Retreaded tyres: how retreading works and when it makes sense

Retreaded tyres are used tyres that have had their worn tread replaced. The casing, the tyre’s body of cords, belts and sidewalls, is inspected, the old tread is buffed away, any repairable damage is fixed, and a new layer of tread rubber is bonded on and cured. The result runs like a new tyre for another stretch of its life at a lower price than a new one. Retreading is normal for trucks and buses, where fleets plan for it as a way to cut tyre costs. For a passenger car in India it rarely makes sense. India does have a standard for retreaded car tyres, IS 15709:2018, and Europe has a type-approval regulation for them, but a car tyre’s casing is worth little next to the price of a new tyre, it is already several years old by the time its first tread is worn, and warranties such as MRF’s do not cover retreaded tyres. For a car, buy new tyres; for a truck or bus fleet, a good retreader is part of running costs.

How retreading works

Michelin’s guide to commercial retreading sets out six steps:

1. Casing inspection. Trained technicians check the casing for structural damage, cuts or punctures in the sidewall, earlier repairs, and damage from heat or impact. Only casings that pass go any further. This step decides whether the result is safe.
2. Buffing. The remaining worn tread is ground away to prepare the casing for its new tread.
3. Repairs. Approved repairs are made, where appropriate, to injuries the inspection found.
4. New tread. A new tread layer is applied to the prepared casing.
5. Curing. The tyre goes through a controlled curing process that bonds the new tread to the casing.
6. Final inspection before the tyre goes back into service.

Indian tyre makers are part of this trade as well as the new-tyre one. Apollo Tyres, for example, lists retreading material and tyres alongside its new car, truck and bus tyres.

Why fleets retread

A truck or bus tyre is an expensive item, and when its tread wears out the casing underneath is often still sound. Putting new tread on that casing typically costs less than buying a comparable new tyre, Michelin notes, and the operator gets another tread life out of a casing already paid for. Michelin points out that commercial retreading has been in use for more than a century. The model depends on looking after the casing from new: correct pressures, no overloading, and taking the tyre out of service before the tread is gone, so that the casing passes inspection when its turn comes.

Retreads and passenger cars

The economics that make retreading work for trucks mostly fall away for cars.

• The casing is worth less. A car tyre costs far less than a truck tyre, so the saving from reusing its casing is small next to the price of a new tyre.
• Age catches up first. Michelin recommends having car tyres inspected every year once they are five years old and replacing them ten years after manufacture. A car tyre that has worn out its tread over four or five years is already halfway to that limit before a second tread goes on.
• Warranty. Tyre makers’ warranties are written for their own new tyres. MRF’s warranty policy, for example, does not cover retreaded, repaired or altered tyres.
• Choice. A retreader can only offer the sizes and treads it makes, while new tyres come in every size and pattern your car takes.

None of this means a properly made car retread is dangerous. Standards exist for them. The Bureau of Indian Standards publishes IS 15709:2018 for retreaded pneumatic tyres for passenger cars, which refers back to the new-tyre standard, IS 15633. In Europe, UNECE Regulation 108 covers retreaded tyres for cars and their trailers, and it has been a compulsory condition for selling such tyres in the EU since 13 September 2006; it covers speed ratings from L (120 km/h) up to Y (300 km/h). Regulation 109 does the same for commercial-vehicle retreads. The issue for Indian car owners is practical rather than about safety: a new tyre is easy to find, comes with a warranty, and starts its life at zero years old.

If you run trucks or buses

For fleet owners, retreading is a question of how, not whether. Before choosing a retreader:

• Ask about the casing inspection. It is the step that matters most. A retreader that accepts every casing is not inspecting.
• Ask which standard the work meets and how the tyre is marked.
• Keep records of each casing: when it was new, how many times it has been retreaded, and why any casing was rejected.
• Look after casings from the start. Under-inflation and overloading damage the casing as well as the tread, and a damaged casing cannot be retreaded.

Buying a used car or used tyres

Retreads matter to car owners mostly when buying second-hand. If you are looking at tyres on a used car, or at part-worn tyres offered as a bargain, ask whether any are retreads and check the sidewalls closely. The DOT date moulded into the sidewall gives the age of the casing, which is the part that ages; our tyre age check reads it for you. A casing that is already six or seven years old is a poor buy whatever is on top of it.

For your own car, the decision is simpler: when the tread is worn, replace the tyre. Our guides to car tyre life and when to change car tyres explain what to look for in the tyres you have.