When to replace tires?

Replace tires when any of the following occurs:

(1) thread depth is <= 3.2 mm
(2) thread-wear indicators appear
(3) tire manufacturing date is 5-6 years ago (check the date code on tire side wall)
(4) sidewall damages (cuts, tears, bulges or bubbles, scrapes, holes)
(5) tire separation

Thread-Wear Indicator

Most tires have tread-wear indicators built into them. These bars of hard rubber are normally invisible but appear across treads that have been worn down. If these indicators appear in two or three different places, less than 120 degrees apart on the circumference of the tire, replace the tire.





How to check tire manufacturing date?

The DOT date code indicates the tire manufacturing date. This is marked on tire sidewall. If you can't find it on the front, it might be marked on the other side. In this example, date code is "0511" which means 5th week of 2011.