Best Practices for Timely Tyre Replacement- Knowing When It's Time to Change Your Tyres

March 1, 2024

Tyres perform a vital role for our vehicle. They not only provide a buffer between our wheels and the road, but also provide the essential grip we need when driving in various conditions. In addition, having the right tyres on our vehicle for the driving conditions, and ensuring they’re in good condition, improves overall fuel efficiency. That’s why it’s so important to ensure that tyres are still fit to be on the road.

There are a number of checks you can do to make sure your tyres are safe to travel on. It’s likely you won’t remember off-hand when to do them, so it’s worth scheduling them in so that you don’t forget. We’ve put together a list of the checks you can do to understand when it is time to replace your tyres. 

Check your tyre’s date of manufacture

While tyres don’t have a used-by date, you can check when they were manufactured and use that information to calculate when they need replacing.

To check a tyre’s manufacture date, look at the 4-digit code next to the DOT label on your tyre. The first two numbers of this code represent the week your tyre was manufactured, and the second two numbers represent the year of manufacture. So, if the number is 3218, it means your tyre was made in the 32nd week of 2018.                                                                                                                                                   

A tyre’s condition should be assessed by a professional every 2-3 years, however, this may need to happen sooner than 2-3 years if you’ve covered large distances and the tyres have experienced accelerated wear.

After ten years, a tyre should be replaced, regardless of its apparent condition. This includes tyres that have sat in a tyre bag and not been used, as despite not being on the road, they can still degrade due to environmental factors.

Check the distance you’ve driven on your tyres                                     

Another way to know when your tyres might be due for a replacement is to check each individual tyre’s mileage. You should consider replacing a tyre when you’ve clocked up 40,000 kms of driving on it in ‘normal conditions’. This means, if you drive at average speeds, on decent roads, and don’t carry heavy loads, you should get your tyres assessed by a tyre specialist at 40,000 kms.

If you’ve driven on poor roads, are carrying or towing heavy loads, or have a tendency for aggressive or high-speed driving, then you should get your tyres checked more regularly than 40,000 kms. Note, these things need only happen once for damage to occur.

How do you know when you’ve driven 40,000 kms on your tyres? 

  1. Look at your car’s service log book and take note of when your tyres were last replaced.
  2. Check what the odometer reading was at the time your tyres were replaced. Add 40,000 kms to that reading. 
  3. Check your car’s current odometer reading to see if it has exceeded this number. If it has, it’s time to consider a replacement. 

If you’ve hit 40,000 kms on your tyres, a tyre specialist can assess whether or not your tyres are showing problematic wear and tear. They will either recommend replacing the tyres immediately, or recommend a tyre repair or tyre rotation (moving sets of tyres around the vehicle, such as from the front to the rear). 

Note that, the above calculation should be done for each individual tyre, unless you have had them replaced as a set, in which case you can calculate for multiple.

Check your tyre tread depth

One regular check you can do on your tyres is to check the tread depth. Why? Tread performs the important role of dispelling water from your tyres when driving on wet roads, meaning you can come to a stop more quickly and safely. If your tread depth is at a minimum, your tyres can slide on the wet road – compromising safety. (This treadwear may happen prior to 40,000 kms or sooner than 2-3 years.)

The minimum tyre depth allowed in Australia is 1.5 mm. Less tyre tread depth than this will deem your vehicle ‘unroadworthy’, and you could be liable to pay fines in your State or Territory.

Note that, although the minimum tread depth is 1.5 mm, you should get your tyres assessed if the tread depth is anything less than 3mm.

So, to avoid fines and ensure safety on the road, regularly check your tyre depth. A good idea is to do this when you do your tyre pressure adjustments.

How to check? 

  • Using an Australian 20c coin, place it in the tyre tread groove, and if the platypus’ bill can’t be seen, it means the tyre tread is deeper than 3 mm, and you have no worries for now. If you can see the platypus’ bill, then you know it’s time to get the tyres assessed, and likely, replaced.
  • Another way of checking is to look at the tread wear indicators, which are blocks that sit within the tyre tread. Once the tread wears down to 1.5 mm, the indicator will be level with the tyre and this tells you the tyre has reached minimum depth.

Check your tyres if there’s been a driving incident

It might be as small as driving over a pothole or hitting the curb, but anything that can damage your tyres is reason enough for a tyre assessment. Other things to consider are if you’ve carried a heavy load, or travelled on particularly poor roads or in extreme temperatures. These are all reasons why tyres might sustain damage, so it’s a good idea to take note if any of these factors are at play and let your tyre specialist know about it, sooner rather than later.

Change over your tyres for changes of season

In many parts of Australia, you likely won’t need to change tyres seasonally, as all-weather tyres are sufficient for driving in most areas of the country. However if you do find you are driving in snowy conditions for part of the year, or in extremely hot weather conditions, you may want to consider changing your tyres seasonally. 

The best way to go about this is to discuss it with your tyre specialist, who can advise you if it’s necessary, recommend the most appropriate tyres for your needs, and fit those tyres to your vehicle. They can then schedule in a time for the tyres to be switched back at the end of the season. For more information on seasonal tyres, see our post on Summer, winter or all-season tyres: which is the best option?

Changing tyres as a set

You may have a single tyre that needs replacing, but others which are fine. If a tyre specialist can’t exactly match the new tyre to the existing tyre, they may recommend you change over two tyres at once. This is because it’s preferable to have matching tyres – two of the same type and size at each end of the vehicle – as having tyres of equal tread depth enables better vehicle handling. So, though it may seem unnecessary to replace a tyre that has life left in it, in some cases, it might be what is recommended.

Don’t forget your spare

Your spare tyre also doesn’t last forever, so remember to do the above checks on your spare tyre too, and look for any cracks or bulges that indicate it might need replacing prior to the 10 year maximum.

To conclude…

As you will have realised from reading the above tips, understanding when tyres need replacing is not rocket science. If you keep an eye on tyre tread depths, take note of mileage, and be aware of the date of manufacture, then you should have a good idea of when to replace a tyre. 
Scheduling in routine DIY tyre tread checks is also a wise idea, and it can be helpful to put this in your calendar, or do it on the first of the month. If it all seems too confusing, work with a tyre specialist, like Jim’s Mobile Tyres. We can assess the state of your tyres and recommend when to do a tyre change or rotation. We can even send you reminders for when your tyres will likely need replacing. Contact us today, and let our experts ensure your tyres are safe for the road.

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