Below is a link to the Tire Information Service Bulletin by the Rubber manufacturers Association (RMA) regarding previously used tires on a passenger or light truck vehicle. Anyone who is considering the purchase and/or installation of used tires, especially used tires with an unknown history, should read the bulletin carefully.

Passenger and Light Truck Used Tires (Pub #: TISB-45/3-0908)

Consumers should be aware of possible serious risk associated with the installation and use of previously used tires. While tires are designed and built to provide many thousands of miles of excellent service, they must be maintained properly throughout their service life to achieve optimal performance. Proper tire maintenance includes regular (at least monthly) visual tire inspections for signs of damage or abuse (ie. Cuts, cracks, bulges, snags, irregular wear, etc.) and inflation pressure checks. Tires can be damaged over the course of their service life due to abuse or improper service, maintenance, repair, or storage conditions, and such damage can eventually lead to tire failure. Only the original owner of a new tire can know the full extent of a particular tire’s service and maintenance, and the conditions of use or abuse the tire has experienced. Thus, Mickey Thompson Tire fully endorses the RMA Tire Information Service Bulletin, “Passenger and Light Truck Used Tires”.

Mickey Thompson urges that used tires should not be purchased, sold, or installed if they exhibit any of the conditions listed in the RMA bulletin, or if the used tires are offered by anyone other than a qualified tire service professional at a reputable new tire sales facility. Also, it should be noted that any used tire deemed not suitable for immediate service is also not suitable for spare tire applications. When a faulty spare tire is eventually used, it will be dangerous in service.

Consumers should also be wary of used tires that:

May have been used on vehicles involved in an accident
May have been used in sever service conditions (e.g. used for off-road, sporting, military or law enforcement purposes)
May have been exposed to unusual environmental conditions such as sever storms, floods, fires, etc>
This is Mickey Thompson General Technical Bulletin #9.
revised 8/15/2017