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During a routine tire pressure check, I noticed this gouge in the side of my tire:

See image here.

I'm wondering if it is a safety issue, but I hesitate to take it to a tire shop because I want an unbiased opinion. It seems to hold the air just fine and it isn't more than a couple mm deep, but I don't want to have a blowout.

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2 Answers

up vote 5 down vote

That crack was caused by heat and drying out in the sun. It will run, and your should replace the tire.

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Yep, that's one to be replaced sooner rather than later. There may not be much rubber left under there, the sidewalls of tires are quite thin compared to the traction surface. – Brian Knoblauch Mar 22 '12 at 19:00
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If the other tires are all the same age check them all. – mikes Mar 23 '12 at 0:47
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Its always good to replace a tire that has any damage done to the side wall.

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