What To Know About New Tires: Sights, Sounds & Smells

Purchased a new set of tires and noticed that they feel strange to drive on? Or maybe they smell strange, or make a noise you’re not used to? 

New tires can sometimes have a period of time that they need to be “broken in” to the point that they’re performing optimally. Sometimes, the awkwardness with new tires is to be expected. But other times, it could be a sign that your tire was not installed correctly or has a defect. So how do you tell the difference? 

In this article, we’ll be talking about the quirks of buying new tires: What to expect, what to look out for, and how to know if you should be taking your tires back to an installer to be inspected. 

New Tires Smells: Burning or Sulfur 

Do your new tires smell? What about new tires smelling like burning rubber? Or new tires smelling like sulfur? 

That “new tire smell” is a known phenomenon, and it’s not very pleasant. It’s normal for new tires to have a strong scent that goes away after the first month of driving. Why? Because tires are manufactured with different chemicals and compounds that linger on the rubber. That stinky sulfur smell should dissipate after you've driven about 50 to 100 miles. Don’t worry — this won’t stick around for long. If it does, however, you might have a bigger issue, though this is very rare.

One thing that you do want to look out for is a burning rubber smell. This is not good. A burning rubber smell is distinct from the smell of sulfur, but it can be a sign that your tires weren’t installed correctly (very rare). This odor could have to do with your brakes overheating, as a lot of heat is generated when your brake pads press down on the rotor. New or old, your tires should not be smelling like burning rubber. 

New Tire Sights: Whiskers, Hairs or Spikes

Why do new tires have hairs? Is it normal for your tire to have little rubber hairs or spikes? 

Yes! When a tire is manufactured, hot rubber is pressed and cured into a mold so that it can take its shape. To prevent air bubbles from forming between the rubber and the mold, the mold comes with “vent spews,” which are very tiny channels that allow the excess rubber to have somewhere to go. The pressure that’s involved in forming a tire makes it important to have vent spews, but the result is that new tires will have very small rubber hairs on them.

So do you need to shave tire hairs off? Nope. Over time, as you drive, these hairs will fall off naturally.

How long do vent spews last? They’re usually gone within your first couple of hundred miles of driving. They’re so small and inconsequential that they won’t affect your driving performance at all. As a bonus, tire hairs are a great way to tell if a set of tires that you buy are really new!

Should you be concerned if your new tires DON'T have vent spews? No. Some manufacturers and tire shops shave of buff off the excess rubber for aesthetic reasons ... maybe they have nothing else to do.

New Tire Sounds: Flapping, Roaring, Thumping

Do new tires make noise? Are new tires loud? 

Sometimes. This is a more complex question to answer, as it depends on the type of tires you bought and the noise that you’re hearing. We cover that in this post, Why are my tires making noise?

If you’re driving on the road with all-season, touring, or any other tire that’s meant for pavement, it’s possible to have a little noise for a few hundred miles. If the noise is a humming sound, it’s probably just a sign that you’re within the break-in period for your tires. If it feels like your car is vibrating or there’s a thumping, flapping, or grinding noise, this could be because of:

• Out of balance tires 
• Bent rims
• Defective tires (such as a broken belt)
• Suspension or brake issues

What about driving on the road with off-road tires or a tire with an aggressive tread pattern? Well, unfortunately, a little noise is normal for these tires. The aggressive tread pattern is designed to grip uneven rocks, mud, or other off-road terrain. This comes at the cost of on-road performance. Of course, there’s the outlier condition of a more violent grinding noise, which is a sign the tire wasn’t installed correctly. 

If you’re noticing tire noise outside of the break-in period, first check if the noise is present on several different surfaces, as it may just be the road you’re driving on. Otherwise, it could be a sign that there’s a defect in your tire or a problem in its balance. 

What is the new tire break-in period?

We’ve mentioned the “break-in” period of tires a few times. What does this mean? 

Generally speaking, new tires aren’t going to perform perfectly when they first hit the pavement. They’ll have some quirks and odd qualities that are completely normal for a short period of time (kind of like breaking in a new pair of shoes). As your tires get more miles on the road, they should feel as expected while driving. 

You can learn more about breaking in tires and how long it takes in this separate article on the topic!

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