Yours truly is the proud owner of a 2018 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE. Here’s an amusing tale of how one certified mechanic didn’t pass my muscle car for inspection.
Before we get into it, here’s some background: I happen to live in a state that requires vehicles to pass a safety inspection as well as an emissions inspection to be deemed roadworthy. For whatever reason, the rule also applies even to brand new cars. In order to pass a safety inspection, a vehicle needs to have tires with a tread depth of at least two-thirty-seconds (2/32) of an inch. So, upon taking the 1LE home, one certified mechanic (who shall remain nameless, for now) tried to tell me that the original-equipment Goodyear Eagle F1 Supercar 3R tires found on Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE are not street legal, despite the car being completely stock with less than a couple of hundred of easy miles on the clock.
To paint a more vivid picture of what this encounter was like, here are some quotes from said shop owner, verbatim: “You’re saying it came like this?” … “How much power does it make?” … “I wonder who’s gonna pass it for inspection with those tires.” The shop owner’s business partner then asked if it was a six-figure car, which – I must admit – was perplexingly flattering.
As I mentioned in the OEM Goodyear vs Cooper RS3-S tire comparison, Chevy ended up issuing an amendment to the Camaro ZL1 1LE owner’s manual, wherein it specified the hazards of using the stock tires on wet roads. Simply put, driving on the Eagle F1 Supercar 3R tires in anything but warm, sunny conditions is far from ideal. And, apparently, they’re not that ideal for car safety inspections either.
Goodyear Eagle F1 Supercar 3R OEM tires
The 1LE did end up passing inspection at a local Chevy dealer, who informed me that the tires – which had less than 400 miles on them – would need to be replaced as the tread depth was “low”. Incidentally, the factory Goodyears have a five thirty-seconds (5/32) thread depth when new, compared to most street tires that measure eleven thirty-seconds (11/32) when new.
When this ordeal took place back in 2019, I didn’t think twice of it. But a recent letter by a GM Authority reader outlining a similar scenario prompted us to shed some light on the situation.
Bottom line: if you dare to pursue your passion and purchase the incredible machine that is the Camaro ZL1 1LE, just know that getting it to pass a new car inspection (in states that do require it) might not be as smooth as if it were, say, a Cruze.
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Comments
Can’t rag on California about this issue.
Hell, in Texas you get a 24 month inspection window with brand new cars.
But sounds like those tires would need replacing after 24 months.
We don’t play silly games like this in Idaho and I very thankful for that. There are still some places in the USA that allow you to be responsible for yourself.
Point out the DOT marking on the sidewall to him.
If you drive your tires until the cord shows, they still have a DOT marking.
The root problem is that you haven’t found the “right” inspection station. It’s well known that inspections and smog checks are there to get people in to sell them stuff.
In many states, the garage loses money doing them: no garage is going to get a car in to charge a total of $12.50. So the strategy is to either push repairs on every little thing (common in dealers and chains), or overlook everything to build a relationship (common in performance-oriented independents).
Fun fact: in the absence of serious damage, large airplane tires are run until either the air leak rate trends upwards, or the cord shows.
The author didn’t state why the tires failed. It sounds to me that at 400 miles and 2 shops saying they have limited time left means they are whooped. So they are either super soft and should be saved for track only occasions, or they had a hard pre delivery life. I don’t drive my track tires on the street, it’s not safe for all, and not economical. Get a swap set of wheels.
State safety inspections save lives.
The tires brand new look like they have no tread on them that really for track use only and for some reason they sell them to a new vehicle owner when you buy a new ZL1 1LE
Unbelievable, well if you can’t find a shop the easiest solution is to buy used tires and rims and install them until after the inspection then put the originals back on problem solved. Lol
So grateful I live in a state(home of GM) that does not have these inspections!
I have a 1LE and the tires on there are absolutely the best grip ive experienced. Once temps drop below 70 I can’t drive like it’s just not gonna loose that grip on a turn. And when the ground is wet it can be down right scary. I’m by no means a tire expert and haven’t had to buy a new set but I don’t think that they are as extreme as the ZL1 1LE and then you add another 200 horses, I don’t know why you would want to drive it in less then ideal weather. I drive mine in colder temps cause sadly I don’t drive it enough. I comes out when it’s dry and when there’s no sign of salt on the roads
My Fifty came with F1 tires and after 26k miles look like they should only be for the track. Over 50 degree temps grip is amazing and anything less it’s a spin fest. It’s never been in the rain to date but the day is coming and I’m sure I will need to drive with utmost caution
I had a 2014 1LE with the Goodyear supercar tires which had the outer 1/3 of the tire scalloped for improved? wet performance. Anything over 50 mph on a wet road, the car was very skittish. This was a white car and after 20-25 miles of city driving after a wash the rear quarter panels were covered with tire dust you could easily see. At 10,000 miles the tires were down to the 5/32″ minimum when the lease ended. Acceleration traction was always an issue on asphalt roads. Luckily there were no required inspections in my Michigan county.
Texas does have a 24 month window on new cars but they still have to pass inspection.
I ran into that conundrum when I bought a new car that had been sitting a while. As part of the deal they replaced the battery but that of course reset the emissions readiness so it wouldnt pass inspection. It took 3 weeks of driving before the computer would set the readiness counters and I could pass inspection. But this is something the dealership should do and they should be familiar with the vehicle and how it is equipped.
may as well fit some micky Thompson’s in the wheel wells and call it a day !
Are your tires shot or did you go to shops that don’t know what a drag radial tire is?
Seems the author purposefully left that detail out for intentions of click bait and misleading your readers.
Just a tip…when the shop you go to doesn’t know what a ZL1 is or asks of its a six figure car…likely you are dealing with knuckleheads to begin with. However, if your tires are shot and you are trying to pass a safety inspection…at least they are amongst likeminded company.
For those of you confused why GM chose a drag radial for the rear set on the ZL1…you’ve obviously never driven a 650hp car.
When I got my 21 ss the first thing I did is order some accessory rims with all weather tires. It’s just not safe using (basically slicks) for daily driving
It’s for performance. So why would you want to drive it in the snow. Or rain? Much add about nothing .
Buy some skinny tires and wheels for inspection day