Vehicle & Equipment · Driver Training VideoTire Checks That Prevent Out-of-Service

Tires are the number one reason trucks get parked at the scale. Every roadside inspection starts with a walk-around, and inspectors go straight to the tires first, because tire violations are easy to spot and impossible to argue with.

Here's the tread depth rule

Steer axle tires need at least four thirty-seconds of an inch of tread, measured in a major groove. Every other tire on the truck — drive axles, trailer axles — needs at least two thirty-seconds.

A tire doesn't have to look bald to fail that check. Uneven wear can drop one edge below the line while the rest of the tire still looks fine. Run your hand across the whole face of the tread, not just the center, before you roll.

Cuts and damage are the second big category. Any cut or gouge deep enough to expose the cord or belt material is an automatic out-of-service violation, no matter how much tread is left. Same goes for a bulge, a knot, or any sign the tread is separating from the sidewall.

Pressure matters just as much as tread. A tire that's flat, has an audible leak, or clearly can't hold air is out of service, even with tread to spare. Check pressure cold, with a gauge, before the truck moves — every single day.

One more rule that trips drivers up: recapped, retreaded, and regrooved tires are not all treated the same on a steer axle.

Your company standard: gauge every tire cold before the truck moves, run your hand across every tread face on the pre-trip, and write down anything questionable — a cut, a bulge, a slow leak — on the DVIR before you leave the yard.

A tire flagged in the yard costs you ten minutes. The same tire found at the scale costs you hours out of service and a violation on your record. Catch it in the yard, not at the scale.