when do you replace your worn tyres?

[steveo3002]

do you leave your tyres to near to the 1.6mm or is it safer to replace them a bit sooner ?

[GroundEffect]

Usually the first thing that makes me want to change is grip level in the wet when accelerating. If the TCS kicks in, or if I feel slip, where I'd previously not, then I'd estimate they're on the way out and get them changed.

This is happening at the moment on my M3 and they are around 2.0mm tread left on the Pilot Sport 2s. They're getting changed on Saturday to Super Sports.

[J4CKO]

3mm I start thinking about it, by 2.5 mm its time for them to go, letting them get too near means it is open to interpretation by plod and the performance is markedly worse, less concerned in summer even though it does rain but visibility and higher temperatures mean it isnt as urgent.

[TooMany2cvs]

steveo3002 said:

do you leave your tyres to near to the 1.6mm or is it safer to replace them a bit sooner ?

Grip, especially in standing water, starts to go down steeply from 3mm.

1.6mm is the bare legal minimum.

[Durzel]

I'm changing my rears soon, and they're on 3mm.

[lbc]

steveo3002 said:

do you leave your tyres to near to the 1.6mm or is it safer to replace them a bit sooner ?

Why wait until the tyres reach 1.6mm?

Surely you will start to notice reduced grip long before then, especially in the wet where aquaplaning is also likely.

Any tyre less than 3mm should be replaced.

[DavidJG]

lbc said:

Any tyre less than 3mm should be replaced.

Exactly. It's one of the reasons I've opted out of our company car scheme - the lease company insisted on < 2 mm before changing. Not clever if you find large amounts of standing water. 3mm is my personal limit for a tyre before it gets changed.

[Sheepshanks]

I take a look at them around October time and figure out whether they'll stay decent through the winter.

Look after 5 cars and only felt the need to change one set, and there was 3-4mm on those. Grabbed an offer at Costco to put Cross Climates on so changing a bit early was offset by getting some discount.

[kambites]

lbc said:

Surely you will start to notice reduced grip long before then, especially in the wet where aquaplaning is also likely.

The depth of standing water the car can cope with before aquaplaning starts to decrease from the first time you drive on the tyre; there's no "correct" place to draw the line.

[Dannbodge]

Depends on how much money I have spare but generally when they get around the 2mm mark.

If I'm feeling flush they would get changed around the 3mm

[Slow]

When standing water becomes a problem. Depends on the width of tyre.
Not high performance cars just bog standard run of the mill cars.

[PanzerCommander]

If winter is coming up and they are down to around 3mm then I will replace them. I'll run them for longer if they hit 3mm during the summer.

[matpilch]

Depth of tread should not be the only factor in my opinion. Age is equally as important and has major influence on rubber. I tend to change tyres when they're 5 years old, irrelevant of the amount of tread.

[steveo3002]

reason i ask ..got 4 michelins with between 3-4mm , sensible head says new ones would be nice what with winter and all that , my wallet is saying run them a bit longer

[otolith]

kambites said:

The depth of standing water the car can cope with before aquaplaning starts to decrease from the first time you drive on the tyre; there's no "correct" place to draw the line.

Aquaplaning apart, wet stopping differences are non-linear with respect to tread depth.

[ManOpener]

Tend to change at 3mm or so, though recently I've ended up having to change sets before that due to punctures et cetera.

[Sheepshanks]

steveo3002 said:

reason i ask ..got 4 michelins with between 3-4mm , sensible head says new ones would be nice what with winter and all that , my wallet is saying run them a bit longer

For me it would depend on what car they're on, what sort of journeys you do and what your weekly mileage is.

Also whether they're a common size so you could change them in a hurry if necessary.

[steveo3002]

Sheepshanks said:

For me it would depend on what car they're on, what sort of journeys you do and what your weekly mileage is.

Also whether they're a common size so you could change them in a hurry if necessary.

mk1 focus , lots of filthy back roads, does a fair few miles maybe 1000 a month, common size so could change em anytime really

[AlexHat]

I've got 5-6mm left on the set of tyres I bought 18 months ago, so would run until 3mm then think about changing. Depends when in the year it is though. Summer I'd run for a little longer, Winter I'd change tyres at 3mm just for peace of mind

[Don Veloci]

Is that little wear marking built into the tread set around 1.6mm?