When to change OEM tyres?

Guys,

When should we ideally change OEM tyres? I mean after how many kms of its run. I have done 20K on my Alto with OEM tyres. Also what will be typical life time of tyres?

Well, I have done almost 30k+ since I bought my car - still not changed the tyres, so even I'm not sure. However, 20,000km would be a good point I guess.

The time to change the tyre comes when you observe the following in the tread area (ie. portion of the tyre that comes in contact with the road).

• Shoulder has cut marks or looks almost bald
• Tread depth has reduced to such an extent that the tyre looks bald because tread patterns are worn out
• in some tyres you'd see a mark aka band exposed that is to be taken as an indication that the tyre is worn out.

There is no such thing 'tyres should be changed after X kms'. It depends on tyre quality and your driving style.

As an example, i changed the OEM tyres of my Hyundai Santro at approx 55,634 km. During review with the Service folks they highlighted that typically people change tyres ar 19,000 - 25,000 km.

Bottomline, observe the tyre and you'll know if its time for a change. Odometer reading or number of years is not the criteria.

Hope this helps.

No Rohit, there is no guess work here. Tyre life varies from vehicle to vehicle and that too is variable depending on the usage.

Suppose you drive the car on long stretches daily, the wear will be maximum. As the tyre is heated up the wear increases. On the other hand if you are using the vehicle in short runs the tyre life will be maximum.

There is another factor. The wheel alignment. If it is wrong you are doomed. A tyre will go in a few hundred kms. 

Other details are clearly mentioned by Saifi. +1 to Saifi.

P.S My Indigo CS has covered 42k with the original tyres and I hope to run another 5k with this tyres before replacing. I have two new tyres on hand just in case.

Thanks guys. Will check out my tyres and take a decision if needed.

The minimum tread depth recommended is 2/32" or 1/16" (inch). Any less than this, and there is a danger of hydroplaning during rainy seasons and wet roads. Assessing this depth is simple: take a Rs.1/- coin and put it heads down in the tread groove. If the top of the figure "1" touches the edge of the groove, its time to change.

Regular tyre pressure checks help lengthening the life of a tyre, by ensuring that the wear is even and low. A poorly inflated tyre wears rapidly, unevenly.

Slight higher tyre pressure results in quite significant tyre life increase. My Michelin XM1 tyres (well known for their soft tread, which wore out for most people in <30k) have already done 40k km, and I am confident they would last 10k more. That's 60% tread life increase! (typically 30% tread life increase is easily achieved with proper inflation checks).

Good tyres with good care should last about 40k km. Any less and either they were not used well, or not made well. Of course, usual disclaimers of road/car/driver dependencies apply.

I didn go through this thread in detail so not sure if this point was put up. IIRC, most tyres have thread wear indicators. Once this mark starts coming in contact with the road, its recommended to change the tyre.

Hi, here are few tyre maintainance tips from Michelin -

http://www.michelin.in/Home/Interactive-Centre/Tyre-Training-Centre/Tyre-safety-saving-tips