How to understand when to replace tires : advice on when to change tires based on the kilometers traveled and above all on the state of wear visible to the naked eye.
It is simplistic to ask questions such as ” every how many km change the tires?” or, even worse, “ how often do you change your tires? “. The car tires have a life cycle that a lot depends on several factors, such as:
- Quality of used tires
- Driving style of the driver
- Strdale bottom quality
- Possible accidents including creeping ones
- Frequency of tire pressure check
The average life of car tires varies according to the factors just described. Let’s start with quality: some tires are built to last and built to ensure minimal wear. Other tires are made with different criteria or designed to maximize vehicle speed and therefore more subject to wear.
Not only that, the driving style has a huge impact: sudden braking can lead to overheating the rubber of the tires and negatively affect the state of wear.
Not to mention factors such as potholes taken in urban centers, lateral friction on hard surfaces or impact with pavements.
How many times have you checked the tire pressure? If the tires are slightly deflated, they are more subject to wear and the replacement comes sooner!
Here, for these reasons it is not possible to tell you how many km to change the tires or even worse, how often the tires need to be replaced … but in general we will try to answer these questions as well.
Despite our answers, we remind you that the average life of car tires cannot be estimated and absolutely cannot be used as a reference. We remind you that the law and the highway code have well-defined standards on when to replace tires . The change of tires must be done within the legal terms and then we will explain how to understand when to replace them .
Tire change every how many km
If you don’t want to work hard to understand when to change car tires , take your vehicle’s maintenance booklet and see what your manufacturer prescribes based on the tires fitted as standard. In general, the replacement must be done every 40,000 km but those who drive on well-asphalted roads, with high quality tires and have an excellent driving style, can even reach 70,000 km. As he will explain later, the kilometers traveled are not important, but understanding when to change the tires based on their real state of wear which varies according to the factors listed above.
How often the tires need to be changed
As stated, an interval in terms of years is impossible to give, even if we want to make many generalizations. It has been estimated that the average life of a tire is 6 years (regardless of its wear). Even if the car is parked in the garage, the tires should be changed every 6 years because the constituent material tends to harden. For this reason, the tires should be changed every six years even if the vehicle is not in use… also applies to the spare wheel!
How to know when to replace tires
According to the Highway Code, there are precise measures and indices to ascertain the state of tire wear. This means that, during a check-up, if your tires are worn, you are breaking the law and are punishable by administrative and financial penalties (fine).
The law prescribes to replace the tires when the tread has reached the thickness of 1.6 mm. How do you understand? Just look at your tires and / or use a simple measuring gauge.
The tire wear indicator can be easily identified. Look at the side of the tread, you can see it in line with the TWI code, a triangle or the logo of the brand of your wheels. If the tread has reached the level of the indicator, the tire must be replaced.
Much more reliable is the use of a depth gauge . If you already have one in your home, you can use that, otherwise you can buy a specific tire for tires to make the task easier.
Simply insert the depth gauge into one of the main grooves of the tire to be checked. To do this, you just have to sink the gauge into those “slots in the wheel” and, to get more comfortable, turn the wheels towards the outside of the bodywork… so you are better off doing this measurement.
A good gauge to measure tires can be found in the most well-stocked workshops, professional gauges can be found online as well as at the hardware store. Among the various products, I would like to point out a depth gauge that also acts as a pressure gauge (so it is useful for checking the pressure of car tires). You can buy it on Amazon at a price of 9.99 euros with free shipping costs. For all the information, I refer you to the Amazon page: depth gauge – 2 in 1 pressure gauge . The tool is the one shown in the photo above … on Amazon there are also digital ones, at very competitive prices. We have pointed out the analogue one because it lasts longer, however feel free to choose the model that best meets your needs.
