30% tread left and cupped. New tires soon?

[longhaul747]

I was inspecting my Toyo Open Country AT tires yesterday and noticed only about 30% of the original tread is remaining. They also appear to be cupped because the tread blocks are uneven in height witch I believe causes the slight binding feeling and resistance while turning (probably not good for steering components). Last but not least they are a bit on the old side and are at the 5 year mark. I have small surface cracks in between the tread blocks.

As for performance they still hold up pretty well in the rain. However I am concerned about limited traction in snow now. New tires would likely be a lot better.

When I had my new shocks replaced I had the shop look at my tires. They said they were worn but still good. They did not seem all that concerned about the cupping. The cupping should not get any worse and as long as it still handles well I could wait. This is a shop that traditionally likes to sell stuff.

What is the general opinion when tires get this worn?

Here in the Pacific North "Wet" its generally not a good idea to take your tires down to the wear bars because wet road handling is greatly compromised before this point. So far I have no issues. 30% tread remaining is still a fair amount for an AT tire (about a 1/4" remaining). If we don't get any snow this year I would like to think I am good until the end of next summer. My main concern is snow handling at the moment and the cupping issue.

Budget wise I can get them now but like everything else if I could put it off a bit longer the better. The good news is I don't drive my 4Runner every day so if I buy now I will not have to worry about it for a long time. Probably will have to replace the next set do to aging and not being worn out.

Kind of funny I always start thinking this way when my tires are aged but not worn out just yet. Should I just side with safety and replace them or be cheap and push them a bit further? In the past I usually pushed them a bit but then replaced them well before they are officially worn out. Of coarse this was a time period when tires were cheaper and money was a bit easier to come by.

I guess I am really just looking for a general opinion here. Do most just replace them when they get this far down or do you push it a bit further?

As for brands I am considering the Toyo Open Country AT again. Its a nice looking tire and seems to be quiet. They seem to do well in the rain and last a long time. They might be a bit on the soft side for hard core off roading but I don't do that.

 

[tomhaney1]

What truck are you driving? I would be more concerned as to WHY the cupping is occurring. Did you just not rotate appropriately? I'm from WA state and personally never have used snow tires, or anything but all-seasons/all-terrains. Just don't drive crazy and rotate the best tires to the rear.

 

[longhaul747]

What truck are you driving? I would be more concerned as to WHY the cupping is occurring. Did you just not rotate appropriately? I'm from WA state and personally never have used snow tires, or anything but all-seasons/all-terrains. Just don't drive crazy and rotate the best tires to the rear.

I am driving a 98 4Runner SR5 4x4 with the optional 265 tires.

Cupping was most likely caused by worn out shocks and bad alignment. Possible they were under inflated as well since they were at 22psi when I bought it. Tire wear is very even so it looks like they were rotated often. I bought it used last year so its hard to tell exactly what the history is. According to the shop the alignment and new shocks should cure 90% of the cupping. However apparently Toyota's of this era are known for slight cupping so the mechanic says????

I live in Western WA just north of Seattle in Bothell. As you know snow is not that common and its possible to go a the whole winter without seeing a flake. Last year being the exception and we got snow every week. So every year can be different.

Rain however is another story. We get a lot of mist type rain and lately some major hardcore downpours. Even with the tires being out of prime its very stable and controlled even when they do hydroplane a bit. So the water dispersion qualities of the tire are still pretty good.

I think what I am going to do is just kind of wait it out until they forecast snow and then maybe get them changed at that point. If we manage to go the whole winter without snow then I will get them replaced at the end of next summer. By then it will be time!!

 

[tomhaney1]

That sounds like a good plan. I agree with the suspension issues causing the tire problem- people are too lazy and ignorant to fix their vehicle properly. My brother lives in Bellingham and has a 3rd gen with BFG all-terrains on it and he says it's doing fine with about 30-40 percent read left...

 

[CJ3Flyr]

If it ain't broke don't fix it... I too have had good experiences with the Toyo A/T.

It sounds like you "like" new tires, as do I.


This next statement is a bit political but here goes: If you can do the tires now I'd do it. IMHO we're going to have some bigtime inflation coming soon (springtime). If you've got the cash all goods are 'on-sale' right now and with as few miles as you drive it's not like you're buying tires every 24months. Why not enjoy the new tires, the added safety and when hard goods shoot up next spring/summer you already have good tires with only a few thousand miles on them. Just a thought...
:cheers:

 

[longhaul747]

If it ain't broke don't fix it... I too have had good experiences with the Toyo A/T.

It sounds like you "like" new tires, as do I.


This next statement is a bit political but here goes: If you can do the tires now I'd do it. IMHO we're going to have some bigtime inflation coming soon (springtime). If you've got the cash all goods are 'on-sale' right now and with as few miles as you drive it's not like you're buying tires every 24months. Why not enjoy the new tires, the added safety and when hard goods shoot up next spring/summer you already have good tires with only a few thousand miles on them. Just a thought...
:cheers:

Yeah as an automotive enthusiast I tend to like to keep things on the newer side. For example the battery in my 4Runner is an Autolite made by exide and its now at the 3 year mark. Even though it still works perfectly (amazing for an exide battery to be honest) I plan to change it out before it screws me over.

What is interesting is I have been an automotive enthusiast for so long the last time I bought tires was 1995. Since then I tend to buy a new car drive it for 3 or 4 years and when the tires were near gone I just get a new car. Well I did a 180 a few years ago. I have not been satisfied with many of the newer designs and the cost of a good new car now days and they just don't make them like they used to. Also the economy had a lot to do with it. Work is somewhat stable but no more COLA's and big bonuses.

I think when it comes to tires its better to keep them a bit fresher. Also the last 30% tends to go a lot quicker then the first 30% for some reason. I would not be surprised if these tires are toast in another 5K miles. I also agree that now might be a better time. I read a story this past week about how Good Year is raising tire prices by 5%. Its a sure thing others will follow. Tires are one of those things I see getting more expensive. Tires are so well engineered now and built to last is one of the reasons they will get more expensive. Its not like we have to buy new tires every 20K miles like in the old days. Just a short 15 or 20 years ago tires were mostly garbage at the 20K mark even if they had plenty of tread left. The masses are likely not buying tires like they used to so in order to keep margins up tire shops have to raise prices.

Since they still hold up well in the rain I am going to wait until snow flakes show up in the forcast and get them changed out. If wet weather handling gets worse then I will change them at that point. By the end of next Summer they will be 6 years old and it will be time then.

I may stop by Les Schwab and get a price quote. They are the only Toyo dealer around here. Prices tend to be on the high side but they offer good service. If it comes in under $500 installed they may have a deal but if it is something crazy high it will have to wait.