Our Technical Department is inundated with feedback from customers, praising our tyres for their long life - especially our Open Country range of off-road tyres, which boast market-leading longevity that has seen them rise to one of the preferred tyres for 4x4 and off-road enthusiasts.
Regardless of whether you’re seeking adventure on the sealed road or off the beaten track, our Tech’ Expert Steve Burke reminds us that the basic principles of maximising tyre life are common to all types of tyres.
“Without getting in to the technical aspects of ensuring your vehicle is set up correctly with a good wheel alignment, and that you’re monitoring your tyre pressures, whenever we’re asked how long tyres will last we always say the same thing - it all depends on how you treat them,” explains Steve.
It’s pertinent to remember that tyres wear every single time we drive our vehicles - it doesn’t have to be tyre-squealing high speed cornering or the brake pedal pulsing of an ABS-assisted stop that diminishes our tyre’s serviceable life (though both of these will rapidly decrease tyre life by accelerating wear), any time a tyre is asked to transmit power to the ground (accelerate), maintain grip under braking, change direction or carry a heavier-than-usual load (like a car load of people or towing a trailer), all of these scenarios cause a parasitic loss of tyre life and bring them closer to the end of their safe and legal usable term.
“We need to think about when the tyre is working, not necessarily just wearing. Sometimes we field calls from people wondering why their tyres have worn out, when all they do is drive around their local area. This stop/start style driving actually wears the tyre faster than someone who’s doing plenty of travel on the highway, where there’s no sudden braking or change of direction. The latter is easier on the tyre, it’s not working as hard, so you’d expect to get greater tyre life from highway driving,” clarifies Steve.
Another tyre life killer that doesn’t get the air time it deserves is the weight of the vehicle, which is highlighted by the latest generation of high performance SUVs. The likes of the Jeep SRT8, Audi’s S Range or the Mercedes-AMG SUVs often come fitted with UHP (ultra high performance) tyres - these favour outright performance and exceptional grip in all situations over tyre life. ‘The tyres on these vehicles in particular wear out exceptionally fast because of the weight of these vehicles, and what’s being demanded of the tyre as it drives around in a suburban setting, also keeping in mind their main design parameter – high grip levels” adds Steve.
Whether you’re looking to maximise tyre life on your daily driver or your 4x4 weekend explorer, it’s important to manage your tyre pressure by frequently monitoring them, and keeping a vigilant tyre maintenance routine which should see you commit to wheel and tyre rotation and alignment at regular intervals. You can ask your Toyo Tyres Dealer about a tyre maintenance schedule at the time of fitment, which will see your tyre’s performing at their best, and delivering you outstanding mileage.
The trick to maximising tyre life in off-road applications is slightly different, however the same attention needs to be paid to driving style and vehicle set up. “Most tyre manufacturers will focus on providing long-life for consumers in this segment, however depending on the pattern, on-road driving can accelerate wear in mud terrains for example. Anything that causes tread chipping or cutting from enthusiastic off-road driving will obviously accelerate tyre wear and life, but the biggest focus for the off-road community is tyre pressures - particularly, too much heat drastically shortening tyre life from running pressures that are too low for the load,” Steve continues.
“By and large the 4x4 community are really astute when it comes to vehicle set up and tyre maintenance because they understand the role of the tyre better than the average consumer, but it’s always worth reminding people that lifting their vehicles can affect suspension geometry which in turn affects camber and can increase tyre wear, and that vehicle weight is just as important to consider.
“Let’s use two identical 79 Series Landcruiser as a case study. Vehicle one is modified with bull bars, a lift, and a big heavy canopy on the rear. Vehicle two is the exact same model but it’s stock. Vehicle two will always get better life out of their tyres simply due to the fact that the vehicle is lighter.”
Weight is especially important for those in motorhomes or with slide-on campers, which run close to the tyre’s maximum load limit for the entire life of the tyre - we’ve spoken at length about Caravan and Camper Trailer tyre safety tips in a previous blog.
But in our quest for everlasting tyre life, can we reach a point of diminishing returns? “The short answer is yes, in some instances a tyre’s chronological age can become a factor before it’s worn out,” says Steve.
There are a handful of scenarios where a tyre’s manufacturing date might cause it to need retirement before it reaches the wear indicators - one of them is when the tyre becomes visibly aged (think about a sun-beaten spare tyre on the rear door of a 4x4) or in a commuter scenario where an elderly owner exclusively drives very sedately within a tiny radius of their home. Some of the other scenarios though, might not be as apparent.
“We really need to think about two things here, and that’s the chronological age of the tyre measured against it’s effective age. The chronological age is the manufacturing date of the tyre and the effective age is a measure of the kind of life it’s had - has it been driven hard? If so, the effective age would be quite high, but if it’s had an easy life this effective age would be quite low,” adds Steve.
The examples Steve gives are caravan tyres, those fitted to your average box trailer or more concerningly for the average commuter, your car’s spare tyre. They might sit stagnant for months at a time and might look brand new for years. For the trailers, they’re not putting drive to the ground either, so have an easy life compared to some tyres, however after a while their age makes them prone to failure.
“Most major tyre manufacturers adopted the Japan Automobile Tyre Manufacturers Association (JATMA) recommendation that after five years of active service a tyre should be assessed by a professional, and that after ten years from the date of manufacture it should be retired from service, regardless of the condition,” explains Steve.
“Ultimately, we need to think of tyres as a serviceable item like brake pads or wiper blades. We can extend the life of our tyres with good maintenance and adjusting our driving style, however when you use the vehicle, you’re using up some of your tyre’s life,” says Steve in closing.
