product appears on a page. However, this does not influence our evaluations. Our opinions are our own. Here is a list of our partners and here's how we make money.
While the consensus across the auto industry is that you should consider replacing your tires at least every six years, there’s no magic number for how often you should replace them.
Tires become unsafe when tread becomes too thin, rubber is degraded by time and temperature or their sidewalls are damaged. A flat is an inconvenience, but a blowout or sketchy grip can lead to an accident.
Although tires can be a substantial expense for a car owner to handle at one time, wear and tear — and their replacement — is mostly predictable.
Here’s a rundown of how to determine if your tires need to be replaced and common signs that your tires aren’t up to par.
Tires have grooves known as tread that help them grip the road. While most new tires have a tread depth around 10/32nds of an inch, the tread wears down over time. This makes it more difficult to steer your vehicle, reduces traction and increases braking time.
The U.S. Department of Transportation deems tires that have tread at or below 2/32nds of an inch to be unsafe. While your tire technically has enough tread to drive at this point, it can be dangerous to drive your car in certain conditions or for long distances.
There are three ways to figure out your tires’ tread depth:
Tread wear indicators are built into tires and are raised, evenly spaced sections in the grooves of your tire tread. On new tires, they are not as high as the tread. However, when the tread reaches the same level as the indicators, it means it’s time to replace the tires.
Tire tread gauges are relatively cheap tools that let you measure your tread in thirty-seconds of an inch. This will show you the exact measurement of your tire tread.
The penny test lets you estimate tread depth based on where the tread hits a penny. To do this test, take a penny, turn it upside-down, and insert it straight down in the groove of a tire’s tread. Look straight on at the penny to determine where the tread hits President Lincoln’s profile. If you can see his entire head, you’ve hit the mark and need new tires.
Regardless of how many miles they’ve driven, tires degrade over time and become more prone to failure. Factors like environmental conditions, storage and maintenance can influence how long a tire will last even if it’s only driven a few hundred miles a month.
While there’s no set requirement for when to replace tires according to age, the general recommendation is to replace them six years after the manufacture date and to never drive on tires that are older than 10 years.
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Of course there are other times when your tires are telling you it’s time for replacement despite what your tread measurement might say.
You moved to a new climate. Some tires are designed for specific conditions such as extreme temperatures. Winter tires, for example, have deeper tread and are meant to be more flexible in cold weather; driving them on warm pavement can wear them down more quickly. If you move to a new climate, pay attention to road conditions and weather patterns to determine if you need different tires.
You’re losing traction. If it feels like your car is slipping or sliding during wet weather, this could be a sign of low tire tread that is failing to channel water away effectively. Because tire tread can wear unevenly, you might not notice that some of your tread has worn thin and is affecting your traction.
Most modern cars activate a warning light when your car loses traction. If you are seeing this warning light more frequently as time goes on, check the condition of your tires.
Your tires aren’t holding pressure like they should. Certain types of tire damage, including debris between the rim and the tire and damage to the sidewall, can cause continuous pressure loss. Some damage might be repairable, but some situations will call for new tires.
🤓Nerdy Tip
An average of 2% air loss in tires is common for every drop of 10 degrees in outside temperature. So don’t worry if your tire pressure varies a bit when it starts to get colder outside.
About the author: Whitney Vandiver is a writer at NerdWallet currently focusing on small business. Read more
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Maybe you got a used car a few years ago or maybe you recently purchased a new car. No matter the situation, as a car-owner you may be wondering, how often should you replace your tires? When you should replace your tires differs slightly from vehicle to vehicle and driver to driver. However, there are a few standards that should help you determine when to change your tires next.
When and how often you should change your tires depends on a few factors. When thinking about replacing your tires, ask yourself these questions:
Along with the answers from above, there are a few pieces of information you can grab from your vehicle to help determine the next time you should replace your tires.
The following should only take a few minutes to find out.
Most car experts will tell you to change your tires every 6 years or so. If you are constantly driving, you may need to change your tires earlier. Likewise, if you don’t drive often you can get away with a few extra years.
For a car that you bought new, you can easily bet on changing your tires 6 years after your purchase. For used cars, you’ll likely need to look at the date printed on the tire.
To see when your tires were manufactured, look for a four-digit number sequence on the outside of the tire. This will tell you the week of the year in which they were made. For example, 1112 means that the tires were made in the 11th week of 2012.
Another good rule of thumb when it comes to tire replacement is to replace your tires every 25,000-50,000 miles. In most cars, you can check your total mileage on the dashboard.
Aside from time and mileage, you can always check if your tires look like they need to be replaced.
To do so, get a quarter and insert it headfirst into the center of the tire tread. If Washington’s head is even with the tread, your tires are safe, but you need to get them replaced soon.
Doing the same trick with a penny, if Lincoln’s head is even with the tread, hopefully, you have some money saved up because you need to change your tires ASAP.
Another physical test to see if it’s time for a tire replacement is to be mindful of how your car feels when you are driving. Does the steering wheel feel smooth when driving, or does it vibrate or veer to one side over the other. If it does any of the latter, consider getting your tires changed.
