Retread Tires

[Guest Jeremey]

No personal experience, but I do have a friend that had a retread come apart and destroy the quarter panel. This may have been due to tire overheating from low tire pressure (he does A/C installs on new houses and gets screws in his tires all the time). Just another thing to think about, money saved versus money spent for possible body damage if the tire comes apart.

[Guest db99wj]

http://www.retread.org/PDF/RonR_Wagner.pdf

Interesting stuff that debunks most of the "myths" of retreads.

A study of tire debris picked up on the road, it shows that failures that you see on the road that are retreads are a very small percentage, most are new and the biggest cause is low air pressure. Other things are different sizes, damaged, over loaded weight etc.

Look at the study above, there is some good info.

Disclaimer: I don't have retreads, I don't sell retreads, or new tires, or rubber, or steel belts, or work for any tire company or company related. I ran across these on a Jeep forum, and they caught my interest. I'm not sold on them, I just want to do a little research. I don't carry loads, I have a tire pressure monitoring system, so running low air pressure won't be a problem.

[ttocswob]

Road Alligators (sections of tread or complete recaps which litter the highways, particularly during summer's high temperatures)

I've noticed a rash of 'em this hot summer - most recently from a tour bus just east of Cookeville a couple of weeks ago. At least two other cars were sidelined.

You don't want to be following a vehicle with recaps - my wife spun out on I-40 a few years ago.

If you decide to save money buying recaps, please don't skimp on insurance.

[Guest db99wj]

Road Alligators (sections of tread or complete recaps which litter the highways, particularly during summer's high temperatures)

I've noticed a rash of 'em this hot summer - most recently from a tour bus just east of Cookeville a couple of weeks ago. At least two other cars were sidelined.

You don't want to be following a vehicle with recaps - my wife spun out on I-40 a few years ago.

If you decide to save money buying recaps, please don't skimp on insurance.

Do you know what the failure was? Do you know that the road alligator was from a recap or a new tire that was under-inflated?

This is the point I've been making, most people seem to have an opinion, without factual data backing it up. A lot of "Well I saw one on the side of the road, damn recaps." When in actuality, you don't know they are a recap.

From what I have been reading, many blowouts where the tread separates are typically from the tires on a trailer, that were under-inflated, or damaged in some other way. I worked for a trucking company for a couple of years and the tractor tires, were monitored closely, for wear, for inflation psi, etc. Trailers on the other hand, were not. Trailer might be sitting at a industrial building waiting to be loaded and they are not being checked.

I ran across this particular company on another forum. It caught my interest. Mainly because I have never seen or heard about them for non-commercial use. The arguments are the same there are as they are here. "I heard, I knew, I saw one laying on the side of the road", "Back in the 70's, one flew up and blew up a car load of boyscouts". If you take out the non-educated, opinion comments, there is not much that is negative about these tires, unless you under-inflate them which can cause tread separation in them, which is also a problem with new tires and manufacturers warn you against, and the wear factor. They, from people that have used them, seem to be getting about 25-30% less mileage out of them. The tread rubber, because of the nut and glass mix in the tire, causes them to be sipped and therefore "softer" and wear faster. Many of the off-road magazine reviews talk about this, and also mention because of this, they grip very very well.

With all this said, I probably won't go with a set of these, mainly because of the wear factor. I do mostly city driving (to work, to kids school, for work going out on inspections), and with stop-go, lots of turning on hot pavement, I would probably wear them out quicker than the statistic above, therefore, any cost savings would be negated due to replacing them even quicker. Besides, I really like the look, and am very impressed with the Goodyear Duratracs.

Oh, and I was a passenger in a car when it had a blowout, a real blowout, the front drivers-side tire, blew out, a non re-tread tire, that was probably under-inflated, came apart, chunks and strips flying everywhere, and yes, separation, so yes, even non-retreads separate and come apart.

[kb4ns]

Oh, and I was a passenger in a car when it had a blowout, a real blowout, the front drivers-side tire, blew out, a non re-tread tire, that was probably under-inflated, came apart, chunks and strips flying everywhere, and yes, separation, so yes, even non-retreads separate and come apart.

That's a very valid point. Proper tire care is critical regardless of the tire. Everything out there may be rumor. Perfect example is how everyone I know who doesn't like wearing a seatbelt says that their granddaddy's brother's sister-inlaw's aunt's third cousin twice-removed was in an accident and would have died if they had been wearing a seatbelt. To hell with the thousands of dead people a year that could have been saved by a seat belt - that one person could have died with one - supposedly. No piece of technology is perfect, but they save way more lives than they cost.

