Towing Through Van Reenen’s Pass: What the Wind Warnings Actually Mean
Most people check a tyre one way: tread depth.
Run a finger or a coin across it, see how deep the grooves are, decide if it needs replacing.
For a car that's driven daily, that's a reasonable approach.
For a caravan tyre, it can miss the actual problem entirely.
Run a finger or a coin across it, see how deep the grooves are, decide if it needs replacing.
For a car that's driven daily, that's a reasonable approach.
For a caravan tyre, it can miss the actual problem entirely.
The issue isn't wear. It's age.
Caravans, by nature, spend a lot of time standing still — sometimes for months between trips. Tyre rubber doesn't need to be driven on to degrade; it degrades with time and UV exposure regardless. The compounds that keep a tyre flexible slowly dry out, and the first sign is usually small cracks in the sidewall — often invisible unless you're specifically looking for them, and completely unrelated to how much tread is left.
A caravan tyre can look almost new by tread standards and still be structurally compromised by age. That's the trap: the check most people know how to do (tread depth) isn't the check that actually matters most for a vehicle that sits idle between trips.
A caravan tyre can look almost new by tread standards and still be structurally compromised by age. That's the trap: the check most people know how to do (tread depth) isn't the check that actually matters most for a vehicle that sits idle between trips.
How to check a tyre's actual age
Every tyre has a manufacture date moulded into the sidewall, usually inside an oval, as a 4-digit code — the first two digits are the week, the last two are the year. So "2319" means the 23rd week of 2019. It's easy to miss if you don't know to look for it, and easy to check once you do.
What to actually look for
- The DOT date code, so you know the tyre's real age, not just its tread.
- Fine cracking in the sidewall rubber, especially near the wheel rim — a common early sign of UV/age degradation.
- Uneven or ballooning patches, which can indicate internal structural damage even if the outside looks fine.
- General industry guidance (not a hard rule, but a sensible prompt) suggests reviewing caravan tyres for replacement around the 5–6 year mark regardless of tread, given how much time they typically spend standing rather than rolling.
Why this matters more for caravans than cars
A car's tyres get worn out through use long before age becomes the dominant factor. A caravan's tyres often do the opposite — they age out well before they wear out, because the caravan simply isn't moving enough to wear the tread down first. That mismatch is exactly why relying on tread depth alone gives a false sense of security.
Five minutes checking the date code before your next trip is a small habit that closes a real gap most people don't know exists.
Five minutes checking the date code before your next trip is a small habit that closes a real gap most people don't know exists.