Time for New Tires?

When I bought my truck a few years ago the previous owner had some sort of big rims with crappy tires so I bought these off a guy who just got a 3rd gen Tacoma. Now they are starting to crack, idk if this is normal for Hankook Dynapros, but they are a 2018 tire with a lot of tread life left. I’m a college student with a tight budget but at the end of the day I’d rather not loose a tire driving from Texas to Indiana in august. This is happening on all four tires btw.

 

The cracks look superficial to me but I don't know that I would take a long trip like that with those tires. I would at least get two un-cracking tires for the front and carry an extra spare in the bed for the trip. And the front tires don't have to be brand new. To save money, get two decent used tires from a used tire vendor. You can pick up an oem wheel/tire on OfferUp or similar for about $50.

Read up on how to repair and when to replace.
https://www.vehiclescene.com/how-to-fix-cracked-tires/

 

I would not trust those on a trip, even a short trip. A bit of advice though, fwiw. If you replace only two tires for now, put the good tires on the rear and the crappy tires on the front. Here's why: If you have a rear tire fail, you have virtually no control over the potentially violent and unpredictable side-to-side motions. But if a front tire fails, you have a much better chance of controlling the vehicle with the steering wheel.

 

I’d say all four tires are pretty equally cracked, the rear may be just slightly less cracked but still fairly cracked nonetheless. So you guys are saying I could just buy two new tires and throw them on the rear or front. Also is this unusual to have this kind of cracking at this stage in the tires life?

 

You will need new tires soon. Tire life is 5 - 6 years on average so you are due to replace them. I got 90k on my last set of Michelins that I replaced with 8/32nds left on them for this same reason.

 

That’s what I thought. Discount Tire employee told me I don’t need to replace tires till there are wires showing or the tread is low which I definitely don’t agree with.

 

Discount article:
How Long Do Tires Last? | Tire Lifespan | How Long Should Tires Last? | Discount Tire
I can't read the DOT # so look at the last 4 digits for week and year manufactured that will tell you the real tire age.

Here's a Tire Outlet article on cracking:
Tips, Guides & Resources For Keeping Your Car Up & Running In Jacksonville FL | Tire Outlet

These are LT D range 8 ply max of 65 psi and I bet running way less pressure so you don't get beat up in the Tacoma that would contribute to sidewall cracking.

 

They are from 2018 so coming up on 5 years.

 

https://www.discounttire.com/learn/reading-tire-sidewall Scroll down for an explanation of the date coding on tires. I just replaced a set of four Michelins since one of the oldest pair separated the sidewall from the bead, fortunately about 2 in the morning so I limped home at 15 mph (with the speed limit of 35). I love my Costco Tire guys at the busiest Costco Tire in the inland NW, as the Defender in the 215-55R16 for Velox alloy wheels on a 2007 Malibu LS could not be found so he gave the item number, and I was able to order a set during the $150 off sale through Seattle, shipped from South Carolina. The Tacoma's tires are more common, and I drive about 8k miles annually so tires are replaced with good tread remaining. Years ago, I tried driving a friend's pickup to spell him between Billings and Missoula (in January), and he admitted that it wasn't that comfortable driving on "bologna skins." Definitely not with the gate swung to close Homestake Pass after we went through... Dad and I've been 'Michelin men' mostly since "there's a lot riding on your tires." I've been wearing the belt buckle that the Missoula dealer gave him in the late 1970 or early 1980s, so he'll be riding with me for the rest of the time in his last truck... probably with his grands and great grands, too as they could wind up driving his ACLB decades later.
BTW, I replaced the original Dunlop Grand Trek AT tires when I bought the 2009 Tacoma from his estate in 2021 with a set of the appropriate Michelin Defender M+S at 19.5k miles. A friend stopped by the airport, and remarked, "Your new tires look good." "Those are the old tires. The new ones are being installed in a couple hours."

 

Here is a video of how tires are made.



You can see in the video that the exterior rubber on a tire is separately applied from the inner carcass layer that holds air.

On top of that, the exterior rubber is quite thick.

Exterior cracking is usually going to be due to ozone exposure (sunlight, heat). However I have never believed this could penetrate into the inner carcass. The outside just takes the beating.

Come to your own conclusions. Most people freak out when their tires don't look brand new and look for any reason to drop $ on new rubber. Pfft.

 

You can get a more accurate reading of the tire's age by checking the date code on the sidewall, as opposed to the in-service date of the truck.

***OOPS. Charlie Bravo beat me by 3 minutes....LOL***

 

Check with the Toyota dealer for tires. Coeur d'Alene's Parker Toyota service and parts sells and installs tires with a buy three, get the fourth free deal.

 

If the tires are holding air and not needing a top up every week, then they're serviceable.

Watch for large cracks near the base of the tread at the "sidebiter" lugs on the sidewall. If you see those replace the tire.