Car Tire Longevity in Metro Phoenix (buy, landlord, inspection)

[wit-nit]

For the past 50+ years living in the Phoenix area and the vehicles always being garaged I've gotten between 55,000 and 65,000 mile on tires with normal city driving. My tires are Michelin.

[Bummer]

As a general rule . . .

Most "Tire and Safety Experts" recommend tires should be changed after six years regardless of the mileage or appearance for SAFETY. Read the Manufacture Date required on all tires.

Another one of those "NOT WORTH THE RISK" considering a new set of tires is chump change compared to the cost of even the most basic accident due to tire failure.

[kytoaz]

Coming from the midwest it was and still is shocking to me how hard this climate is on not only tires, but just about all rubber and plastic in general. I build and drive hot rods and at the first sign of a miss or a rough idle the first thing I check are the vacuum lines as they generally only last a couple years in this climate. Back east this wasn't even a consideration. Same with tires, if they had tread you were good. He're I've learned to inspect the sidewalls for cracking as that is generally where they will fail. So yes, the climate is harder on tires, but as stated above, if your vehicle is garaged and you drive it often it will make a huge difference.

So my advice would be to go with a shorter mileage tire if you are not going to be driving much.

[john3232]

Originally Posted by kytoaz

Coming from the midwest it was and still is shocking to me how hard this climate is on not only tires, but just about all rubber and plastic in general. I build and drive hot rods and at the first sign of a miss or a rough idle the first thing I check are the vacuum lines as they generally only last a couple years in this climate. Back east this wasn't even a consideration. Same with tires, if they had tread you were good. He're I've learned to inspect the sidewalls for cracking as that is generally where they will fail. So yes, the climate is harder on tires, but as stated above, if your vehicle is garaged and you drive it often it will make a huge difference.

So my advice would be to go with a shorter mileage tire if you are not going to be driving much.

That's good to know.

Thanks

[ajonesaz]

I always go for the mileage warranties on tires and car batteries, those warranties are not adjusted for Arizona

My 65k tires went about 45k, I got a $50 credit per tire when buying new tires.

If you buy a car battery with at least a 3 year or better warranty, your next battery is free, guaranteed

[Valley Native]

Originally Posted by Bummer

Another one of those "NOT WORTH THE RISK" considering a new set of tires is chump change compared to the cost of even the most basic accident due to tire failure.

Absolutely, Bummer. I can't begin to count the number of times I've had to steer clear of what could have been accidents because of shredded tire remains on the streets or freeways. Hit one of those, and it can knock the remains into another lane & cause some significant damage to other vehicles. Even just running over it can wreck havoc with the alignment on an average car. In most cases, simple maintenance could have prevented these tires from falling apart.

[Potential_Landlord]

Good thing you guys reminded me to buy new tires for our car. Thanks for this thread, appointment made!

[Arktikos]

Originally Posted by Bummer

As a general rule . . .

Most "Tire and Safety Experts" recommend tires should be changed after six years regardless of the mileage or appearance for SAFETY. Read the Manufacture Date required on all tires.

Another one of those "NOT WORTH THE RISK" considering a new set of tires is chump change compared to the cost of even the most basic accident due to tire failure.

Yeah, good idea.

I bought some used tires for $100 8 years ago for a 4Runner in Hawaii that lives in a carport and sees little action, no doubt less than 10K miles over those 8 years. The tires have shown very little to no dry rot. However, I finally got around to reading their date of manufacture this past fall and they were 28 years old!
So, they were 20 years old when I bought them, no wonder the good price. I decided to get new tires, just for the heck of it.

I don't subscribe to the six years and change regardless, though maybe it's advisable in Phoenix.

[locolife]

Originally Posted by kytoaz

Coming from the midwest it was and still is shocking to me how hard this climate is on not only tires, but just about all rubber and plastic in general. I build and drive hot rods and at the first sign of a miss or a rough idle the first thing I check are the vacuum lines as they generally only last a couple years in this climate. Back east this wasn't even a consideration. Same with tires, if they had tread you were good. He're I've learned to inspect the sidewalls for cracking as that is generally where they will fail. So yes, the climate is harder on tires, but as stated above, if your vehicle is garaged and you drive it often it will make a huge difference.

So my advice would be to go with a shorter mileage tire if you are not going to be driving much.

Are vacuum lines unique to hot rods or are they on all cars? My car is about 15 years old now, all here in PHX, and I never recall changing this.

[locolife]

Originally Posted by Valley Native

Absolutely, Bummer. I can't begin to count the number of times I've had to steer clear of what could have been accidents because of shredded tire remains on the streets or freeways. Hit one of those, and it can knock the remains into another lane & cause some significant damage to other vehicles. Even just running over it can wreck havoc with the alignment on an average car. In most cases, simple maintenance could have prevented these tires from falling apart.

I've heard these referred to as gators before because of the way they pop up when you hit them on the road. They can do immense damage to your car, I hit one about 3 hours outside of Reno in the middle of the night. A trucker heading in the opposite direction flashed his lights at me a few seconds before but I had no idea what he meant but it at least caused me to slowdown. I still hit the tire treads which ripped the entire front bumper off the car we were driving, luckily the damage was cosmetic and we were able to keep driving but it was thousands in repairs to the vehicle.



I've never hit one around Phoenix but I do see them all the time.