What To Look For When Buying Used Tires
If the thought of purchasing used tires sounds risky, there are certain steps you can take to find safe, quality tires for a price that takes the sting out of buying new. Whether winter, mud, and snow or all-season, there are often many from which to choose from used classified sites and through second-hand dealers. If you want to find out what to look for to make sure you are getting the most for your money, keep reading.
Look For Unseen Damage
Often, damaged tires are caused by things that the eye cannot see. People who have abused their tires by driving too long with low air or too fast, end up with tires that risk blowouts and the damage is usually noticeable. Tires should be stored properly, though, when not in use, and should be away from direct UV rays in a cool, dark, dry place. The way a driver maintains his or her vehicle overall can be difficult to determine but can impact a set of tires’ lifespan.
Be Aware Of Bulges
If you roll a tire and it wobbles or notice any bulges in the sidewall, take note. A bubble or bulge may indicate damage to the tire’s inner liner. The damage is usually the result of an impact with something like a curb or pothole and can impact the durability of the sidewall. If it cannot or is not repaired properly, a tire blowout is likely. If, when rolling the tire, the treads appear to move to the side, it has a belt separation and is not a used tire to purchase.
Check The Tire Beads
The area where the tire sits against the wheel when mounted is the bead, there should be no rips. If there are, the tire could have been mounted improperly to too quickly. If there are any visible scratches, the owner may have been improperly storing the tire. If a tire is leaking, it could be a bad bead seal. Sometimes the wheel starts to rust underneath and if it extends to the rim flange, where the tire beat is seated, it can cause damage. Leaking occurs through rust pits and that is when it starts to corrode.
Look For Plugs
If a tire has been punctured, it will have a round, rubber plug inserted in the split or hole. A tire that has been fixed can still be used, but beware of red flags. If the plug itself - a five to eight-millimeter circle of rubber - has a matching patch on the inside of the tire, it was correctly repaired with a patch-plug method. If not, the tire is at the end of its functioning life. Worse yet, if the flat was driven on enough to cause burning, keep shopping around.
Check The Date Codes
Most tire experts do not recommend purchasing tires more than three to five years old, so be sure to check the date codes. They are the number seen on the sidewall of every tire, known as the DOT number because they start with DOT. In North America, this Tire Identification Number, determines the age of the tire with a combination of letters making up the manufacture location and tire size The last numbers represent the week and year the tire was made.
Make, Model & Size
When replacing a set of tires, ensure they are all the same make, model and size. Some sellers might try to fool unsuspecting buyers by swapping similar models, but manufacturers recommend using the same tires all around. It does not only happen with independent backyard sellers, though. Dealers may have inadvertently loaded mixed tires before being shipped or the same could happen during the unloading. Be a responsible consumer and check yourself.
Sidewall Is Important, Too
More than just the tread, take a look at the sidewall. Just because tires have life left in their tread, there could be serious issues underneath. If there is cracking or dry rot, beware. Cracking and separation are easily detected, as is dry rot, with its crackly appearance. A tire with dry rot risks sliding apart because it loses strength and could cause a major accident. Dry rot occurs from UV rays that break down the oils and chemicals within the rubber.
Measure The Tread
Check the tread against the wear bar. Manufacturers add a wear bar to track wearing tread and once it meets or exceeds that mark, it is time to get new tires. If the tread is balding, drivers risk hydroplaning on wet roads and sliding in the snow. New tires have a tread depth of eleven to thirteen millimeters and once the tread wears below half, it is time to replace them. They quickly become a safety hazard and create poor driving performance and traction.
Check The Quality Of Tire Tread
Although it is possible to buy used tires that are still good for a season or two, some are too far gone and risk the safety of all drivers on the roads. The less than obvious characteristic to look for requires a flashlight. Shine it in the grooves of the tread, if there are cracks, walk away. The tread block edges should also be straight and sharp, not showing wear, excess use and rounding.
Identify A Price Point
Make sure to research the price of the same tires you need if you were to purchase them new. There are a plethora of brands on the market, and prices vary depending on size, tread, and type. Experts suggest taking twenty-five percent off the retail price as a starting point for used tires and let the bargaining start there.
Check The Bolt Pattern
If you are buying wheels with your tires, you should know the bolt pattern on your car. There are a number of different patterns depending on your car's model, some of which are pretty close so measure carefully. Bolt patterns are written as the number of bolts timesed by the distance between opposing bolts in millimeters. For instance, a common size on compacts and smaller cars is 4 x 100, meaning there are four bolts with a distance of 100mm between them, but there are also 4 x 108 patterns, which won't fit. The measurements you need should be in your car's manual, so be sure to double check.