With that said, a retread tire that is manufactured correctly is absolutely safe when maintained correctly. After establishing that I could take proper care of a tire, my main concern would be the manufacturer. Are they reliable? Is the new tread applied / cured properly? When it comes to the big guys who retread tires for the commercial industry, the big names are still around because they are doing things right.

Would I go with retreads on a vehicle my family rides in? Maybe, but probably not. It'd depend on the manufacturer and their reliability. But when we're talking about tires that'll last me for years and there's only a couple hundred bucks difference (maybe no difference depending on the mileage I'll get out of them), I'm gonna opt for something new.

[MCSCOTT]

http://www.retread.org/PDF/RonR_Wagner.pdf

Interesting stuff that debunks most of the "myths" of retreads.

A study of tire debris picked up on the road, it shows that failures that you see on the road that are retreads are a very small percentage, most are new and the biggest cause is low air pressure. Other things are different sizes, damaged, over loaded weight etc.

Look at the study above, there is some good info.

Disclaimer: I don't have retreads, I don't sell retreads, or new tires, or rubber, or steel belts, or work for any tire company or company related. I ran across these on a Jeep forum, and they caught my interest. I'm not sold on them, I just want to do a little research. I don't carry loads, I have a tire pressure monitoring system, so running low air pressure won't be a problem.

This covers most of my opinion on them. High speeds, low tire pressure, or too much weight, all cause the tires to heat up which causes the seperation. I don't know you personally, but I wouldn't think you would ever put enough weight in your Jeep to where there would be any overload issues. I also wouldn't think you would ever be running fast enough to have issues. Your main concern should be with keeping an eye on tire pressure. Airing down for offroading would only be a problem in situations where you really had to beat on it to get over something. In those situations where you would be needing to heat your tires, you would just have to keep in mind that one might have a come apart, but the same could be said for non-retreads as well. Other than that, although I personally would be a little cautious about interstate speeds on really hot days, I wouldn't really worry about failures with them.

[ttocswob]

The particular recap that spun my wife & kids out was recovered, and yes, it bore the recapper's mark - so, maybe I'm a little sensitive to the issue.

But it's a free country, buy whatever tars you want to.

[Guest db99wj]

The particular recap that spun my wife & kids out was recovered, and yes, it bore the recapper's mark - so, maybe I'm a little sensitive to the issue.

But it's a free country, buy whatever tars you want to.

Was the separation deemed the fault of being a recap or was the problem due to neglect, low air-pressure, too much weight? I understand your position, but is it a problem of underinflation or it being a retread?

The reason I am still questioning, is that reports from multiple sources that I have read since I posted this, state that the today's retread's are as safe and durable as non retreads, due to the process being substantially similar to the new manufactures. They scan the core, like you would with a CT or MRI machine to test the core and make sure there are no problems, then do a process similar too what the manufacturers use. carinsurance.com, rethinkrecycling.com, retread.org, doityourself.com, wisegeek.com and others have really only good things to say about them being safe, reliable and just as good as new. Fleets use them, and yes some states will not allow them on the steering of commercial fleets, airline landing gear, including the Air Force, and buses.

I

The one thing, that they all seem to say, is improper air-pressure is a huge problem with ANY tire coming apart.

With my Jeep, air-pressure is monitored by an onboard system. If it gets below XXpsi, my light comes on. Even the spare has the sensor on the rim.

Edited August 2, 2010 by db99wj

[Capbyrd]

If you buy a Jeep or a four wheel drive and then put oversized tires on it, expect to have to pay for that. I bought a mustang and put 10 inch wide wheels on the back. 315's aren't cheap but I shelled out for them every three months or so (see pic for reason). I don't care if you use retreads or not but I think its funny that you are complaining about tire costs when you could just stick with a stock tire size and save money.

By the way, here is a cool comparison of how much extra tire I had back there. The short stack is my stock sized racing tires (r-comps) in a 245/45/17. The tall stack is the 10 inch wide wheels with 315/35/17's

Edited August 2, 2010 by Capbyrd

[MCSCOTT]

With my Jeep, air-pressure is monitored by an onboard system. If it gets below XXpsi, my light comes on. Even the spare has the sensor on the rim.

