Originally Posted By: lizpat
I found a set of tires that I think will be perfect for my style of driving (in Manhattan NYC, terrible roads, potholes, dips, valleys, etc.)
It's a set of the newly released Kumho Sense (no reviews yet!) but it looks just right for me, in the size 205/65/15, it's the lightest tire in its class and it's so cheap, at only 69 dollars per.
My current tires have about 2 years of tread left, it's in the size 195/60/15. I can use the extra sidewall for more ground clearance and more shock absorption.
It's not a good idea to stock up on tires since they age..
One point not mentioned so far: Not a good idea to switch sizes that much. The ABS could be affected---if you have ABS---and the speedometer/odometer will be off by 5%. If you must have that specific model and want to go wider than stock, then 205/60/15 makes more sense. That's only about a 2% difference, and the price on TR is only $1 more per tire.
If you want more sidewall, 185/65/15 (off by 1%) or 195/65/15 (off by 3%) makes more sense. Those sizes are also cheaper, especially the 185s. See:
http://www.1010tires.com/
What vehicle do you have?
To answer the question: I never let tires get to the wear bars, but apart from that it depends on time of year, how much I like the tires on the car at the time---and that bank account thingie. Plus what if any deals are out there in tire-world. It's always fun.