What should my tread depth be?

[mtiede]

My model S came with the 19" Continental ProContact RX tires. I didn't measure the tread depth when I got them. I now have only 3,762 miles and the tread depth is 7/32. Is that normal? Seems kind of low to me. What is the recommended depth for these tires before getting new ones?

 

[fholbert]

My model S came with the 19" Continental ProContact RX tires. I didn't measure the tread depth when I got them. I now have only 3,762 miles and the tread depth is 7/32. Is that normal? Seems kind of low to me. What is the recommended depth for these tires before getting new ones?

A new car tire typically has a tread depth of 10⁄32 or 11⁄32 inches while a light truck will have between 11⁄32 and 19⁄32 inches. The U.S. Department of Transportation recommends that you replace your tires once they've worn down to 2⁄32 inches.

 

[mtiede]

A new car tire typically has a tread depth of 10⁄32 or 11⁄32 inches while a light truck will have between 11⁄32 and 19⁄32 inches. The U.S. Department of Transportation recommends that you replace your tires once they've worn down to 2⁄32 inches.

If it came with 10 or 11, I'm surprised it is wearing down so quickly. I usually drive very conservatively and only demonstrated acceleration maybe 4 times.

 

[PCMc]

The specs I find on Continental's website for what I think is roughly the right size ProContact RX 19" rim size list 9/32nd for the tread depth. So that says you're down maybe 1/32~2/32 of an inch is all (allowing for some measurement error).

Exact tire size I checked was 245/40 R19. Here's link to their site for reference. ProContact RX Specifications

 

[ucmndd]

9/32" when new:

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/Spec.jsp?tireMake=Continental&tireModel=ProContact+RX

 

[ATPMSD]

If it came with 10 or 11, I'm surprised it is wearing down so quickly. I usually drive very conservatively and only demonstrated acceleration maybe 4 times.

Might want to check tire alignment. If this was a new car you should not assume the car was delivered with a good alignment. Some are, some not so much.

 

[Leftlane22]

Contis usually wear pretty well in my experience.