Since you have that system on your Jeep, I would say go ahead with them. Like I mentioned, you biggest concern will be with making sure you have proper air pressure, so the monitoring system will pretty much make sure you do your job on that. But just honestly, air pressure should be a concern with any tire whether it's new or a retread, because they will all break down if they're neglected.

[Guest db99wj]

If you buy a Jeep or a four wheel drive and then put oversized tires on it, expect to have to pay for that. I bought a mustang and put 10 inch wide wheels on the back. 315's aren't cheap but I shelled out for them every three months or so (see pic for reason). I don't care if you use retreads or not but I think its funny that you are complaining about tire costs when you could just stick with a stock tire size and save money.

By the way, here is a cool comparison of how much extra tire I had back there. The short stack is my stock sized racing tires (r-comps) in a 245/45/17. The tall stack is the 10 inch wide wheels with 315/35/17's

Wow, what an informative post. . Not complaining about price, pointed out the pricing of some, and the difference an inch makes.....and how crazy a price difference is between the 32" and a 33". And stock size, are just under $200 to just over $200.

Do you buy things that are on sale? Or do you buy items, that might be an alternative to the "name brand" stuff, because it is cheaper? If not, glad you are made of money. If I can find a great price on a competitive product and not pay for the "name brand", that's the route I'll take, if you take that as a complaint, than that's on you. Remember Crocs? When they came out, everyone was getting them, then it became cool to have them in some circles, I ran across some Airwalks that looked almost identical, I bought them, and after about 5 years of running around outside, at the lake, etc, they lost all the traction, I paid $15 for them. I replaced them with Crocs this time, due to not being able to find the knock offs anymore. I love those things, I hate wearing shoes but I can't walk on gravel, the yard etc with something on my feet, so these things work great. The point of this thread is to learn more about the in's and out's of retreads due to me running across a tire, that has essentially the same tread pattern, and are a fraction of the cost, but willing to take time and do research, ask opinions, on whether or not they are comparable in quality to the new tire. If the quality, the safety and the longevity is the same, why not? This might drive you crazy too and think I'm an idiot, but I like my Jeep to be washed and scratch free. Hate it being dirty.

[kb4ns]

Fleets use them, and yes some states will not allow them on the steering of commercial fleets

I'm not 100% sure, but I think it's DOT (Federal) that bans the use of them on steering axles.

If it gets below XXpsi, my light comes on.

I don't understand what effect pornographic air pressure has on tires. I do, however, believe they won't actually blow until they hit XXXpsi...

[Guest db99wj]

I'm not 100% sure, but I think it's DOT (Federal) that bans the use of them on steering axles.

I don't understand what effect pornographic air pressure has on tires. I do, however, believe they won't actually blow until they hit XXXpsi...

I dunno, that is on the commercial side, though I read it was state, might not.

I wish there was a smilie that spit drink all over monitor, I would then insert it here....

[kb4ns]

I wish there was a smilie that spit drink all over monitor, I would then insert it here....

Like this? --->

[Guest db99wj]

Like this? --->

Yep that's it. Tapatalk doesn't do those that I can see I ca type ; then ) and get

[56FordGuy]

Do you know what the failure was? Do you know that the road alligator was from a recap or a new tire that was under-inflated?

This is the point I've been making, most people seem to have an opinion, without factual data backing it up. A lot of "Well I saw one on the side of the road, damn recaps." When in actuality, you don't know they are a recap.

I worked on semi trucks for several years, mostly in-house for a large fleet. We kept records of each unit and the maintenance/ repairs required for it. We had pretty complete control of the parts used on our equipment, and ran retreads as much as possible. It's been a few years since I worked there, but I recall our retreads had a poor record. Out of 8 retread tires on a unit (one trailer or the drives on one tractor), one would need to replaced due to a failure of some type about once every 9 to 10,000 miles. I can't say if the pressures were always right or they were never overloaded, because once it left the shop it was in the driver's hands.

I dunno, that is on the commercial side, though I read it was state, might not.

I wish there was a smilie that spit drink all over monitor, I would then insert it here....

I believe that's a Federal thing.

[Murgatroy]

We have had several retreads fail on our trailers as well as the drive axles on our tractors. However, I can not say whether it was due to tire pressure or not. These are recent occurrences. And it was not because of overloading.

And the steer tire retread ban is Federal.