Do I need to change my tyres due to age?

[Holly]

I have done 10k miles in my 2020 T6.1 (and 200 nights!) I have plenty of tread on my all weather tyres, but a friend advised that I should change the tyres after four years due to the rubber perishing.. It's my daily so gets used all year round. Any comments?

 

[dspuk]

"Some tyre manufacturers claim that a tyre should last 20,000 miles, but the consensus among tyre manufacturers and safety organisations is that vehicle owners should replace their tyres every 5-6 years."

Other Google searches bring up;

"Whether you have Pirelli, Falken, Sumitomo, Bridgestone or a less well-known brand of tyres, most manufacturers agree that they should be changed at least once a decade.

After ten years, your tyres may appear to be in good condition but there may be cracks and degradation that you cannot see."

 

[Gavin123]

Obviously not directly for a Cali but a useful guide including how to identify the age of your tyres:

Tyre age restrictions for good vehicles, buses, coaches and minibuses

www.gov.uk

 

[RockinNRollin]

Remember tyres aren't necessarily new on a new vehicle; I've seen two year old tyres on a brand new vehicle (as above, check the date stamp) - nothing illegal about selling a new vehicle like that either unfortunately. Tyres should be replaced by age or condition, whichever comes first. Lots of visible cracking means the rubber is losing flexibility, in turn this means it's less pliable and able to bite into the road surface. Those four hoops are what keeps you, your passengers and the 3 tonnes of Cali from leaving the road or stopping in time in an emergency. Never chance it with tyres . . . .

 

[chockswahay]

I have done 10k miles in my 2020 T6.1 (and 200 nights!) I have plenty of tread on my all weather tyres, but a friend advised that I should change the tyres after four years due to the rubber perishing.. It's my daily so gets used all year round. Any comments?

I would say”No”

 

[Betsycalifornia]

I would say no as well.

 

[Velma's Dad]

In practice a major factor in tyre deterioration is exposure to sunlight. If the vehicle has been kept out in direct sunshine the tyres will perish quicker - you'll likely see some cracking on the sidewall.

Tyres do tend to become more rigid with age so if you need good soft rubber tread blocks eg for winter or off-road grip you'll generally be better on a newer tyre. Just test the rubber with your thumb and that will give you a pretty good idea of their status.

But changing 4 year old tyres simply because of their age is bonkers.

 

[Holly]

Thank you all, much appreciated. She’s parked in a shady spot, but I’ll give the tyres a prod tomorrow. My gut feeling is that they’ll be fine. Thank you

 

[WelshGas]

Thank you all, much appreciated. She’s parked in a shady spot, but I’ll give the tyres a prod tomorrow. My gut feeling is that they’ll be fine. Thank you

Your next MOT will decide.

 

[Holly]

Your next MOT will decide.

So they don’t just look at tread when they assess the tyres?

 

[andyinluton]

Your next MOT will decide.

What's the MOT got to do with it? Age is not checked just condition. Age is checked on minibuses etc & the criteria on that is max 10 years.
If the condition is bad enough to fail an MOT they need changing now not when the MOT is due.
As long as the van hasn't been left standing for months in Mediterranean full sun I am sure they will be fine at 4 years.

 

[WelshGas]

So they don’t just look at tread when they assess the tyres?

No, they should also examine the sidewall, both sides, for any evidence of damage whatever the cause.
If you are not changing tyres on a regular basis due to wear, then I think it is even more important to examine each tyre carefully on a regular basis. Don’t just depend on tread depth.

 

[WelshGas]

What's the MOT got to do with it? Age is not checked just condition. Age is checked on minibuses etc & the criteria on that is max 10 years.
If the condition is bad enough to fail an MOT they need changing now not when the MOT is due.
As long as the van hasn't been left standing for months in Mediterranean full sun I am sure they will be fine at 4 years.

Almost 8% of MOT failures are due to Tyres and many of these failures are not due to tyre wear/ tread depth. So upto 8% drivers presenting their vehicles for a MOT haven’t examined their tyres effectively .

Also it’s not just UV from sunlight that can cause damage.

Tyre Ageing - NTDA

Tyre Ageing Are your tyres past it?Tyres are fantastically engineered products. They are the only thing keeping your car in contact with the road come

ntda.co.uk

 

[JohnCalifornia]

We have a 2015 Range Rover sport that has 2016 tyres according to the date stamp on the tyres and all 4 got an advisory on the last MOT for cracking. I can’t see any cracking on the side walls at all and as my garage out source the MOT trying to find out why they have picked up cracking on all 4 tyres is nigh on impossible. All the tyres have good tread (around 5mm on each tyre). I have never had a cracked tyre picked on any MOT of any of my cars in the last 30 years

 

[Velma's Dad]

We have a 2015 Range Rover sport that has 2016 tyres according to the date stamp on the tyres and all 4 got an advisory on the last MOT for cracking. I can’t see any cracking on the side walls at all and as my garage out source the MOT trying to find out why they have picked up cracking on all 4 tyres is nigh on impossible. All the tyres have good tread (around 5mm on each tyre). I have never had a cracked tyre picked on any MOT of any of my cars in the last 30 years

If there are no visible cuts or bulges and it's just advisories on that MOT for the "cracks" then I wouldn't myself waste much time agonising over it. At the same time, if those tyres have only had 3mm of wear in seven years then I'm guessing they might have had long periods of non-use? On that basis I might be thinking they're getting towards end of life but obviously your call.

What backs up the logic of not running on very old tyres is that it's now illegal to use 10 year old tyres on the front axles of heavy commercials. Although I remember reading somewhere that the evidence backing up that rule change was a bit thin.