While there are steps you can take to expand the lifespan of your tires, when they are worn out, you need to replace them. You can’t put off changing your tires, as it is a safety risk to you and other vehicles on the road. Old tires can affect the way your car breaks and stops, which can lead to accidents.
Be a responsible car owner and replace your tires when needed.
All car owners need to be on top of replacing their tires. How often should you replace your tires? It might vary from person to person, but there are standards in place to determine tire health. Is your car due for a tire replacement? Then check out Christian’s Tire Shop. We have all the name brands you could possibly want, right here in Albuquerque.
Thursday, April 21, 2016 16:10:19 Europe/Moscow
One of the most frequently asked questions among buyers at the tire center is which axle should I put new tires on? The answer is simple: new tires are always installed on the rear axle of the car, regardless of the drive.
There is a particularly treacherous surface for a tire in the summer - a flooded road, asphalt hidden under a film of water.
Sometimes the thickness of this film is not even visible to the eye. nine0003
It is water that significantly impairs the behavior of the tire. When there is a lot of water, it is able to create a water wedge that separates the tire from the surface. For traction in such conditions, many years ago, the tire tread was indented with a network of drainage channels, and the tire received a tread pattern as a result. Numerous drainage channels of various sizes and directions endowed the tire with a negative profile, which has a three-dimensional structure and is able to reduce the negative impact of water. nine0003
The more worn the tires are, the less water the tire can carry out of the contact patch and the faster it will lose traction on the road.
Option 1. New tires installed on the front axle
Only the appearance of the car benefits from such an installation, which in the parking lot, with the wheels turned out, can attract additional attention with a new tread.
There will be no problem using tires in this way ... until the first rain. nine0021
Compare:
Front axle:
the more difficult it is to pass without consequences).
Rear axle:
Lack of good drainage system due to more worn tread.
No additional driver control.
No additional engine load.
The rear axle will go out of control instantly, and it does not need a downpour, a small film of water on the pavement will be enough.
The electronic systems of the car will not be able to stabilize it - physically there is not enough contact area between the tire and the road. As a result, there will be a loss of control over the car due to a rear axle skid, which few drivers can handle. nine0003
Option 2: New tires installed on the rear axle
If the front axle is equipped with tires with a lot of wear, the driver will immediately feel problems with traction and take measures: reduce speed or correct steering behavior.
And, of course, it's hard to imagine a road covered in water that a front axle with worn tread can go through, but on which a rear axle with newer tires will lose traction.
New tires (if you buy two tires), you need to install only on the rear axle , regardless of the vehicle's drive and its technical equipment.
Note that this is a simulated situation where vehicle speed, tire tread depth and water film thickness are already grouped for the negative scenario. But no one will be able to name the framework that you need to adhere to, since one of the criteria - the tread depth - is constantly decreasing. Don't wait for factors (speed, water, tire) to come together in a dangerous combination. Install tires with a deeper tread pattern on the rear axle. nine0003
In March!
50% of drivers buy tires in May, although it is more profitable to do so in March.
- Why? - you ask.
To answer this question, in the article below we have provided a number of evidence based on the experience of our Clients and carefully analyzed statistics.
Contents:
Price increase
Long delivery
The first plus of buying tires in March - there is still a choice! nine0003
Surely you don't buy tires spontaneously. You know everything about them: what brand is needed, what characteristics are needed. However, if you postpone the purchase until May, you can miss out on the best offer. Usually, by the end of spring, there are only leftovers in warehouses, which you will have to buy above the market price. And what to do - because you need to change the rubber.
Think about buying in March - and have time to choose the best option.
Lowest price in March
Sale of wheels - seasonal business.
In the off-season, prices are as low as possible - this is how the business retains customers. But during the season - the demand for tires is growing, and prices are growing with it.
If you think about buying in advance and guess the moment of a low price, you can save a lot.
It's getting warmer and the tires are selling like hot cakes. Demand exceeds supply. The item is out of stock. Online retailers are rushing to buy new wheels from manufacturers. Goods travel from other cities and even countries. Often you have to wait up to 1 month for an order. nine0021 It's dangerous to ride on spikes! Iron on asphalt glides well, especially in the rain.
In order not to waste time and not to panic, you need to buy wheels in advance.
- But why shouldn't the online store buy more of the product at once? - you ask.
- It's simple: online stores buy goods in the minimum quantity that is 100% sold.
If you buy more, the product may not be sold, and it will be in stock until the next season. But everything has an expiration date, even wheels. It would be wrong to sell such wheels next year. nine0033
Good option, but may not be available
There are drivers who buy a summer set of wheels at the end of the year. At this time, there is a high probability of stumbling upon a promotion or sale. But you need to remember that popular brands and sizes are also in short supply at this time.
If you can't buy new tires before the new year, the best time to buy is March.
Terminals
The most ideal month for buying a summer set of tires is March.
Because:
√ Large selection of wheels available;
√ Low price before the start of the season;
√ Get the goods quickly.
Contacts
For all questions, please contact us in any convenient way:
E-mail: aresshina@yandex.
