I wouldn't buy part worns mainly for the reasons stated above. You don't know how they've been treated, although, with a good inspection you should be able to spot overheating, cracking etc.

Even then, I don't believe it is worth it. Tyres are the things that keep you on the road, they effect all the dynamics of the car; acceleration, cornering braking etc.

I, personally, would not skimp on any safety aspect of the car... would you fit part worn brake pads, part worn brake discs etc.?

 

Interesting read.
http://www.tyresafe.org/data/files/Auto%20...s_18%20July.pdf

 

I value my life my than saving a couple of hundred quid. You can scrimp on a lot of things but tyres no imo.

 

Last 4 digits of the DOT code are the week and year of manufacture. You shouldnt really be fitting anything near 5 years old and I would reject anything over 2 years usually (although if you have something exotic then it can be difficult to get 'in date' tyres sometimes).

 

I recall reading somwhere that even if you don't do the mileage - your tyres should be replaced at 5 years old. But good point - even when buying new - you should check the tyres are from the same time period.

 

Thats what the manufacturers usually recommend, bit like the 3mm depth. Its probably a good idea as you start to get shoulder and particularly groove cracking after that period of time. Most tyres you get 'off the shelf' seem to be around 6 months old.

 

So, all of you who wouldnt buy part worns, do you change the tyres on every used car you buy regardless of age/condition/tread?

Simple question, yes or no.

 

I wouldn't for the simple reason explained above that if the tyres have been on the car then the wear of said tyres will be specific to that car.

A part worn will have been fitted to a different car, possibly even a different type of car. It seems that when purchasing apart worn, there is no way of knowing holw old the tyre is and so on.

With a used car, one can check the state of the tyres before purchasing, and take appropriate action if necessary.

Having said that, I've only owned 3 cars, the CTR was new, and the S2000 had new tyres anyway, so it wasn't an issue.

 

but further to that, if the tyres were mismatched in either brand or the amount of wear, i would change them.

 

Personally I wouldnt change them if I bought a used car, unless they were mismatched in terms of brand/spec or had damage of some kind or odd wear patterns etc (on S2000). If it was a small car (like my old VW Polo) then im not bothered what brand/spec they are as long as they arent damaged.

I wouldnt have a problem with part worns as you can check the age (DOT code) and condition more easily than on a used car. But I suspect that I would be unlikely to find MZ spec part worns in good enough condition (and with cheap enough fitting) to make it worthwhile.