# Would you replace these tires?



## brandsheph (Nov 15, 2019)

Hi everyone - I'm a newbie to the Vortex, but I did a search and didn't find anything definitive about my question so I hope you can help. I just recently bought a buyback 2013 Passat TDI. It sat for about 3 years and has only 28k miles. I was just at the dealer last week and when they did the inspection along with the service that was due, they checked off that the tires were in good shape, but I'm noticing that the tires look like they have some dry rot. Take a look at the photos. What do you think? I would hate to replace perfectly good tires with a decent amount of tread left, but I also don't want them to be unsafe as I do a lot of highway driving. I've never had any tires look like this before, so thank you in advance for any guidance you can offer!


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## 05CGT (Dec 15, 2015)

If it were my car they would be gone. YMMV.


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## 94GTIVW (Sep 13, 2015)

Would not drive on the highway with those tires especially on a hot day . Also if your going to buy new tire stay away from the brand that are on your car right now. I've always used Michelin and had nothing but very good experiences with that brand

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## 707Stang (Jul 16, 2009)

The tread doesn’t bother me much, but the sidewalls are what is of concern to me.


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## brandsheph (Nov 15, 2019)

Thank you, everyone. I decided to go with the advice here and replace them. I found a pretty good deal with rebate on some Goodyear Assurance MaxLife which have much better reviews than the dry-rot Hankooks anyway. Thanks again!


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## dennisgli (May 17, 2003)

You didn't post how old the tires were. If they were from the factory - and eight years old - they are probably due to be replaced.


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## brandsheph (Nov 15, 2019)

dennisgli said:


> You didn't post how old the tires were. If they were from the factory - and eight years old - they are probably due to be replaced.


AFAIK, they are the factory tires. You're probably right; I'm sure the three years of sitting didn't do them any favors in addition to the age.


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## garryt (Dec 22, 2016)

I took a pair of hankook optimos off the front of my car a few years back. couldn't believe how thick the sidewalls were on them! put some mid range tyres on and the handling has never been as good as it was.


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## Throwster (Feb 16, 2020)

I would definitely replace these tires if it were me.


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## MCbeetle1015 (Jan 10, 2020)

*Replace them now*

weather checking around rim flange happens after 3 years based on region in USA. But those treads have cracking between grooves and on footprint and bead flex area. Replace now...….


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## CheeryClam (Apr 1, 2020)

MCbeetle1015 said:


> weather checking around rim flange happens after 3 years based on region in USA. But those treads have cracking between grooves and on footprint and bead flex area. Replace now...….


I found a pretty good deal with rebate on some Goodyear Assurance MaxLife which have much better reviews than the dry-rot Hankooks anyway.


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## theFreshmanGrad (Apr 9, 2020)

It’s a safety issue due to the breakdown of the tire compound, would fail safety part of a state inspection depending if you live in a state where they perform inspections. 


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## rinkymehra (Mar 27, 2020)

The tread doesn’t bother me much, but the sidewalls are what is of concern to me.

Regards,


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## RichardTipew (Mar 28, 2019)

If it was me, I would definitely replace it. Like your tires, it is easy to leak or explode at any time. Those are definitely Hankook tires. The problem of tire dry rot has many causes, I found this article about that problem, hope it can help you. https://tireer.com/what-causes-dry-rot-in-tires/


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## OleKingCole (May 17, 2020)

I just bought a 2013 passat tdi SEL about a month ago and I took it home only to notice cracking between the tread blocks. I had the dealership replace the tires the next day for free. They were the original tires with about 45k mi and a date stamp of 0813. They put on a set of Hankook Kinergy tires. I probably wouldn't have chosen them myself but they're decent tires.

This was on a "CPO" car...

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