 

[JohnCalifornia]

The car does a not do many miles a year due to 3 other cars in the household. I bought it 2nd hand in 2017 and have done 17K miles in almost 7 years.

 

[sidepod]

The OP stated he barely uses the van (10k/3years?). If that level of inactivity continues then there is an argument that, statistically speaking, the chance of an age related failure is low to zero.

 

[Californication69]

I have done 10k miles in my 2020 T6.1 (and 200 nights!) I have plenty of tread on my all weather tyres, but a friend advised that I should change the tyres after four years due to the rubber perishing.. It's my daily so gets used all year round. Any comments?

Get them checked every year.
Should really check them every month.
If you have a friendly Kwik fit guy,
Massive shout out to Adrian at Halesowen Kwik Fit.
He really looks after me and checks all the trues on a ramp for free.
Fixed the wife’s puncture for free in December 21’
Gets the best discount on new tyres, cheaper than black circles.
I think it’s invaluable to have a person you can trust to check them.
But they should last at least 7 years if you only get to 40k miles in 7 years.
But depends on the hard wearing and routes and driving style on how long they’ll last.
Get to know your local tyre bloke / lady.
You’ll get a feel of them if they a n0b or not.
And watch them.
They’ll be happy to let you watch them inspect them.
Up on a ramp they check the inside of the tyre, as that have a bulge or spilt you cannot see.
Not sure who you have around you.
I trust ATS & KwikFit in my area as they do a proper job.
I don’t trust formula one, Halfords or some of the “local tyre places” as I’ve been and seen how they operate.
And like it’s been said.
4 small patch’s keeping me and my loved ones of 3 generations on the road in all weathers.
Not a risk factor I’m willing to leave to the cr4ppy cowboy outfits.

 

[Holly]

Get them checked every year.
Should really check them every month.
If you have a friendly Kwik fit guy,
Massive shout out to Adrian at Halesowen Kwik Fit.
He really looks after me and checks all the trues on a ramp for free.
Fixed the wife’s puncture for free in December 21’
Gets the best discount on new tyres, cheaper than black circles.
I think it’s invaluable to have a person you can trust to check them.
But they should last at least 7 years if you only get to 40k miles in 7 years.
But depends on the hard wearing and routes and driving style on how long they’ll last.
Get to know your local tyre bloke / lady.
You’ll get a feel of them if they a n0b or not.
And watch them.
They’ll be happy to let you watch them inspect them.
Up on a ramp they check the inside of the tyre, as that have a bulge or spilt you cannot see.
Not sure who you have around you.
I trust ATS & KwikFit in my area as they do a proper job.
I don’t trust formula one, Halfords or some of the “local tyre places” as I’ve been and seen how they operate.
And like it’s been said.
4 small patch’s keeping me and my loved ones of 3 generations on the road in all weathers.
Not a risk factor I’m willing to leave to the cr4ppy cowboy outfits.

Thank you Bill

 

[Hueyhew]

4 small patch’s keeping me and my loved ones of 3 generations on the road in all weathers.
Not a risk factor I’m willing to leave to the cr4ppy cowboy outfits.

Well said,

Inspect regularly or as suggested ask a trusted supplier to do it and start budgeting for replacement from year 5. Tyre manufacture date is on a little stamped area on only one side of the tyre sidewall in the format week and year ie 4219 and may not be easy to see. "New" tyres could already be a year old on fitment. The mot threshold is too low IMHO.

 

[derek_j_buchanan]

A simple search on google gives the answer you need. There’s no hard and fast rule but don’t buy tyres from a shop if they are over 5yrs old and probably change by 10. It’s about rubber degradation, delamination and UV. There is a code on the tyre wall that will give u week and year of manufacture.

 

[andyinluton]

Well said,

"New" tyres could already be a year old on fitment. The mot threshold is too low IMHO.

There is no MOT threshold related to age of tyres on cars / vans it's done purely on condition.

 

[swisspace]

The type of tyre is important, you mention all weather rather than winter, the main difference with winter tyres is they have a higher amount of rubber so they flex, as time goes on they harden and grip in the cold worsens and from my experience I swap every 4-5 years, by 7-8 years they are worse than summer tyres, all weather tyres are in between but cold weather grip will also be affected but possibly ok for 5-6 years, so it depends on how much winter driving you do - I live in Switzerland

 

[Californication69]

I’m able to afford having two sets.
One for autumn & winter, a pure 3 peak and snowflake winter tyre.
(When the winters get to 3mm, I’ll replace them, because I can)
(They are truly amazing at what they offer in >7 degree temperatures. An old school teacher once mentioned the” like sticking sh1t to a blanket” analogy)
And I run AT in spring / summer for grass and muddy fields and (motorway, unfortunately)
(Wish there was a summer AT, that was great on motorway & muddy fields, It might happen one day with the advancement of tyre manufacturing.)
My wife is sick of my tyre fixation.
I like to think of oneself as a tyre Connoisseur

 

[B J G]

I’m able to afford having two sets.
One for autumn & winter, a pure 3 peak and snowflake winter tyre.
(When the winters get to 3mm, I’ll replace them, because I can)
(They are truly amazing at what they offer in >7 degree temperatures. An old school teacher once mentioned the” like sticking sh1t to a blanket” analogy)
And I run AT in spring / summer for grass and muddy fields and (motorway, unfortunately)
(Wish there was a summer AT, that was great on motorway & muddy fields, It might happen one day with the advancement of tyre manufacturing.)
My wife is sick of my tyre fixation.
I like to think of oneself as a tyre Connoisseur

Very unlikely to see a motorway AT tyre mainly due to large tread blocks causing more drag hence increased emission figures in an age when emission reduction is the key motoring factor.