Question about car tires?

I had a friend who rotated his tires every oil change and got 70,000 miles out of 50,000 mile rated tires and reminded me of his feat every time we got together.

So rotate them every 3,000 miles and brag about it or just do what the mfr says. When the tread depth is less than a penny thickness as a rule of thumb….then time for new ones. ou can actually get a ticket for driving on “bald” tires. Don’t forget to check the air on the spare!! ;)

Try here :-/

Cruiser has said it all, except the brand of auto tires to buy. First, always buy car tires from a tire store, NOT WalMart. Department stores have their own specifications for the tires they sell at a cheaper price, compared to a tire store.

You get what you pay for and that is true with auto tires.

You cannot go wrong with tires from a tire store.

The only thing I can add is: Don’t avoid changing out tires to save money. It doesn’t matter how safe the rest of your car is if you’re in the middle of traffic and a tire goes out. You could be in trouble.

How often to rotate depends on the car and your driving style. Some cars rarely need them rotated at all while some need them rotated frequently and most in between. Personally, I only rotate mine twice a year; I tend to drive light cars (my current car weighs under 2400 pounds; lighter with me in it than most cars are empty) with wide tires so I don’t put as much wear on them as a skinny-tired lard-bucket.

For brands, I prefer Toyo; a little hard to find sometimes, but reasonably priced and a great tire.

As for how often, I don’t go by age or miles; I go by their condition. If they fail the penny test or have excessive wear then UI don’t care how new they are, they get replaced. Conversely, if they have decent tread all the way across and show not even a hint of cracking or anything like that, I will use them no matter how old they are.

@Cruiser Actually, it’s not the thickness of a penny; stick the penny in edge-first and see if it touches Lincoln.

@john65pennington Yes, you can, and I would have a few times had I listened to the salesperson instead of questioning their competence and buying elsewhere. Now, the tire store nearest me is quite knowledgeable and competent, but not all are. Trying to tell me that the 175/80-R13 on my tires meant that I had 175mm sidewalls and that a 175/85 would be wider is a sure way to lose my business.

@jerv You are so right and thanks for the correction!! ;)