Topic: When to get new Tires

[Bullet Blue]

A friend of mine is in a bit of a dilemma. The summer tires on his Toyota Corolla are somewhat worn. I had a look and two of them seemed to be 1/2 worn out. The other two were a bit worn, but not as badly. He wanted to know when he should get new ones. He doesn't know if he should get them now, or just try to make due with the ones he has on until winter when he'll change to brand new winter tires. With the weather being some of the strangest in Canada down here (NS) sometimes we think that winter may come sooner rather than later and he doesn't wanna get stuck buying new summers when he'll just have to change them back in a couple of months.

He could probably get away with the tires he has on, but in my opinion, I would just buy new ones and if winter comes early, then fine, it just means you've got new ones for next summer. But he isn't convinced. Any comments/Advice?

[mdxtasy]

Why wait until the winter rush where you'll be stuck with the tires you have now....for atleast a week before they can fit you in.  If  you going to do it, do it.

[Drivesideways]

Two of them are half worn out?  Are those the fronts?  The other two are less worn?  How long has he had them?  It almost sounds like he could rotate them and get another summer out of them.  Otherwise, I'm with MDX, if you're gonna replace them anyway, why wait?  I bought my Falkens last year in late summer and ran them a couple of months before putting the winters on.

[morty]

I agree...sounds like the tires need to be rotated. This is a typical wear pattern of a front wheel drive vehicle. Rotation is part of proper maintenance and can significantly increase the life of a set of tires. Good rule is rotate every time you do an oil change.

[03_ap1]

and if he is planning on getting winter tires, spring for some winter steel rims as well - that way he doesn't have to worry about getting "fit in" during the winter rush - 30 mins in his own garage and he's good to go.