Tread Life
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Honda-Tech Member
Joined: Sep 2008
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From: Berlin Heights, Ohio, Erie County
Tread Life
Be gentle with me folks, I haven't a whole lot of technical experience with these small cars and their quirks.
I have a 2006 Honda Civic EX that my wife drives back and forth to/from work. It ate up the first set of tires in 27,000 miles. Of course the dealer said that was normal and offered to sell me a new set for $601.00. I thanked him and headed for a tire store that sold me a fine set of $400.00 performance radial.
Now I have about 57,000 miles on it and the inside of the tires are cupping and my wife has been complaining about the noise they make. I called the Honda place and they thought I was doing pretty good to get 30,000 miles on this set of tires. I told him all I wanted to know was if there was something wrong to cause this wear on the inside of the tires. He set me up with an appointment for a "free" inspection.
Now-I was wondering if you folks know something that Honda USA doesn't about the tire wear on these Civics? What would cause tires to wear out every 25-30 K miles?
I have a 2006 Honda Civic EX that my wife drives back and forth to/from work. It ate up the first set of tires in 27,000 miles. Of course the dealer said that was normal and offered to sell me a new set for $601.00. I thanked him and headed for a tire store that sold me a fine set of $400.00 performance radial.
Now I have about 57,000 miles on it and the inside of the tires are cupping and my wife has been complaining about the noise they make. I called the Honda place and they thought I was doing pretty good to get 30,000 miles on this set of tires. I told him all I wanted to know was if there was something wrong to cause this wear on the inside of the tires. He set me up with an appointment for a "free" inspection.
Now-I was wondering if you folks know something that Honda USA doesn't about the tire wear on these Civics? What would cause tires to wear out every 25-30 K miles?
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Joined: Jan 2000
Posts: 23,478
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From: Chicago
Re: Tread Life
It all depends on the type of tires they are. Tread life of 25-30K miles is very typical of summer tires. That's also about what I got on the stock Michelin all-seasons on my Integra. (All-seasons generally last longer than summer tires.) Some tires last longer than others. If this is a concern, you may want to consider an all-season tire that comes with a warranty for a certain number of miles, as well as a high numerical treadwear rating. Just keep in mind that you may be trading off other desirable characteristics (e.g. handling, road noise, etc) to get longer treadlife. Anyway, what I'm saying is, it's possible that there is nothing wrong with your car, but you may want to get a longer-lasting tire.
OTOH it's possible that there is indeed something wrong with your car. One thing that can cause tires to wear faster is if the alignment is off, particularly the toe setting. That can cause the tires to "scrub" as you drive, and wear faster as a result.
Also, it is NOT normal for tires to be "cupping". I assume you're referring to an uneven, "scalloped" wear pattern. This usually means that there is something wrong with your suspension, such that your tires are not rolling smoothly down the street; problems may include blown shocks, bent suspension components, worn bushings, worn ball joints, etc.
Thus, it is indeed possible that something is wrong with your car's alignment or suspension, causing increased tire wear and cupping. A good mechanic should be able to find it. Sometimes dealer mechanics are very good (sometimes not), and sometimes independent mechanics (especially ones who are familiar with suspension problems) can be just as good. Especially with the cupping tire wear pattern, your car should really be checked out. And it does not necessarily mean something is wrong with all 2006 Honda Civics; problems can be caused in a lot of ways, such as hitting a pothole or other road debris. This has been very common here in the Midwest/Northeast, with the past two harsh winters and the resulting proliferation of potholes on the roadways. In the past two years, a lot of dealers and independent mechanics have been fixing lots of bent control arms, bent wheels, and other problems as a result of these potholes. Including my own car.
The noise in the tires may be due to the cupping, or may be due to whatever is causing the cupping, or may be due to the amount of treadwear on them. Many tires are much noisier when worn than when new.
One final thought - you may be able to get your tires cheaper from an online retailer such as the Tire Rack or Discount Tire Direct; they can ship you the tires and you can get them installed anywhere, including tire shops, Wal-mart, independent mechanics, etc. Those online dealers have a lot of advice on their websites and if you call them they can advise you of which tires best meet your needs. The Tire Rack website is particularly informative, as they have side-by-side comparison tests of various tires based on numerous different characteristics. And you can look up various tires to check their treadwear ratings, warranty, etc.
