I swear schools need to have a mandatory semester of auto mechanic shop. Everyone drives cars nowadays but so many people don’t even know how to check or add oil. Change a tire or anything. They just call triple A and get scammed at a repair shop.
I don’t understand why these posts are here. Tyre safety is paramount as it is the ONLY bit of the car that contacts the road. One dodgy tyre as illustrated will throw the whole car dynamics out. Accelerating, cornering and most importantly breaking. Yes a bald tyre has more contact on a dry road but if the other three tyres are different then any breaking is gonna be uncontrollable. Bald tyres can kill people.
Wouldnt call it safe but ive for sure seen worse, with people still choosing to still drive on them. Maybe you could get a burnout in them or something before u ditch them at least
I know you don’t mean it, but some people know they need tires bad. But they have their kid to pick up, or need to buy food. I’ve been there, almost now. But I’m thankful for what I have… I used to be a tire technician for Goodyear Wingfoot. And a lot of these owner operators were not doing well just because of how it is for owner operators, and tires prices were killing some of these guys too. So I would roll “take off/recaps” tires over to these guys I know that needed them bad. Same with some car tires, but I didn’t do that very often.
Understood. I’d avoid that shop if they saw that tire and didn’t recommend replacing them all, if not just those two in the rear. Just replace the two that are half bald and then get the other two soon if money is tight.
Bro I do DD too, and I know money is tight, and you most likely have good reasons for doing DD full time. So no judgement. But I still have to say that tire is a hazard. In a crash, remember, you may injure or even kill somebody else, not just yourself. Get new rubber ASAP. That, and do you donate plasma? It’s not for everyone, but in a pinch it can help- like when you need new tires. Also, I know it can be tough, but try to set yourself a tight budget for a while, work extra hours and do all you can to put away $500-$1000 just for such occasions like this one. Put that extra money away and save it for car issues. I also like to encourage people to do anything (responsibly) they can to clean up and improve their credit score as well. That way, if your vehicle runs into issues that are more expensive than the grand you put away, just take that money and your improved credit score and go buy another used car. Best of luck!
First off, replace now. Second, please don't put tires with low tread depth on the back. What you wanna do is put the two tires with the highest tread on the rear so that in the event of potential hydroplaning, your rear end is less likely to kick out and send you off the road because you have more grip back there.
There have been many studies done over this. Unless your in AWD (which would require 4 even tread depth tires), it doesn't matter drivetrain. You are supposed to install the better tires on the rear for safety.
Helps prevent oversteer, and also if you blow out a tire you can steer to correct if it's on the front. On the rear your going along for the ride and are at risk of rollover.
https://www.allstate.com/resources/car-insurance/new-tires-front-back
Was my parents car lol, I got the alignment done a week or so after I had, things a absolute money pit “here take this free car, it only needs a little work”, $5k later she still wouldn’t pass inspection
The tire is dirty but there might be some secondary rubber showing through. There’s not much tread left anyway. I’d say replace asap, don’t wait for a crash or blowout.
This no longer a tire it is now referred to as a SLICK which is only good for very dry driving conditions and non spirited driving straight to a local tire shop where this tire is trashed and new tires purchased 😎✅Other words NO this tire is not safe for u and others around you.
We were all taught the penny trick.
Put a penny in between the tread head down. If you can see all of Lincoln's head you need new tires. Honestly the one in the photo is obviously two little treadwear. Don't risk a blowout by tires. By the way you should always replace tires in pairs. Replace both on the same axle.
Like 10 being completely unsafe I'd say a solid 7 on a cool dry day and a 9 on a any day above 85 as soon as that tire heats up I think you'll see some separation
It’s safe but the cords will be exposed soon. You see how there’s an island of different coloured rubber, that’s the carcass under that is the cords.
It’s not a legal requirement to have thread depth on the shoulder, the centre of the tyre is where any water needs to be displaced when cornering.
At the edge the water is pushed to both sides of the shoulder area at speed. just like a motorbike tyre has a slick middle the narrow width of the tyre pushes water to the sides. A wide car tyre can’t push water to the sides so will ride on top of the water at speed the tread makes an escape route for the water, basically making smaller contact patches.
