Depends on the tire. Commercial truck and trailer tires can last decades. Light truck and car tires, not so much ...
Ever buy used tires?
- Thread starter ZZman
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I did it "back in the day", my first set of low profile performance radials were used. I burned them up quickly, but I got my money out of them.
Young guys buy new cars, or used cars with new tires, and then ASAP get aftermarket wheels and tires, and dump the originals for chump change. As long as the date code checks out, I'd buy these in a heartbeat.
A few years back I had a set of 4 matching on an AWD and one went out, I shopped around for a matching tire. Local used tire shop had just gone out of business. Other places didn't have what I needed. Ended up getting a matched pair by removing wheels and getting them done off-vehicle. Matched that pair with new about 6 months later, just ran the new ones on the front for the extra mileage until they were worn down the same.
Vast majority of the time I buy 4 at a time and I'm done. Finding the "right" matching single used tire is hard. Finding a set of 4 for cheap means living on CL and FB Marketplace and jumping on a new listing at a moment's notice. Fine for a college student, but hard to do when you have a full time job.
Young guys buy new cars, or used cars with new tires, and then ASAP get aftermarket wheels and tires, and dump the originals for chump change. As long as the date code checks out, I'd buy these in a heartbeat.
A few years back I had a set of 4 matching on an AWD and one went out, I shopped around for a matching tire. Local used tire shop had just gone out of business. Other places didn't have what I needed. Ended up getting a matched pair by removing wheels and getting them done off-vehicle. Matched that pair with new about 6 months later, just ran the new ones on the front for the extra mileage until they were worn down the same.
Vast majority of the time I buy 4 at a time and I'm done. Finding the "right" matching single used tire is hard. Finding a set of 4 for cheap means living on CL and FB Marketplace and jumping on a new listing at a moment's notice. Fine for a college student, but hard to do when you have a full time job.
I used to live across the street from a huge junkyard. We bought used tires that were like brand new all the time and had great results. I even scored a set of red wall tires to put on my 1967 Plymouth Barracuda and they were like brand new. That yard had tremendous deals but they sold out and are no longer there. I was very young at the time and knew all the guys and they treated me very well at the wrecking yard. Later on I bought an almost new 340 engine and had one of the counter guys install the engine. He had it done in a day!
My local Pick and Pull used to let you pull the tires with rims off the cars and then you could return the rims. Not any more. They take them off the vehicles, sell the tires with the rims in sets, and you chuck the rims if you don't need them. Ruins the economics.
In the olden days for me (90s) I would buy them for my beater of a car (1987 Plymouth Gran Fury Police I got for $800). They worked great, until I had a windfall and I replaced them all with a set of decent tires at a Tires Plus (Discount Tire wasn't here in MN yet). But, like others here, i HAD to get a set of used tires: the right rear blew out on me on northbound 35W south of downtown Minneapolis - in rush hour. I limped that car from the exit to a garage my brother went to and had the right sized tire. It was really embarrassing to drive like that, with all of the people in suits and such gawking as I limped through downtown.
That said, I posted up a set of Discount Tire GT Radial Champiro IcePros from my recently traded 2016 Ford Explorer, complete with police steel wheels, TPMS sensors, and TPMS reset tool on Craigslist. Someone will get a nice set of winter tires...
That said, I posted up a set of Discount Tire GT Radial Champiro IcePros from my recently traded 2016 Ford Explorer, complete with police steel wheels, TPMS sensors, and TPMS reset tool on Craigslist. Someone will get a nice set of winter tires...
Depends on the miles you are going to do. I do far too many that used tires would need frequent changing for the most part. Also have to be concerned with how old the tire is before you got it because you don't want it to dry out and crack early or put your life at risk.
As long as they are young used tires in good condition that suits the mileage you are going to do, then go for it.
As long as they are young used tires in good condition that suits the mileage you are going to do, then go for it.
I certainly look for used tire deals but it is a much tougher task to find them worthwhile when the cost of replacing a tire is lower with my current vehicle and the cost to mount them rising.
I used 6 sets of used tires in my lifetime ( which is a small fraction of my total) either acquired as a bonus from desired rims at a junkyard, paid an attractive price on Craigslist or they were given away. I seem to have my best luck finding used tires discounted on Craigslist 75% or more off of new with 75% or better treadlife for my truck in the years following the credit crisis.
I used 6 sets of used tires in my lifetime ( which is a small fraction of my total) either acquired as a bonus from desired rims at a junkyard, paid an attractive price on Craigslist or they were given away. I seem to have my best luck finding used tires discounted on Craigslist 75% or more off of new with 75% or better treadlife for my truck in the years following the credit crisis.
harbor
Site Donor 2026
I've done it 3 times to replace individual tires that picked up a nail/screw in a spot that couldn't be plugged. I had very good luck each time getting a tire with similar DOT and mileage from eBay shops.
I've purchased used wheels and tires pulled off of newer cars when the owner upgrades to bigger ones. Great results.
But they are new-ish OEM and still mounted. Clearly in excellent shape.
If you choose to do this, purchase directly from the owner of the car, for obvious reasons.
But they are new-ish OEM and still mounted. Clearly in excellent shape.
If you choose to do this, purchase directly from the owner of the car, for obvious reasons.
For the Festiva only. Just get the rims off a Geo Metro or Toyota and roll them till bald. Cheaper unless I get one with bad belts. I stay from used Primewells, Walmarts seem to be ok.
Originally Posted by maxdustington
Originally Posted by NO2
Tires have a finite life of 5-6 years. The only used tires I'd consider are if I was turning back a lease car, or pulls from a new vehicle.
