How do you know if your winter tires are still good?

Posted June 17, 2024

The tire changing season is fast approaching, but before putting your tires back on your vehicle from last winter, it is important to check if they are still good! Because even the best tire model won’t protect you if it’s too worn, and you could find yourself in an unfortunate position.

That said, unless you drive a race car, it’s usually not necessary to change it every year either! How to find your way there? We will explain everything to you!

Decoding the clues

First of all, generally, the maximum lifespan of a tire is around five years, according to the SAAQ. Beyond this limit, it begins to lose its qualities. To find out the manufacturing date of your tires, you’ll have to put on your detective hat and decode a hidden clue! Indeed, on each tire, a “DOT” code is written on the side and this tells you the date: if it says DOT 3521, your tire was manufactured on the 35th week of 2021.

Our friend the caribou

As we said earlier, age alone is not enough: many other factors can wear out your tires well before their official expiration date. To know if your tires are too worn, simply measure the thickness of the tread. If your grooves are too worn, your tires will have difficulty evacuating water and providing you with the traction you need for a comfortable and safe ride.

To avoid fines and other unpleasant surprises, a tire’s tread must be at least 1.6mm or, if you prefer, 1/16th of an inch. But as we know, the legal minimum is not always a very good measure to be very safe: this is why CAA-Quebec recommends a tread greater than 4.8mm, or 3/16th of an inch to maintain optimal traction in all situations.

4.8mm is all well and good, but what does the caribou have to do with all this? Well this is the little insider tip to easily measure your tread depth: if you take a 25c coin and point the caribou face down, touching the surface of the tire groove and you can see the tip of the caribou’s nose: it’s time for a change!

Even simpler…

Of course, you can go directly to one of our specialists who can check the wear of your tires for you and, if necessary, recommend new shoes for your vehicle in order to offer you an optimal driving experience.

Make an appointment!

Questions? Our Advisors are Happy to Help!

If you have questions about anything you've read in this resource page, contact your nearest dealer for more information. We are passionate in assisting our customers make the best choices to keep their vehicles in tip-top shape and keep their families safe.