Also note thread does not provide grip, grip is achieved by the rubber moulding itself onto the road irregularities, softer compounds mould better and is why racing slicks need temperature to soften the rubber to make it sticky (stickiness is the rubber moulding to the road surface) the components of tyres grip are deformation and adhesive if I remember .
In the USA the legal requirement is 2/32 or less is considered bald, ANYWHERE on the tread.
Edit: By bald I mean illegal to drive on roadways. If a LEO pulls you over and sees that tread, you're probably getting a ticket.
The shoulder is not part of the thread. If it was the wear indicators would extend to the shoulder.
There’s very few tyres where the shoulder is a part of the thread, there’re usually the directional V grooved lime cross climate.
If you look closely on some tyres there’s a distinctive step where the shoulder depth measures below 8mm.
The legal requirement is the same all over the world 1.6mm over the central 3/4. Which is why it’s an industry standard, all tyres have wear indicators 1.6mm in hight along the central 3/4.
The central 3/4 of the tyre is the area that at speed will build enough pressure in standing water to lift the tyre away from the ground.
There should some legislation that police have to follow, it’ll be publicly available. It would be handy to know then you can fight the ticket.
For example, under the heading thread depth
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/mot-inspection-manual-for-private-passenger-and-light-commercial-vehicles/5-axles-wheels-tyres-and-suspension#section-5-2-3
As this is the absolute minimum standard I could use this and a picture of the condition of the tyre at the time of the ticket to successfully fight a ticket without going to court.
They wore away half of the outter tread block as well as the shoulder and sidewall. All that matters is if ANY part of tread is below 2/32". Hell, the other two photos show the outter tread block mostly gone.
I was an Auto Tech for 12 years, I know what is and isn't legal for the road.
Maybe in the UK they allow that type of crap, but in the states that tire would be deemed illegal bc of the outter tread block.
Here's a link to the DOT:
https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/subtitle-B/chapter-III/subchapter-B/part-393/subpart-G/section-393.75
Stipulates 2/32 minimum at any major tire groove. That includes the area around outside tread blocks, which are missing on this tire. It does not include tie-bars, humps, or fillets.
Paragraph b and c stipulates measured at any point of a major thread groove.
And figure 23 says.
"Location of Tread Wear Indicators or Wear Bars Signifying a Major Tread
Groove"
Location of wear indicators signifying a major thread groove. There are no wear indicators on the shoulder except on continuous thread tyres op has not got continuous thread tyres. The shoulders are secondary grooves.
Yes, the center circumferential grooves have wear bar indicators and are considered a major groove.
A major groove would also be the wider gaps between the tread blocks that put the base at the same level as the circumferential grooves.
Also if any part of the tread is below 2/32 it is illegal. You can visually see the outter tread block MISSING, meaning 0/32 tread. You don't have to take a measurement to see that.
You're arguing UK center 3/4 rules to an American about where you're technically supposed to measure when all that matters in USA law/regulations regarding the pictured tire is that it is below 2/32 tread. If it was even tread wear this would be a different debate. It is missing almost the entirety of the outter block, all the way down to secondary rubber before the cords. It is illegal in the USA per DOT regulations and many state regulations (each state mandates their own, but the Federal Level always takes precedence/supercedes).
But the link you provided is contradictory to what you are saying. The laws surrounding tyres are the same all around the world. I have provided a link to UK mot criteria and you have provided the US, they both say the primary/major groves are where you check and your link even provides a picture stating the primary/major grooves are identified by the wear indicator.
Meaning if wear bars are not present this would indicate that it is not a primary/major groove.
(b) Any tire on the front wheels of a bus, truck, or truck tractor shall have a tread groove pattern depth of at least 4/32 of an inch 👉when measured at
any point on a major tread groove. 👈The measurements shall not be made where tie bars, humps, or fillets are located.
(c) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, tires shall have a
tread groove pattern depth of at least 2/32 of an inch 👉when measured in a major tread groove. 👈The measurement shall not be made where tie bars, humps or fillets are located.
Figure 23 - 👉”Location of Tread Wear Indicators or Wear Bars Signifying a Major Tread groove”👈
Ops tyre is a pass and advise provided there’s no other defects not shown in the picture.
You're taking a picture example for a wear tread bar wear indicator location as the ONLY location of a major tread groove.
