Buying used tires

[Silver]

October 2021 I bought two house brand tires from Discount for $44 each plus junk fees. These were the lowest cost tires I could find.

Now, 14 months later, the same exact tires are $70. I'm simply not going to pay it.

I'd like to hear from some folks that regularly buy used tires. There are lots of used tire shops around me. I know to check for plugs and damaged beads, cracks, odd wear or lumps. Any other pointers?

 

[mrsilv04]

Check age of tires.

 

[JeffKeryk]

I used to use a used tire place around here that did good work for about $30 all in. Probably double that now!
Why do you need new tires in 4 months? Or is this just 2 more?

 

[Oily_Thing]

Don't purchase if 5 years old according to the DOT date stamped on the tire.

 

[SatinSilver]

Last October I bought two house brand tires from Discount for $44 each plus junk fees. These were the lowest cost tires I could find.

Now, 14 months later, the same exact tires are $70. I'm simply not going to pay it.

I'd like to hear from some folks that regularly buy used tires. There are lots of used tire shops around me. I know to check for plugs and damaged beads, cracks, odd wear or lumps. Any other pointers?

What size? Walmart's Douglas brand should be around 50 plus installation. Not bad at all for a budget tire.

 

[Silver]

205/65/16 or 215/60/16

 

[Silver]

I used to use a used tire place around here that did good work for about $30 all in. Probably double that now!
Why do you need new tires in 4 months? Or is this just 2 more?

Oops I meant last last October.

30k miles and they are shot. Front only, never rotated, $44 tire. I'm pleased.

 

[atikovi]

Any other pointers?

Check Facebook and Craigslist daily. The good cheap ones aren't around long. Set of 4 Yokohamas for $80.

 

[Pew]

CL's options for used tires has gone down a lot since FB Marketplace opened up so I'd say keep your eyes peeled out on FB Marketplace more if you can.

Other than that, just the normal smart buying; make sure there's no obvious signs of age, neglect, damage, odd wear. I've also noticed the more information the seller puts out about the tire like tread depth, miles/seasons used, damage, etc, the better the odds of the tires being in good conditions.

 

[rob1715]

Nope. Never will. Tires are too important.

 

[Wolf359]

The trickiest part is probably the tread depth, they probably all lie about it so you need to bring your own gauge. The math never really made sense once you factor in mounting and balancing, but once you get a tire that's down to 6/32's that's probably more than half the life gone but it still costs the same to mount and balance. Probably only worth it if more than 70-80% tread and at least 1/2 off, but you never really find them like that. Due to supply chain issues and inflation, you probably won't find those low prices for several more years if ever.

 

[CharlesInCharge]

All but 1 of the last ~11+ sets of tires I've bought were used. Check age (6-10 is the max age I'd use for normal applications, depending on condition and use profile), wear, cracking, dry rot, look for cracking in the grooves, etc. Also make sure you have a tire installer who will do the work!

You can generally get excellent used tires for ~20-30% of the cost of new.

 

[Jimmy_Russells]

Nope. Never will. Tires are too important.

But but but seventy dollars!!!

 

[JTK]

I've bought used tires a few times off eBay or a site called BestUsedTires that is now called TireMart. CL and FB marketplace too. I've done it to match other good tires on the vehicle. Never had a problem in the times I've done it.

Problem is, with today's prices on everything, I'm not sure it's worth it anymore vs what you can mail order new through walmart or the likes.

 

[Chris142]

Make sure that they are not regrooved.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

I only buy used tires in an emergency, or as a full-size spare to replace a donut (or a really old original full-size spare)

There is no guarantee on used tires

Oops I meant last last October.

30k miles and they are shot. Front only, never rotated, $44 tire. I'm pleased.

30k in 4 months? Worth buying new tires

Do your tires have any treadlife warranty? Many tires have a pro-rated treadlife warranty that you can get a credit towards the purchase of new tires. The $70 tire shown on DTD has a 40k warranty, so if that's the tire you're talking about, you might be able to get a 25% credit on the new tires.

Otherwise, I agree with the suggestion of Douglas at Walmart.

 

[930.engineering]

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Would you buy a used a pair of underpants?
.

 

[CharlesInCharge]

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Would you buy a used a pair of underpants?
.

I think you are using your tires incorrectly.

 

[Oillover]

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Would you buy a used a pair of underpants?
.

Sure, as long as there aren't any "skid marks"

 

[eljefino]

Yeah I do it all the time.

FB Marketplace and CL are typically overpriced. Dreamers. I think they look at their out-the-door price paid that includes all the mounting etc then divide it by perceived life remaining, but they neglect to account for the last 2/32" that nobody wants to use. And, of course, the mounting fees the buyer will suffer.

I search by tire size but phrase it a couple different ways... 195 65 15, 195/65/15, 195/65R15 etc. The search algorithms are good but not perfect. There are also dopes who will advertise "goodyear tires for cavalier" without mentioning the size, and they probably miss a bigger audience.

I used to have good luck with a disorganized junkyard that charged $5-10 a tire, and this was in 2012 when new tires were $75+ due to an oil crisis. I like buying from a junkyard since the cars rusted out and the tires are probably fine. Tires from a tire store are immediately suspect-- someone decided they were so bad they had to come off before they wore out. They charge more now and new tires are cheaper.

I keep hitting walmart, ebay, and amazon with my tire sizes-- there are occasional flash sales on new rubber. Just got some "Supermax" for my camry for 30-something bucks a tire shipped. Like my oil stash, I try and do a tire stash... buying 3-6 months before I need them.

I'll add that I have a tire mounter and balancer. Sometimes I'll get a set of tires on rims, separate them, and make my money back on the part I didn't want.