Used tires - are they worth buying and what to look for

Changing tires is a natural part of car maintenance. No matter how much you want to change tires. If the car is rarely used, the tires still crack and it becomes dangerous to drive.


“Changing shoes” for new tires is expensive, especially for owners of older cars. One wheel of the popular size R16 costs from 4 to 17 thousand rubles, depending on the manufacturer. And if you need a rare or off-road model, they can ask for it twice or three times as much.

The lowest price is for "slippers" of Russian and Chinese production. There are drivers who do not trust them, preferring to buy used tires from world famous brands. Luckily, there are a lot of them for sale.


Does it make sense to take used tires, what problems await buyers. Or maybe for this money it is better to buy new “slippers” of domestic or Chinese production? We'll figure out.

Where does used rubber come from in Russia?

It is difficult for the average driver who operates an old car and does not change it for 5-10 years to understand where used tires come from. They are used to running tires to zero, and then changing them to new ones, throwing away the old ones that are already unusable.



The most natural and understandable process of the appearance of used rubber is the sale from the direct owner. Not all motorists, when selling a car, give away everything that has accumulated during operation or was provided by the manufacturer. Radio, sets of factory tools, a set of winter or summer tires, depending on the season. All this settles in garages, pantries and cottages.


If the radio or instruments can be attached to a new car, also carefully dismantled by the previous owner, then the tires often do not fit. So they sell them later, both independently and to resellers.

There are car owners who drive expensive cars. They care about safety and don't drive until the tires are "bald". When buying new tires, the old ones are left at the service station, or they try to sell them.

With resellers, everything is already clear - they specifically monitor sites and buy used tires cheaper, then resell them. Often these people disguise themselves as car owners - after all, such businessmen are not liked in Russia. They are ready to tell any stories in order to sell their goods.

There are quite large companies dealing with used tires from Europe. At least that's what they say in the ads. Say, "slippers" without a run in Russia, as if the roads there are many times better than domestic ones.


You can write a separate article about how used rubber is now being imported into our country under the current economic sanctions. The schemes are rather murky, but they work, since used tires are not getting smaller on sale.

Pricing

For used tires from branded manufacturers in Russia, they ask for 33% of the cost of a new one. It turns out that for a set of four tires you will have to pay a little more than for a "wheel" without a run. The percentage of wear on average will be 40-50% of the original state.

It seems like a direct benefit, but how and where was this rubber exploited? Tires with a tread depth of less than 4 mm are not transported from Europe to Russia - it makes no sense because of customs clearance.


If you come across inexpensive rubber with a residue of 2,5-3 mm, and the seller assures that it came from Europe, this is a lie. Such tires were bought in Russia for a penny at the service station.

Why Europe is getting rid of used tires

Used tire dealers from Europe tell their story. Say, in the EU countries there are strict requirements, you have to change “slippers” every season.

In fact, no one in Europe forces car owners to splurge on new tires once a year. Here, as a rule, the same minimum 1,6 mm of tread residue is prescribed and there are no requirements regarding the age of the rubber.


It's a matter of personal safety - it's scary to drive on high-speed European autobahns on worn tires. If a tire bursts at 200 km / h, it's a disaster. Plus, European car owners can change the shoes of iron horses more often - their salaries allow them to do this.

By the way, in a number of EU countries it is not forbidden to put tires with different patterns on the same axle.

Tips for choosing

The first thing you need to pay attention to when buying used tires is age. Most manufacturers indicate that the life of their tires is a maximum of 10 years. This means that even the new “slippers” that have lain in the warehouse for this time are better to be disposed of.

The material loses its properties, the tire may burst at speed. So we look at the stamp with the production date. Sometimes, by the way, single new tires released more than 10 years ago flash on sale. This is a spare that has not been used.

The second caveat is that it is advisable to buy used tires as a set. You can take two identical "wheels" per axle, but do not pick up "shoes" with different patterns that fit the size.


A manufacturer for used rubber, if it is 3-5 years old with wear from 50%, this is already a secondary matter. The main thing is the residual tread depth and condition.

It is not recommended to buy used tires without a personal inspection - these are not new tires. The seller is unlikely to indicate the nuances - the main thing for him is to sell the goods.

When choosing used “shoes” for a car, you need to pay attention to the absence of:

✅ Cuts
✅ Cracks, including micro
✅ Nadryvov
✅ Delamination
✅ Protruding cord
✅ Bloating - they are also “hernias” and “buns”

By the way, experienced tire fitters are advised to take rubber that is well preserved, and not from the most eminent manufacturer. And here the question already arises - maybe it was better to buy new “wheels” from a domestic or Chinese company?

A few words about welded rubber

I would like to touch on such a topic as updated tires. This process is called "welding".


In Russia, this does not occur for cars - only for trucks. But in Poland and Lithuania there are factories specializing in it.

There are some nuances here:

✅ Do not retread tires that are more than 5 years old
✅ Sidewalls must be intact
✅ It makes sense to weld only rare tire sizes

You can read more about rubber restoration in this article.

About Russian and Chinese tires

Despite complaints about the rubber of a domestic manufacturer, it is chosen by almost 50% of drivers. Everything is simple here - it is budget, new and with a guarantee. As for the quality, it is enough for everyday use.

Of course, it’s not worth buying budget “slippers” for premium cars, especially sports cars, but how many of these cars are there in percentage terms?


As for rubber manufacturers from the Middle Kingdom, they are still treated with caution. But every year the percentage of trust and sales is growing. Owners of Chinese cars are more likely than others to be loyal to such tires.

As practice and customer reviews show, the “wheels” from the Middle Kingdom take care of several seasons without any problems. If the car is rarely used, then Chinese rubber is enough for 5 years, even if the “summer” is not changed for “winter”, which is not recommended.

Buying used tires is a lottery. It doesn’t matter how famous the manufacturer will be - no one will give a guarantee for it, but how they were operated is unknown. It is better to overcome prejudices and buy “slippers” of domestic or Chinese production, but new ones.