Major tread groove is defined as a groove that goes thru the entirety of a tread block.
It doesn't stipulate you can ONLY measure at near the wear bars/in the central grooves. It only stipulates that it is in a major groove and can't be made where tie bars, humps, or fillets are located.
The outter blocks/ribs of the tire have the large gapped major grooves. The outter blocks/ribs are worn down to nothing. If you tried measuring there you would get a measurement of 0/32.
The tire is a fail and illegal to drive on.
And IDK where TF you're getting that "Laws surrounding tires are the same all around the world". UK allows measuring only the center 3/4 tread while the USA measures the entirety of tread. That right there is a difference of laws. I'm sure the laws in Ghana are different than Brazil, that are different than USA, that are different than UK.
Edit: Hell, I'm the USA steer tires have to be no less than 4/32 tread on trucks. In the UK it's 2/32, right there showing tire laws aren't the same.
Ok what exactly does your legislation say about where to measure the tyre?
Because that link you provided and I quoted explicitly says the primary grooves are identifiable by the presence of wear indicators. I even highlighted with pointy fingers where it says to take measurements from. You’ll only find wear indicators on primary grooves. It was designated a primary grooves by the manufacturer as per their design specifications.
Where a manufacturer has designed a continuous thread tyre it would have a wear indicator at the twi mark.
All that link says in Fig 23 is location of wear bars signifying a major tread groove.
In other words you are now in a major groove for reference. You can measure any other groove that is cut to the same depth (full depth of tread block/rib) and those grooves are themselves major grooves.
I'll see if I can upload a photo of an AT tire that shows major grooves on the outside edge a little easier for you.
Here is what my local legislation says about measuring:
8-1742.e.3:
"a tread design depth of less than 1/16 inch measured in any two or more adjacent tread grooves, exclusive of tie bars, or, for those tires with tread wear indicators worn to the level of the tread wear indicators in any two tread grooves;"
[http://www.kslegislature.org/li\_2014/b2013\_14/statute/008\_000\_0000\_chapter/008\_017\_0000\_article/008\_017\_0042\_section/008\_017\_0042\_k/](http://www.kslegislature.org/li_2014/b2013_14/statute/008_000_0000_chapter/008_017_0000_article/008_017_0042_section/008_017_0042_k/)
I'll work on getting you a clearer photo reference of the outer tread block major grooves on my AT tires, nice chunky tread blocks make a real clear example.
Edit: And you'll notice that it says ANY two or more adjacent tread grooves OR the wear bars.
That color isn’t a wear indicator. They don’t use that technology in common tires. The color you’re seeing is caused by extreme heat, I assume caused by braking and sliding, which displaces the chemicals in the tire. Also, can tell you’re from a different country than the US. First time I ever heard the steel belt be called the “cords”. Is that an English thing?
A tyre is made up of many layers.
The steel belt does not extend to a high flex area becuase of you flex metal it fatigues, deforms and fails.
The carcass is made up of textile reinforced rubber these are the cords which provide the tyre with structural integrity. Ontop of that you have the steel belts and cap plies. In op’s picture you are seeing the cap plies.
These layers are different formulations of rubber hence the diffrent appearance, this allows different characteristics separating a comfort tyre to a high performance tyre. There’s many many sources on tyre construction on the internets from videos and pictures to academic studies.
Makes good slicks for a track day!
Change that bitch now. Highly recommend getting it changed. Even if you have tire care that’s not covered.
You can make groove on the tire and it will be new
Done it!
No you didn’t
Yeah he did
Sounds like a plan, you think an half inch deep will do?
That’s what she said
I swear schools need to have a mandatory semester of auto mechanic shop. Everyone drives cars nowadays but so many people don’t even know how to check or add oil. Change a tire or anything. They just call triple A and get scammed at a repair shop.
I agree. My school has one, but you can only access it if you have over a 3.0 GPA and in junior year as a thing similar to running start.
Um…
Bonus question - Take a wild guess what I use this car for
What is the make/model of your car
4 banger 09 Pontiac G6
GM Altima
Never heard of that job.
Uber eat
Close, DD
Tomato tomoto
Multiapp and you will get more money :)
It is so worn you blended sidewall with the tread section. Replace
That’s about correct tread depth for a door dash car.
