Hello Lou,
When my wife and I purchased our new 2016 Subaru Outback new, we had the dealer supply us with Blizzak tires on steel rims. I thought they were great tires and they provided confidence on the road in Edmonton and now Lethbridge. We do drive to Vancouver a couple of times each year in early and late winter. Snow and high mountain passes are part of the drive.
The tires still look great, the tread depth is in the green on my small gauge and I rotate them front to back each year (directional) when I swap them for the summer tires. The car has 84,000 kilometres on it now with maybe about 35,000 on the winter Blizzaks. However, as good as the tires look, I feel they are going somewhat “slick” or “greasy” on frozen slush and ice.
Are they aging out? Is the tire compound hardening and losing it’s grip? Or I am the one aging out?
If I go to the tire store, I expect they will shrug and sell me some new tires.
Thank you for your time and attention.
Don S.
It is mid-November as I write this and my auto shop business is consumed by our annual winter tire changeover rush, so your question is timely. The situation you find yourself in right now is happening to many others too, so here are my thoughts on the subject.
Automotive businesses such as shops and dealers across North America are free to offer whatever advise they see fit. However, in the case of any tire failure litigation matter, the business would have been expected to offer advice that adheres to their regional tire association guidelines. Most tire association guidelines state than any passenger car tire has a usable life of between six and 10 years from its manufacture date. They also state to take out of service any tire that is 10 or more years old.
Given that your tires came with your new car purchase in 2016, they are at least nine years old. The symptoms of aging tires are exactly what you are describing, worse grip than what you are expecting. While you may be only noticing it now in slush and ice conditions, it will only get worse as the tire ages further. Soon, you will feel that slippery feeling even in wet conditions. This will be especially noticeable when you are accelerating away from a stop light and the drive wheels break free causing the traction control to activate. Despite how good they look; I would be replacing them sooner rather than later.
While I am on the subject, I also need to discuss another adjacent issue. Multiple times per year customers come in with used tires that they are sure that they got a great deal on, only for me to look at the tire date and inform them that I won’t install their aged-out tires. If you must purchase used tires, please learn how to read the date codes. Every tire has a DOT number on the sidewall of the tire. The last four digits are the manufacture date of that tire and it’s easy to decipher. For example, 1816 represents a tire manufactured on the 18th week of 2016.
Lou Trottier is owner-operator of All About Imports in Mississauga. Have a question about maintenance and repair? E-mail globedrive@globeandmail.com, placing “Lou’s Garage” in the subject line.
Shopping for a new car? Check out the new Globe Drive Build and Price Tool to see the latest discounts, rebates and rates on new cars, trucks and SUVs. Click here to get your price.