HTH!
OTOH it's possible that there is indeed something wrong with your car. One thing that can cause tires to wear faster is if the alignment is off, particularly the toe setting. That can cause the tires to "scrub" as you drive, and wear faster as a result.
Also, it is NOT normal for tires to be "cupping". I assume you're referring to an uneven, "scalloped" wear pattern. This usually means that there is something wrong with your suspension, such that your tires are not rolling smoothly down the street; problems may include blown shocks, bent suspension components, worn bushings, worn ball joints, etc.
Thus, it is indeed possible that something is wrong with your car's alignment or suspension, causing increased tire wear and cupping. A good mechanic should be able to find it. Sometimes dealer mechanics are very good (sometimes not), and sometimes independent mechanics (especially ones who are familiar with suspension problems) can be just as good. Especially with the cupping tire wear pattern, your car should really be checked out. And it does not necessarily mean something is wrong with all 2006 Honda Civics; problems can be caused in a lot of ways, such as hitting a pothole or other road debris. This has been very common here in the Midwest/Northeast, with the past two harsh winters and the resulting proliferation of potholes on the roadways. In the past two years, a lot of dealers and independent mechanics have been fixing lots of bent control arms, bent wheels, and other problems as a result of these potholes. Including my own car.
The noise in the tires may be due to the cupping, or may be due to whatever is causing the cupping, or may be due to the amount of treadwear on them. Many tires are much noisier when worn than when new.
One final thought - you may be able to get your tires cheaper from an online retailer such as the Tire Rack or Discount Tire Direct; they can ship you the tires and you can get them installed anywhere, including tire shops, Wal-mart, independent mechanics, etc. Those online dealers have a lot of advice on their websites and if you call them they can advise you of which tires best meet your needs. The Tire Rack website is particularly informative, as they have side-by-side comparison tests of various tires based on numerous different characteristics. And you can look up various tires to check their treadwear ratings, warranty, etc.
HTH!
H-T Order of Merit
Joined: Jan 2000
Posts: 23,478
Likes: 2
From: Chicago
Re: Tread Life
Incidentally, treadwear ratings are not always precise, but often give an indication of how long a tire will last. The higher the number, the more miles it should last; a tire with a rating of 560 should last twice as long as a tire with a rating of 280. Many summer tires have ratings from 200 to 300; all-season tires typically have ratings from 300 to 600.
Treadwear warranties mean that the tire manufacturer guarantees that a tire will last a certain number of miles; if it doesn't, they typically either give you a pro-rated refund based on miles, or they give you a partial credit towards the purchase of a new set of tires.
The original tires on your Civic were probably either the Goodyear Eagle RS-A, which has a treadwear rating of 260, or the Bridgestone Turanza EL400-02, which has a treadwear rating of 300. Neither of these has a treadwear warranty.
To give you some idea of other tires out there, here are a few of the best, but still reasonably priced, all-season tires, with prices from the Tire Rack for the 205/55-16 size which is one of the two sizes used on your Civic:
Bridgestone Potenza RE960AS Pole Position - $106/tire - 40,000 mile warranty - treadwear rating 400
Goodyear Eagle GT - $84/tire after rebate - 50,000 mile warranty - treadwear rating 440
Kumho Ecsta ASX - $73/tire - 30,000 mile warranty - treadwear rating 420
Treadwear warranties mean that the tire manufacturer guarantees that a tire will last a certain number of miles; if it doesn't, they typically either give you a pro-rated refund based on miles, or they give you a partial credit towards the purchase of a new set of tires.
The original tires on your Civic were probably either the Goodyear Eagle RS-A, which has a treadwear rating of 260, or the Bridgestone Turanza EL400-02, which has a treadwear rating of 300. Neither of these has a treadwear warranty.
To give you some idea of other tires out there, here are a few of the best, but still reasonably priced, all-season tires, with prices from the Tire Rack for the 205/55-16 size which is one of the two sizes used on your Civic:
Bridgestone Potenza RE960AS Pole Position - $106/tire - 40,000 mile warranty - treadwear rating 400
Goodyear Eagle GT - $84/tire after rebate - 50,000 mile warranty - treadwear rating 440
Kumho Ecsta ASX - $73/tire - 30,000 mile warranty - treadwear rating 420
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