Your car’s tires are the first line of defense when it comes to navigating over, sometimes, treacherous roads and highways. No other part of the car is in contact with the road, and those four contact points are the difference between you being in control of your vehicle and losing that control.
Over time, tires experience wear and tear for a variety of reasons, and at a certain point you’ll need to decide to replace them. But how can you tell when you may need to get new tires? There are a number of factors you’ll want to consider when evaluating the health of your tire.
Tire Tread
A tire with no treads is known as a racing slick, and they are what professional race car drivers in circuits like NHRA, NASCAR, and Formula One use. A smooth, tread-less tire is the best option when it comes to traction and gripping the road on a perfect racecourse under ideal weather condition.
However, in the real world, a tire without tread would be highly unsafe. Your tire’s tread provides a number of valuable functions in keeping your car safe and in control. Over time, those treads begin to wear down, and at a certain point they’re no longer doing their job.
Dangers of Worn Tires
One of the most critical functions of tire tread is to wick water away from the tire when driving in rainy or wet conditions. If a tire doesn’t have tread or its tread is worn out, water will become trapped between the tire and the road surface.
This leads to the condition known as hydroplaning, where the tire is unable to grip the surface of the road and will slide erratically and in an unpredictable direction, regardless of braking or turning.Tire tread is also important when driving in snowy conditions, as the grooved pattern of the tread allows the tire to bite into the snowy surface and give additional traction, which is crucial for navigating snow-covered roads.
Even when roads are dry and clear, a worn tire presents additional hazards. Worn tires are more prone to going flat due to punctures, and the reason is obvious – A worn tires are not as thick as new tires with a full set of treads. Nails, glass and other hazards are more likely to puncture through a worn tire than one with the full thickness tire tread.
Another issue with worn tires is that worn tires lose air pressure faster than tires with proper tread depth. While it’s a good idea to check your air pressure frequently, regardless of how new your tires are, you’re particularly likely to be caught with underinflated tires if your tires are worn out. Having low tire air pressure has a number of adverse consequences, from decreased gas mileage to poorer handling to the increased risk of flat tires or blowouts.
Many people drive their tires until the point where they’re dangerously bald, and only realize that they need new tires when they’re spinning in rain or snow, or when a puncture blows out one of the tires. The far safer choice is to monitor your tire’s wellbeing and replace them before you experience a bad or dangerous driving experience.
The Famous Penny Test
One simple and easy way to test the depth of your vehicle’s tire tread is with a penny coin. Take the coin and insert the coin into a tread groove with Lincoln’s head pointed downward into the tread. If the tread ridge hides any part of Lincoln’s head, your tread depth is still in good shape. If the top of Lincoln’s head is visible, your tread is overly worn and the tire needs replacing.
Please note that you should do this test for all four of your vehicle’s tires, and you should also ideally check multiple spots on each tire. It’s possible for tires to wear out unevenly, both from tire to tire and even within different places on the same tire.
If the tread is worn down in any one area of a tire, that tire should be replaced.
Causes of Uneven or Unusual Tread Wear
Any tire will wear out its tread over time and will eventually need replacement. There’s no getting around that. But a separate problem is a tire wearing out unevenly or in a strange way. This will decrease the lifespan of your tires significantly, and it’s a solvable issue. This could also be an indication of other problems with your car. Depending on how your tire is wearing unevenly, the cause can be any of the following.
Center Wear
If you observe that the center of your tire’s tread is wearing out faster than the edges, this is likely a problem caused by over inflating the tire. Over inflating your tires may cause them to wear out up to twice as fast as they otherwise would, and there are other negative consequences like a harsher, bumpier ride and the risk of losing control especially in poor weather or road conditions.
You can consult your owner’s manual for recommended tire pressure, and many cars also list this information on a sticker in the doorjamb of the driver’s side door. Be sure to use the tire-inflation specifications noted in your owners’ manual or on the door sticker, and not the air pressure indicated on the tire sidewall. This is an important distinction because the manual and door sticker indicate the appropriate tire pressure that’s specific to your vehicle, whereas the pressure on the tire’s sidewall is the maximum air pressure for the particular tire.