Tire companies recommend you change your tires every seven years. I've never seen or heard of a car failing a safety inspection because it had old tires.
I don't think I have either, but at least in NH they are supposed to fail if a crack exceeds an inch, or gets down to the cords. That is apart from tread wear. Nothing about actual age.
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Technically all my used cars came with... used tires.
I have bought a couple sets of used tires. No real problems: one set of RT43's which were hardly used, although one did have a bit of wear from toe. That tire did wear out first, but got me almost to my typical 40k lifespan on a set. $100 for the set plus $10 to balance (mounted myself). Second set, wanted a set of rims for wife's car, came across a set of rims with snows not mounted on them, a package deal, like-new snows and OEM rims for $200. Mounted myself and had them balanced for $10. Unfortunately those tires wore fast in the center (despite OEM tire pressure) and got chopped--but they were snow (winter?) tires and they do that.
If I come across a good deal, sure why not.
Originally Posted by NO2
Tires have a finite life of 5-6 years. The only used tires I'd consider are if I was turning back a lease car, or pulls from a new vehicle.
Tire companies recommend you change your tires every seven years. I've never seen or heard of a car failing a safety inspection because it had old tires.
I don't think I have either, but at least in NH they are supposed to fail if a crack exceeds an inch, or gets down to the cords. That is apart from tread wear. Nothing about actual age.
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Technically all my used cars came with... used tires.
I have bought a couple sets of used tires. No real problems: one set of RT43's which were hardly used, although one did have a bit of wear from toe. That tire did wear out first, but got me almost to my typical 40k lifespan on a set. $100 for the set plus $10 to balance (mounted myself). Second set, wanted a set of rims for wife's car, came across a set of rims with snows not mounted on them, a package deal, like-new snows and OEM rims for $200. Mounted myself and had them balanced for $10. Unfortunately those tires wore fast in the center (despite OEM tire pressure) and got chopped--but they were snow (winter?) tires and they do that.
If I come across a good deal, sure why not.
No my opinion is that's kind of like buying used condoms!
Over the years I equipped older work vehicles with them if I needed tires and planned on replacing the vehicle within the next year or two. I made sure to inspect the tires inside and out before buying them, and the price had to be very good.
I've had pretty good luck with used tires in the past
I generally buy new, cheap, on sale and then sell when at 1/2 tread. Seems to be just as much as buying used tires.
I generally buy new, cheap, on sale and then sell when at 1/2 tread. Seems to be just as much as buying used tires.
Every tire you buy becomes "used" fairly quickly. I have bought used but I make sure they are almost new and with a recent manufacturing date. I also won't consider buying a used $70 tire. I look for the $170 Michelins or not at all.
A few years back, my dad needed a set of tires for the MKZ I now own. A local shop talked him into a set of claimed "barely used" Michelins that "the first buyer didn't like."
I bought the car from him about a year later, and when I got it that set of tires was so badly dry-rotted that one of the first places I drove it was to a tire store and threw a set of Michelin Primacy MXM4s on it. $1K later, and it rode like a new car.
To be fair, even though I've always trusted Michelins I've heard a lot of mixed reports on them dry-rotting early. The shop I used showed me that they were selling me the "freshest" they had in stock of that particular model, and they were 2-3 months old as best as I recall. I've put 16K miles on them in a year and a half, so I suspect that I'll run out of tread before they really have time to dry rot.
I might chance used again on a high end set of tires, but I'd want to see the date codes and make sure I wasn't paying for a lot of tread on tires a couple of years old. If it were a matter of getting a set of tires on a car to have it safe enough to be sellable, I'd do it.
One last thing-when I bought my MG it didn't have a spare at all, and someone gave a RoStyle wheel with a tire on it that shed rubber every time I touched it. I carried it, figuring it was better than nothing, but when the guy handed the wheel over to me I almost expected to see him make me sign a liability waiver that I wouldn't drive on the tire
. A local shop sold me a used 185/70R14, mounted and balanced for $50. It's a no-name tire, and is probably at 50% tread, but I think is 3 or 4 years old and I'd at least trust it to get me home(or to a tire shop). I don't lose too much sleep over that particular tire. Fortunately, provided that the rim isn't too badly rusted and the shop preps it properly, flats aren't terribly common on the old RoStyle wheels these days. I do need to have one of mine looked at as the left front has a slow leak(I air it up about once a month) but I'm not worried about it blowing out. Folks who run wire wheels with tubes still would be foolish to not carry a spare of some sort.
I bought the car from him about a year later, and when I got it that set of tires was so badly dry-rotted that one of the first places I drove it was to a tire store and threw a set of Michelin Primacy MXM4s on it. $1K later, and it rode like a new car.
To be fair, even though I've always trusted Michelins I've heard a lot of mixed reports on them dry-rotting early. The shop I used showed me that they were selling me the "freshest" they had in stock of that particular model, and they were 2-3 months old as best as I recall. I've put 16K miles on them in a year and a half, so I suspect that I'll run out of tread before they really have time to dry rot.
I might chance used again on a high end set of tires, but I'd want to see the date codes and make sure I wasn't paying for a lot of tread on tires a couple of years old. If it were a matter of getting a set of tires on a car to have it safe enough to be sellable, I'd do it.
One last thing-when I bought my MG it didn't have a spare at all, and someone gave a RoStyle wheel with a tire on it that shed rubber every time I touched it. I carried it, figuring it was better than nothing, but when the guy handed the wheel over to me I almost expected to see him make me sign a liability waiver that I wouldn't drive on the tire
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