Do You Know When to Change Your Tires?

You know the expression “out with the old and in with the new?” Well that’s not true when it comes to tires!

You know the expression “out with the old and in with the new?” Well that’s not true when it comes to tires!

A recent survey by Michelin North America (Canada) Inc. revealed that 90% of Canadian drivers believe new tires will always perform better than worn tires.

Yet, how a new tire performs initially doesn’t necessarily indicate how it will perform over time. In fact, some worn tires provide wet-braking performance as good, if not better than certain other types of new tires.

“Drivers are making tire purchase and replacement decisions based on mileage warranty, price and appearance, factors that actually become less relevant the more you drive. Safety, however, remains relevant to drivers throughout the life of the tires they use,” says Fred Ollendorff, Michelin marketing manager for on-road tires. “It’s crucial for consumers to have better information about worn-tire performance and they should have access to worn-tire test results before they buy new tires.”

 Up until now no independent testing for worn tires has been available to consumers, because of that Michelin decided to do these tests.

Ensuring consumers have access to worn tire test results is an environmental issue as well as a safety issue.

The Michelin survey of Canadian drivers revealed the majority (56 per cent) do not know how to evaluate when their tires are no longer safe to drive.

This means that they also may be replacing their tires long before they need to, resulting in needless spending out of pocket and wasted materials.

Replacing well-maintained tires early based on depth alone, for instance, contributes to more than 400 million wasted tires a year worldwide, which is equivalent to approximately 35 tons of carbon dioxide (a huge strain on the environment).

“The need to educate consumers about a tire’s performance over time as a factor in both purchase decision and maintenance is a new concept for the industry,” says Ollendorff. “As a company that thinks long-term about sustainable mobility, Michelin is working with dealers and other industry stakeholders to raises consumer awareness and understanding of this important issue.”