Have stock set of Michelins on Cayenne, have about 20k miles on them. How to tell if they need replacement? They look a little worn down, but you can still see original pattern and all.

Jsut wondering, how long do people wait to replace tires?

 

how did you ever get 20k miles on a set??? I averaged 5000 on Demetrius and 12000 on Latitudes. My rule when to change is when you are accelerating hard into a turn in the rain and you fish tail slightly it's time.

 

hahah nice gauge 2muchtime. that would mean i would replace when new! hahahah

elcayano: there are 'wear bars' formed into the tire tread channels. they are perpendicular to the main front to back grooves. they are spaced all around the circumference of teh tire, and are continuous from corner **** to corner ****. when the tread is near the wear bar, that's the time to consider replacing. it is safe to run until the tread is flush with the wear bar, but not much more, in general. there are other factors like the compound becoming different after the initial wear. most tires become harder and don't offer the same traction as the tread wears. in fact, you'll often hear of ppl taking their cars to the track or autocross when the tires are down to the wear bar just so that they can do a little sliding or roughhousing to send the tires home to a well earned rest in tire heaven.

 

i should add, as 2muchtime suggested, some folks are sensitive to the performance of the tire and get a fresh set every year, whether the tires are worn or not. call it piece of mind, or wanting top performance. others will milk the tires til they start showing the cord, eeking every last ounce of wear. for most of us, getting near the the wear bar is a good safe bet. some people simply hate the tires that are on their car, either they're too noisy on the freeway, too soft in the sidewall, too stiff, pull to one side despite an alignment, or tramline, or simply don't perform to their liking. like my falken ziex. they don't instill a lot of confidence in traction (corner grip, braking), so i'd consider replacing them with something more performance oriented. it could just be the mass of the car, so i may just hold out.

 

Jesus,,, thought 20k miles on set of tires is avg, never heard of replacing tires on every 5k or 12k miles on SUV.

In general, I change 'em in every 4-5 yrs or 20k miles, but usually change 'em due to the age than the mileage, since I only drive Cayenne like 3k miles per year and my other car BMW like 4-5k miles per year.

 

It is my DD and I drive it very hard, it definitely has proven itself as a solid SUV.

 

All.

thanks for the insight. Wear bars are almost flush with the thread. Going to wait a couple of months until rainy season comes in for new set.

 

what tire are you going with? the falken ziex on my car cost $155/ea at discount tire and seem to be a decent long wearing tire. though like i said, they don't instill a lot of performance driving confidence. for easy going driving, they are great. quiet, smooth, long tread life rating, and cheap! oh and they look great too, nice tread pattern, aggressive meaty treads. havent had a chance to drive in snow or icy conditions, but the wet traction is decent for what it is (450 compound).

 

Looking at the toyo Proxes II, they're decently priced in Panama ($180/tire).

Here in the tropics we get torrential downpours, need a tire that works well in rain, floods, etc. Also the M+S rating helps as I've found myself stuck a couple of times in dirt/muddy roads (before activating diff locs) with the michelins.

 

that's a decent price for toyo proxes. are they the st II?

wow, torrential downpours and flooding. sounds crazy. i live in seattle where we get our share of rain, but it's so hilly here that the water runs off pretty good. where we get standing water is on the freeways where our friends, the studded snow tire users, my heroes, have worn grooves into the roads, creating nice troughs that collect water. i've noticed more hydroplaning in the cayenne. not sure if this is due to the wide 275 tire, or if it's the tread pattern on the falken ziex? not sure why the need to run studded snow tires when it's 50 degrees out? and forecast to be the mildest winter in decades...

those toyo's look great. i may look into them when i replace.

st II


The Proxes ST II is Toyo+s newest high-performance radial created for today+s SUV+s, sport trucks and select crossovers and the trendsetters who drive them. The fresh design and advanced tread elements of the Toyo Proxes ST II deliver the perfect balance of style and performance with superb handling, confident all-season performance, unparalleled noise reduction, and consistent wear. The Proxes ST II is available in V, W, and Y speed ratings and includes OE and plus fitments from 16-26 inches.

 

I have gotten great use out of a set of Toyo proxes on my older suv (23k miles). On my current Turbo S, with 22's and after 4k miles, I can not see any wear whatsoever. +1 on the toyos, great value

 

I'm new to the forum and a 1 year owner of a 2006 V6. I recently purchased a set of Pirelli Scorpions because it's the original equipment. Did I make a mistake?