Edge Wear
Edge wear, meaning that both edges’ tread are wearing out faster than the center of the tire, is the flip side to center wear. Underinflated tires usually cause edge wear. Note that edge wear, as we’re discussing here, means that both inner and outer edges are wearing faster than the center, not just one side’s edge. Wear on one single edge or the other is a separate problem that likely has a different cause, and this type of tire wear is discussed below.
To make sure your tires aren’t underinflated, it’s a good idea to check your air pressure at least once a month. As mentioned earlier, as a tire gets older and more worn, it’s more prone to losing air pressure more quickly, so it’s something you should stay on top of over time.
Inner or Outer Wear
In the case of center wear and edge wear, following the manufacturer recommendations and periodic monitoring of tire air pressure is usually all you need to do. In other cases of uneven tread wear, there’s probably a more involved issue at play.
If either the inner or outer edge only is more worn than the center and other side, this is likely a situation where your vehicle’s wheel alignment is out of specification or there are possible suspension components that need attention. Improper wheel alignment will wear tires out faster than normal, and also can lead to more serious consequences – like damage to the vehicle’s suspension – if not addressed. If you observe inner or outer tire wear, you should see a technician to inspect your wheel alignment.
Diagonal Wear
If you observe a diagonal scalloping wear pattern on your tires, this is known as cupping wear. Cupping wear indicates that your vehicle’s suspension is likely bent, worn, or in some way malfunctioning, or is not in tip-top condition.
Suspension issues tend to be serious and can have a wide range of impacts on the car’s performance and safety. If you notice diagonal wear on your tires’ treads, it would be wise to see a professional technician as soon as you’re able.
Irregular Wear
You may notice that the wear on your tires is more irregular and patchy than part of any noticeable pattern. If you see this, there are a couple of possible causes.
One possibility is that your wheels may need to be rotated. A mechanic can easily and inexpensively rotate your tires, which will then make sure that the wear is evenly distributed over time.
It’s recommended that you rotate your tires at least once every 5,000 miles, but check your owner’s manual to see if your manufacturer has any different instructions.
Another possible cause of irregular, patchy wear is worn shocks or struts. When shocks and struts are worn, they cause the suspension to bounce more and don’t keep your vehicle firmly anchored to the road, leading to uneven wearing of the tires. If you suspect your shocks may be worn, you can test by pressing down on either the front or the rear of your parked vehicle. If it takes more than a couple bounces are needed to bring the car to stillness again, your shocks or struts may be worn out and in need of replacement.
Age of Your Tires
There are three factors that determine how long your tires will last: How long you’ve had them, how many miles on which you drive them, and whether you can avoid any of the above issues which can shorten the lifespan of your tires.
Many modern tire manufacturers offer tread wear guarantees of 60,000 miles or more. Depending on how frequently you drive, that could cover you for many years. However, vehicle manufacturers recommend replacing your tires every 6 to 10 years, regardless of mileage, and the U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) also publishes that recommendation. Click Here to see what NHTSA has to say about tires and tire age.
Over time, even with proper care, the quality and integrity of tires will degrade. This is due to a handful of natural processes, like oxidation and warping due to expansion and contraction of the rubber with temperature changes. This age-related tire wear leads to tires that don’t perform properly and are at risk of blowing out.
If you take good care of your tires and avoid hazards like over/under inflation, bad shocks, suspension and wheel alignment, you have a good chance of getting 6 plus years out of your tires. But regardless of your tread depth, pushing past 10 years is not advisable. And after 6 years you should start paying really close attention to things like cracked tire sidewalls and/or tread separation.
Tread Separation
Modern steel-belted radial tires are made of rubber connected to steel, and the process of adhering that rubber to steel can fail with time, causing the rubber to separate from the steel underlining. This is known as tread separation, and can result in a sudden and, sometimes, violent tire blowout.
