Used Tires?

[skate1968]

I did a search and i found no threads mentioning 'used' in the tire section.

Anyhow, my mechanic, suggested that i pick up some used tires. {1) So i had a look. I went to the used tire place and got two tires put on & balanced for 25 bucks each. Granted I'm not a mechanic but if you told me that these tires were new i'd believe you! They were just barely worn! Hardly at all!

It seems as though this is a money saving way to go. But then again i didn't look closely at the brand. And i might soon be regretting the purchase. We'll see.


(1) If you read my other recent threads you'll see that my mechanic is offering cheap alternatives for me to consider. Overall my mechanic has been good.

 

[IndyIan]

Great search engine eh!
I got two used tires for the front of my Neon, they are just average all seasons and have worked fine. What brand are your tires?
I think as long as you check the date code used tires are fine.

 

[SLCraig]

Im a big fan of used tires. I buy them off the local classifieds all the time (not always just for me) and have had no real issues ever with any of the tires themselves.

 

[JHZR2]

Date code is the most important thing. Tires have a useful like of years or so if subjected to UV, etc. Minimal use prevents some of the sacrificial compounds from coming to the surface, also initiating faster UV degradation.

You might find tires that someone had only a short time before trading up, etc., and if they are sound, good. But Id be hard pressed to select a used tire with a fair amount of use, on a vehicle that I need to rely on.

 

[bepperb]

1. Check the date code. I wouldn't buy anything over a few years old. I'd also prefer to see the inside of the tires, if it were me. I'm not paying for a tire with three patch plugs!

2. You can use google to search just this site. Type:

site:bobistheoilguy.com/forums "used tires"

You might like this:

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1405588

 

[skate1968]

Thanks very much! Lots of good feedback and useful information.

(Albeit, it would have been smarter for me post and obtain this feedback earlier before i bought the tires! So be it.

)

 

[eljefino]

That thread linked above is good. Your mechanic sounds awesome; I'd tip him come Christmastime, beer, donuts, cash, whatever makes him happy.

My own $40 harbor freight tire machine has probably saved me $1000 by now if my alternative was buying new cheap tires at a full service tire store.

One problem to report, out of probably 20 tires: Got a shimmy from a $5 tire that won't balance out. Had been a good tire but gradually got worse and worse.

As long as you're reading DOT codes see if you can find the UTQ numbers, anything under 400 A B I skip. There are lots of cheap summer gumball tires that wear out real quick. UTQ is a good tie breaker for two different brands you can't research on tirerack.com right off b/c you're standing in eight inches of junkyard mud.

When using this site's search engine, the biggest goof is searching the last week only.

 

[daves87rs]

My mother in law has a few used tires on her car...look new, and hold up well too so far....

 

[friendly_jacek]

I never tried used tires, but the extra benefit of "pre-owned" tires is better handling and MPG. Brand new tires have handling issues due to brake in and MPG suffers from thick threads. This is why I'm keeping my almost worn out tires this summer as they handle great in dry (not bad yet in wet) and get better MPG compared with when new.

 

[daves87rs]

Originally Posted By: friendly_jacek
I never tried used tires, but the extra benefit of "pre-owned" tires is better handling and MPG. Brand new tires have handling issues due to brake in and MPG suffers from thick threads. This is why I'm keeping my almost worn out tires this summer as they handle great in dry (not bad yet in wet) and get better MPG compared with when new.



Yep...there is some truth to that. It took a few months for my Cobalt to get back up to the milage it had before the Sumis...Granted, the car handles so much better...