Porsche says tires need replacing, dealer strongly disagrees

[mcr21]

Having my 4S in for the 20k service and software uPgrade, and the service location claims that all four Pilot Sport 4 tires need replacing as they are under the UK legal requirement (which is a minimum tread depth of 1.6 millimeters, across 75% of the tread around the complete circumference).

This is four months post purchase, and the thread depth reported in the pre-delivery report in July was 3 mm for the both front tires and 5 mm for both rear tires.

The dealer I bought it from and who's been great to deal with and overall very honest strongly disagrees. Their opinion is that the tires have a decent amount of runway left.

UPDATE:

Decided to go ahead with replacement but clearly a borderline case.

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[simcity]

Link is private.

 

[Gnasher]

They do look low but legal way to check is to stick a 20p there or a tyre gauge.

Might have to start looking for some tyres for it soon anyway..

 

[simcity]

Agree with Gnasher. Look low but look legal. A tyre gauge is the only way to tell for sure. Videos can be misleading.

If it was me, I’d be taking the opportunity now to stick all seasons on (or full winters depending where you are) and perhaps get a few more miles out of those when it warms up next year.

 

[whitex]

As your tread gets low, your stopping distance (and also cornering grip) go down. See if you can find any data on the stopping distance vs. tread depth for the tire you have. Quick google found this article which showed a this graph:

From the graph above, under 4mm for hot rolled asphalt and under 2.6mm for smooth concrete, the stopping distance starts increasing faster per mm of tread. For wet surfaces, IIRC it's also around 3mm where your stopping distance starts increasing fast.

So the calculation here is the cost of the tire, vs. increased risk of an accident with its associated costs (and today, waits!). Furthermore, if you live somewhere where winters are cold (i.e. snow on the ground a lot), I would strongly suggest snow tires for the winter.

Personally, I start looking for a deal on new tires when they get under 4mm and definitely change them by the time I hit 3mm on the lowest tread tire.

 

[Scandinavian]

They do look low but legal way to check is to stick a 20p there or a tyre gauge.

Might have to start looking for some tyres for it soon anyway..

They may be ok from a legal point of view.

But I feel they are worth replacing asap. I think you have a very powerful car and autumn is approaching with wet roads etc. since a small patch of rubber and drains, is all you have between you and the road, I would like that to work as well as possible.

saving a few hundred pounds on a car costing some 80 k seems wrong priorities to me.

 

[mcr21]

As your tread gets low, your stopping distance (and also cornering grip) go down. See if you can find any data on the stopping distance vs. tread depth for the tire you have. Quick google found this article which showed a this graph:

From the graph above, under 4mm for hot rolled asphalt and under 2.6mm for smooth concrete, the stopping distance starts increasing faster per mm of tread. For wet surfaces, IIRC it's also around 3mm where your stopping distance starts increasing fast.

So the calculation here is the cost of the tire, vs. increased risk of an accident with its associated costs. Furthermore, if you live somewhere where winters are cold (i.e. snow on the ground a lot), I would strongly suggest snow tires for the winter.

Personally, I start looking for new tires when get under 4mm.

Thanks, this is helpful perspective. The tires were clearly well-used but in a decent condition when I bought the car.

I am sure Porsche sees an opportunity to sell some tires, but might as well get them changed.

 

[whitex]

Thanks, this is helpful perspective. The tires were clearly well-used but in a decent condition when I bought the car.

I am sure Porsche sees an opportunity to sell some tires, but might as well get them changed.

I am in the USA, not UK, but even for Porsche, I change my tires at a tire store rather than Porsche dealership. It's less expensive for the exact same tires and honestly, that is all they do, so they do know what they are doing. I've serviced all my cars at a local tire store, including Porsche, Tesla, and my kids' Toyotas. I can watch them change the tire, so I know they lift it right, etc. It's been a while since I had a Porsche, but last time I remember the difference being about 33% more at the Porsche dealer than at the tire store, for the exact same set of tires (same manufacturer, same model number).

 

[Scandinavian]

Thanks, this is helpful perspective. The tires were clearly well-used but in a decent condition when I bought the car.

I am sure Porsche sees an opportunity to sell some tires, but might as well get them changed.