While tread separation is more commonly observed with tires used by cargo trucks (for a variety of reasons), passenger vehicles are also potentially vulnerable to tread separation. We’ve all probably seen the debris of a full circle of tire tread in the road or on the freeway, with the rest of the tire missing. This is usually evidence of a blowout that was caused by tread separation.
Tread separation can be caused by a number of user behaviors, like overinflating tires and driving on rough roads, or hitting numerous potholes. Another possible cause of tread separation is an improperly repaired flat tire. If the plug isn’t properly inserted, it can cause the beginning of tread separation. By the way, while plugging a tire may be by some an accepted method of flat repair, we do not recommend tire plugging. At Budget Auto Repair, we only perform flat repairs using a more reliable method of patching the tire from the inside.
Aside from those reasons, the biggest cause a tire can suffer from tread separation is simply age. As a tire gets older, it’s more prone to losing connection between the steel belts and the rubber. By replacing your tires after a certain number of years, you can minimize your chances of experiencing tread separation and a potential blowout.
Choosing New Tires
When you’ve determined that you do need new tires, your next decision is what kind of tires to get. There are a number of choices you’ll need to make in selecting the tires that are right for your financial and driving situation.
The main thing you’ll want to keep in mind is to have an idea about how much and where you’ll be driving your vehicle over the next 5 to 6 years. Depending on that, you’ll be able to put your priorities in order when choosing tires.
You know you need tires. How do you choose the right tire?
Tire Size
The first and most basic thing you’ll need to determine is the size of the tire you’ll need. Tires for passenger vehicles come in wheel diameter sizes ranging from 13 inches to 22 inches.
There are a couple of ways you can determine the size that’s right for you. The first is to check your owner’s manual or the sticker inside either the left front or right front doorjamb. The other is to take a look at your old tires. There’s a number on the sidewall of your tires, and the last two digits are the number of inches in diameter. Because we recommend retaining the original size tires on your vehicle, we suggest matching the existing tire size only if you’re the original owner of the car and you know that you’ve never changed the tire size.
Tire Type
The next choice you’ll need to make is the type of tire you want. While it may seem like pretty much any tire is the same as another from a distance, in reality there are a number of types of tires, each with different strengths and drawbacks.
If you expect to deal with freezing temperatures, you’ll want to get tires specifically made to withstand freezing without damaging the rubber. This can be an all-purpose tire rated for winter use or specific winter tires, which you’ll need to rotate out in favor of summer tires each season.
If you don’t expect to have to deal with freezing temperatures, all-purpose or summer tires may be the right choice. These are great for non-extreme weather conditions.
In addition, you might have special driving needs that require special tires. If you’re driving a sports car or high performance vehicle, high performance tires offer increased grip at high speeds but, with high performance tires, the trade-off is that you’ll usually sacrifice tread depth and lifespan. If you plan to go off road, what’s right for you might be all-terrain tires or heavy-duty tires that are able to withstand rocky and rough surfaces while also handling standard roads and highways.
The key to picking the right tire type is to first understand your personal driving needs and the conditions in which you’ll be driving.
Budget vs. Quality
Like with anything else, there’s a trade-off to be made when buying tires between how much money you’re able or want to spend and what kind of quality you’re looking for. If you’re going to be driving relatively infrequently and know that the conditions you face aren’t going to be extreme, you may be able to get away with buying less expensive tires.
However, if you know you’re going to be dealing with adverse driving conditions, or are expecting to log massive mileage over the next few years, you may very well find that going the low budget route on tires will come back to bite you. You get what you pay for when it comes to more expensive tires, in the form of increased mileage tread-wear guarantees and general performance and resistance to overall tire wear.
If you expect to be doing a lot of driving and/or will be doing it in the extreme heat, cold or other elements, spending a little more on your tires may mean dealing with fewer problems down the road. And keep in mind that a bargain isn’t much of a bargain if you have to buy tires more frequently than you otherwise would have with a slightly more expensive tire.
At Affordable Auto Repair, we utilize local partnerships to unlock a huge selection of tires from which to choose. We have the variety to install the right tires for your car and your particular driving needs.