Used tyres in Sharjah: an honest look before you buy

Why people look for used tyres

The reasons make sense. A car is being sold and needs to pass inspection. One tyre has blown and the other three are fine. Money is tight this month. Second-hand tyres are sold in parts of Sharjah's industrial areas, often for a fraction of the price of a new one, and on paper that looks like a saving.

We have fitted tyres since 2016 and we see used tyres come off cars every week. This page explains why we chose not to sell them, what to check if you do buy one, and what the alternative costs.

The risks you cannot see

• Age. The UAE treats tyres as expired five years from their manufacture date, used or not. Many used tyres are imported from markets where they were already several years old, so a tyre can have only months of legal life left, or none.
• Heat history. A tyre that has spent summers on a car in the UAE, or in a container in the sun, has hardened from the inside. Cracks in the base of the tread grooves and sidewall show up late.
• Hidden repairs. A plug or patch in a used tyre is not always visible from the outside, and a second repair close to the first is unsafe.
• Driven flat. A tyre that was run flat can have a shredded inner liner that looks fine from outside and fails at speed later.
• Uneven wear. A tyre from a car with bad alignment carries that wear pattern onto your car.

A ban on the sale of part-worn car tyres in the UAE was announced as far back as 2012, as the trade press reported at the time. Separately, worn or unfit tyres carry an AED 500 fine and four black points, and expired tyres can fail the vehicle test.

If you buy a used tyre anyway

If you go ahead, do these checks before money changes hands:

1. Read the DOT code. The last four digits are week and year. If the tyre is more than two or three years old, the saving disappears quickly against how little life it has left.
2. Measure the tread. The legal minimum commonly applied is 1.6 mm; we recommend replacing at 3 mm. Measure in several places across the width.
3. Look inside. Ask for the tyre to be shown off the rim. Check for patches, plugs, wrinkles or rubber dust on the inner liner, which suggest it was driven flat.
4. Bend the sidewall. Fine cracks that open up when flexed mean the rubber has aged.
5. Match the spec. Same size, load index and speed rating as the other tyres on the axle.

The budget new tyre alternative

For a typical Sharjah commuter car, the price gap between a decent used tyre and a new economy tyre is smaller than most people expect once fitting and balancing are added.

A single used tyre fitted next to a newer one on the same axle also causes uneven grip and braking, which is another hidden cost of the cheaper option.

Our economy range includes Triangle, Zeetex, GT Radial and Nexen, in the common Sharjah sizes for the Nissan Sunny, Toyota Yaris, Corolla and Hyundai Accent. A full-depth new tyre lasts several times longer than a half-worn used one, so the cost per kilometre is usually lower. See our cheap tyres page for the full budget range, which applies across all three emirates.

Fitting in Sharjah

We cover Sharjah 24 hours a day, with an average arrival of about 40 minutes, including Al Nahda, Al Taawun, Muwaileh and the industrial areas. The fitting fee is AED 100 per visit, the same as in Dubai. If only one tyre has failed and the others are in good condition, we will replace just the one rather than push a full set. Our Sharjah tyre shop page has the full list of services.