I've had these Hankook tires since the start of last year 2020 and looking at the date code they're not that old, the mileage on them maybe around 15K,KM or 9K,M . They seem to have dried out a bit, at least on the surface from these pictures . As far as I can feel they have plenty of grip and return good mileage with no complaints , though I'm more concerned on the safety point of view . The car is mainly parked outside in the blazing sun most of the time and not driven much due to Covid / working remotely mostly and I'd assume that's why the tires seem to have dried out prematurely . I'd like to know if I should replace the tires or if they are good to go for another year or two .
Tiny surface cracking on ~2 year old tires should NOT be cause for concern. But I agree that yours might be marginal. If you don't drive on long trips or at high speeds, I wouldn't worry for at least another year. If you have access to a trusted mechanic.......who does NOT sell tires.......an in person inspection might be in order.
The date code says the tires were manufactured in 35th week of 2019. So they are not that old, but they do look like it is dry rotting. I'd say if you are planning to drive more next year, get some new tires.
The rubber is well along, getting cracked. Help responders out: get a simple tread depth gauge and post what you measure. Something like this Canadian Tire screen-grab would do: Just my 2 cents, for those miles and months, they look like hell. Ditch them and try another brand.
Dry rot is a condition specific to things made with natural rubber compounds. Modern synthetic rubber compounds will dry out some......but that is NOT the same as dry rot.
Use some tire protect spray/wipe on them until you get new ones, and then use tire protect spray/wipe on your new ones and it will do wonders. I use 303 protectant, not sure if you have access to it.
Were they ever driven with low pressures? I'd give them a good scrub and rinse - see what they look like then. Tyres should last 8-10 years before degrading. It could just be a surface coating.
Thanks everyone for your feedback and I think I might get new ones soon and try a different brand this time since tires for this wheel size are much cheaper than most newer cars' tires with giant wheels . I shall report back on what tires I got and hopefully they last longer than two years this time around .
Given the conditions that he described, I think your estimate is WAY too high. I might agree with your numbers......if and only IF they had low mileage and were always parked out of the sun and high heat. And "the tire industry" seems to have a different "standard" developing too. A friend of mine had 3 different shops refuse to do anything to his 6 year old tires that requires removal from the rims. Their "service limit" is 5 years.
Our 2010 came with Michelin Pilots, which looked BAD soon enough, cracking. Finally turfed them out, must be about 3 years back, and maybe should have done it sooner. Got some Michelin X-ICE snow tires pretty much at the same time as car purchase; they're still looking virtually like new, on the car right now.
When we lived in Arizona, we changed out tires every 5 years regardless of mileage. The heat just killed them. Not worth the risk. I had never lived in a place where there were so many tire blowouts. The black asphalt just got so hot baking in the sun. People were advised not to walk their dogs on black asphalt during the summer. We’d carry our pups across the street to get to the park.
Yes, replace them. Unfortunately those are baked and failing. We see this here in Florida to some degree, but not in one-year's time. Back when I was in the forklift industry just a few years ago, the only tires that to forklifts rolling around, and sitting on, Miami-Dade's airport tarmac would get were Continentals. They noted that, after years of trying and testing, Continental tires lasted the longest in the total sun exposure and high-heat of the Miami tarmac. That's all I know. --- Edit: I know one more thing. Old timers, and older folks who don't driver their cars a lot, often park them on 1/2" wood/board pieces. Just enough to raise and insulate the tires from the hot pavement / black-top. Yes, the tires are still exposed to the sun and general heat, but they aren't subjected to that extreme heat that builds up in pavement when the cars are parked.
one thing I’ve seen in Arizona are wheel covers… similar to car covers but just for the wheels. Usually white. Presumably to shield the tires from uv light when sitting outside.
Yup at least 9 months out of the past two years the car was mainly parked outside and that was during the very hot summer months were temperatures are usually over 40C/104F . I assume all that heat and UV exposure vastly accelerated the rubber degradation, I've also heard that extreme heat is specially bad for the 12V battery and I'm hoping the OEM battery last another couple of years . I've seen many tire blowouts here and and with my previous car a large truck tire blow in front of my car on the highway and parts of it hit the underside of my car and did lots of damage, and since that time I've been careful with tires . I'll be shopping around for new tires next week and I'll let you know what tire I choose .
Just an update on the tire situation . I got new tires Yesterday to replace the aging Hankooks , they are Pirellis model: CINTURATO P1 VERDE . First impressions from driving a bit in town and on the highway back home, they seem to be slightly firmer and quieter than the Hankooks . In terms of fuel consumption I have noticed a very small decrease in efficiency which I'd think is expected in new tires as they'd have more grip . They had them on offer for some reason at around the equivalent of 200USD for the set of 4 including tax and installation . They are dated 28th week of 2021 which isn't that old . Not sure if these tires are widely available in other markets or if they are budget orientated tires limited to select regions .
Tyres will run-in - they take a couple of hundred kilometres - that's when you can assess how good they are.
I wonder if "the tire industry" in NA knows what the tire manufacturers across the world doesn't know on tire life.
Rubber Cracking | Tire Rack https://m.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=30 Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
I think it is more like that they fear liability laws and even more than that, they can use that as an EXCUSE to sell more tires.
I worked at a small garage back in the day. I believe that the answer is both - yes, they can sell more tires, but at the same time there are areas in the country where tires get damaged from road-heat and UV rays. It just isn't worth the liability to play with them, then be blamed for a crash due to a blow-out - especially not without a waiver and system keeping track of owners, and who is signing off from which car for tire work on old tires. That would be a headache.
