How Long Do Tires Last? Consumer Reports' Treadwear Testing Will Tell You.
More than 256,000 vehicle miles were logged last year to generate our exclusive treadwear ratings
Consumer Reports’ treadwear testing has shown that family-car tires can readily last 70,000 miles or more, based on a recent evaluation of eight all-season and 18 performance all-season models. Many all-season light truck and SUV tires can last as long or longer, too. Ultra-high-performance tires generally wear quicker. In fact, some tested UHP tires tested in western Texas showed wear that indicates they will last to just 25,000 to 30,000 miles. To make matters worse, most summer tires don’t even carry warranties.
These findings underscore the value of looking at comparative tread life based on testing.
Your Mileage Will Vary
From this extensive test program, we found that high-scoring all-season tires last about 55,000 to 85,000 miles; performance all-season tires, between 50,000 and 85,000 miles. Two top-rated tires from Michelin (the Defender T+H all-season tire and CrossClimate2 all-weather tire in the performance all-season category) projected out to 85,000 miles of tread life in CR’s test.
Rotation is very important for optimum wear, but it might not be practical for all cars. If you are using directional tires, they can be rotated only from the front to rear axles, not side to side unless they are remounted on the wheels. Further, if you use staggered tires with different front and rear tire sizes, as found on some sports cars, they cannot be rotated from front to rear axles. Consequently, tire manufacturers typically reduce the treadwear warranty by 50 percent for these types of fitments.
Wheel alignment and monthly pressure checks will go a long way toward getting the most out of your tires.
Use CR’s tire ratings to find a tire that provides the best balance of grip, handling, and wear to suit your needs. And be sure to check our exclusive tread life ratings in the main, interactive tire ratings chart and on the tire model pages.