You can always get quotes from good tyre shops, since Porsche likely have a higher tax

 

[mcr21]

They may be ok from a legal point of view.

But I feel they are worth replacing asap. I think you have a very powerful car and autumn is approaching with wet roads etc. since a small patch of rubber and drains, is all you have between you and the road, I would like that to work as well as possible.

saving a few hundred pounds on a car costing some 80 k seems wrong priorities to me.

You can always get quotes from good tyre shops, since Porsche likely have a higher tax

Yes, I agree.

Porsche claimed they were already BELOW the legal requirement, so I went ahead with the tire replacement on that basis. When I then asked the dealer who sold me the car for a second opinion they disagreed and from what other posters have noted, they do look legal but low which I do not dispute.

It's rather the aggressive sales tactic that is annoying. Porsche could have been more transparent and said that they need replacing soon as oppose to stating that they are already not street legal to push through a quick decision.

 

[mcr21]

I am in the USA, not UK, but even for Porsche, I change my tires at a tire store rather than Porsche dealership. It's less expensive for the exact same tires and honestly, that is all they do, so they do know what they are doing. I've serviced all my cars at a local tire store, including Porsche, Tesla, and my kids' Toyotas. I can watch them change the tire, so I know they lift it right, etc. It's been a while since I had a Porsche, but last time I remember the difference being about 33% more at the Porsche dealer than at the tire store, for the exact same set of tires (same manufacturer, same model number).

I agree, no reason to pay a premium under normal circumstances.

Since the car is already there for 20k servicing I'm letting them do the tire replacement this time around though.

 

[kempez]

In terms of stating they weren’t legal, that is a little OTT. However, a dealer has a duty of care to ensure the safety of a car boy just for now, but when you drive out of there. Tyre’s should never be skimped on and frankly, I’d not accept a ‘new’ (or new to me), car with less than 5mm tread on it. I get advising on the low tread and I also understand why they would very strongly urge you to change the tyres. But they should be more honest about it.

 

[mcr21]

In terms of stating they weren’t legal, that is a little OTT. However, a dealer has a duty of care to ensure the safety of a car boy just for now, but when you drive out of there. Tyre’s should never be skimped on and frankly, I’d not accept a ‘new’ (or new to me), car with less than 5mm tread on it. I get advising on the low tread and I also understand why they would very strongly urge you to change the tyres. But they should be more honest about it.

Yes, the dealer I bought the car from should have replaced the front tires since they were 3 mm at the time of sale, vs 5 mm for rear.

Having a fairly basic knowledge of cars that check slipped through the cracks, but will definitely be more diligent next time around.

 

[BigBob]

Admittedly quite some time ago, but when i had the tyres are nearly worn out conversation with porsche, I said fine, but match the price i get from local tyre shop. I showed them the quote from blackcircles.com and they changed their tune and said they couldn't buy them for that.....

Anyway, useful to check that company first as their prices are usually pretty aggressive. Think there are similar websites too.

 

[whitex]

Admittedly quite some time ago, but when i had the tyres are nearly worn out conversation with porsche, I said fine, but match the price i get from local tyre shop. I showed them the quote from blackcircles.com and they changed their tune and said they couldn't buy them for that.....

Anyway, useful to check that company first as their prices are usually pretty aggressive. Think there are similar websites too.

There are definitely websites which advertise really low prices. My local tire store (a chain called Discount Tire) can can come really close to (or match) the non-fake internet prices, and having been their customer for years, I know they know what they are doing (plus I get to watch through a glass gallery window when they work on my cars - mostly I watch to make sure they know how to lift the cars properly, especially important with EV's with batteries in the floors).

To be honest, besides the price, if I want tires changed, I want to go to a store which does nothing but tire changes, rather than a dealer which performs many, many different services, so guaranteed that each tech has a lot less experience with tire changes than at a tire store where they do nothing but change tires, spin, balance, etc all day long, every day. I am a believer in specialization. If I want my blood drawn, I would go to a phlebotomist, or even a registered nurse, rather than a doctor, even if they charged me the same amount. Why? Because a phlebotomist draws blood many times a day every day, while a doctor draws blood occasionally.

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