Tires

Nearly all Goodyear commercial tires are marked "REGROOVABLE" near the bead area of each tire. I am told that the main reason for this is due to the fact that many tires are exported to countries where regrooving tires is more common. In the North America, this practice is not very common at all. The "REGROOVABLE" marking simply means that there is enough "undertread" (rubber between the bottom of the tread grooves and the top of the casing) to create more tread depth with a tread carving tool. Can you do it in your shop? Well, yes but, be prepared to ruin a few casings as you learn the craft. Typically, 1/32nd to 2/32nd's of rubber can be removed below the bottom of the tread grooves.

After posting my original response someone wrote the following comment to me. Some very good points are made here:

"This issue I am sure is related to either inflation pressures or a different rolling radius of the new tires. Try checking you tire pressures first. Keep inflating them to a maximum of 38 PSI or until ride quality becomes unacceptable.

"You may then want to check your speedo calibration. Rolling radius will effect percieved MPG significantly when making tire changes, ieven if the width and aspect ratio are identical, you will find actual rolling radius varies significantly from manufacturer to manufacturer even with the same size tire. If either of these do not solve this, something else is going on with engine tuning."

If the tires look good (there are no deep, weather cracks in the sidewall), you should be fine. Our rule-of-thumb is that cracks can not be more than 2/32nds inch deep. When in doubt, take the vehicle to a tire dealer that you trust to give you a straight answer. By the way, you are correct, a DOT code that ends in 00 indicates that the tire was made in 2000.