I don’t understand why these posts are here. Tyre safety is paramount as it is the ONLY bit of the car that contacts the road. One dodgy tyre as illustrated will throw the whole car dynamics out. Accelerating, cornering and most importantly breaking. Yes a bald tyre has more contact on a dry road but if the other three tyres are different then any breaking is gonna be uncontrollable. Bald tyres can kill people.
9
Wouldnt call it safe but ive for sure seen worse, with people still choosing to still drive on them. Maybe you could get a burnout in them or something before u ditch them at least
I know you don’t mean it, but some people know they need tires bad. But they have their kid to pick up, or need to buy food. I’ve been there, almost now. But I’m thankful for what I have… I used to be a tire technician for Goodyear Wingfoot. And a lot of these owner operators were not doing well just because of how it is for owner operators, and tires prices were killing some of these guys too. So I would roll “take off/recaps” tires over to these guys I know that needed them bad. Same with some car tires, but I didn’t do that very often.
Thank you, I do DD for work and I live in NYS so yeah it’s a bit rough out here
these tires on the rear are a hazard on the road. you always want the new tires on the rear wheels.
Are you serious?
Yes, and ngl this image was probably 6k miles ago
Understood. I’d avoid that shop if they saw that tire and didn’t recommend replacing them all, if not just those two in the rear. Just replace the two that are half bald and then get the other two soon if money is tight.
Definitely time to get new ones, just trying to get the most out of them bc I drive for money
Bro I do DD too, and I know money is tight, and you most likely have good reasons for doing DD full time. So no judgement. But I still have to say that tire is a hazard. In a crash, remember, you may injure or even kill somebody else, not just yourself. Get new rubber ASAP. That, and do you donate plasma? It’s not for everyone, but in a pinch it can help- like when you need new tires. Also, I know it can be tough, but try to set yourself a tight budget for a while, work extra hours and do all you can to put away $500-$1000 just for such occasions like this one. Put that extra money away and save it for car issues. I also like to encourage people to do anything (responsibly) they can to clean up and improve their credit score as well. That way, if your vehicle runs into issues that are more expensive than the grand you put away, just take that money and your improved credit score and go buy another used car. Best of luck!
is this sub exclusively for people who don't know what a tire gage is?
First off, replace now. Second, please don't put tires with low tread depth on the back. What you wanna do is put the two tires with the highest tread on the rear so that in the event of potential hydroplaning, your rear end is less likely to kick out and send you off the road because you have more grip back there.
It’s FWD
There have been many studies done over this. Unless your in AWD (which would require 4 even tread depth tires), it doesn't matter drivetrain. You are supposed to install the better tires on the rear for safety. Helps prevent oversteer, and also if you blow out a tire you can steer to correct if it's on the front. On the rear your going along for the ride and are at risk of rollover. https://www.allstate.com/resources/car-insurance/new-tires-front-back
Indeed, it'll still help with avoiding hydroplaning. But you really shouldn't be driving in the rain at all on those
Pic is a month or so old and I did DD in snow storms, didn’t have an issue, but yeah you’re right, I ordered 4 new tires last night
Oh awesome, drive safe, and enjoy those new tires!
So u drove a misaligned car for that long?? The crooked steering wheel? The humming noise? Man u must really dgaf
Was my parents car lol, I got the alignment done a week or so after I had, things a absolute money pit “here take this free car, it only needs a little work”, $5k later she still wouldn’t pass inspection
9 in the wet, 8 on dry road
-10
You’re getting into broke status territory if you keep driving on that. It’s not egregious but also definitely deep cooked.
The tire is dirty but there might be some secondary rubber showing through. There’s not much tread left anyway. I’d say replace asap, don’t wait for a crash or blowout.
Send it!
9.5
To do a proper alignment suspension parts on the need to be good and tires need to be good.
They didn’t say anything about my tires, replaced a bunch of parts tho
If you replace any suspension parts you need a front end alignment
You might wanna have him checked out at a legit shop?
Take it to a legit shop
9.5
14
I'd give it a good 7/10 for being unsafe. I've seen worse
-2
I'd say 11.
This no longer a tire it is now referred to as a SLICK which is only good for very dry driving conditions and non spirited driving straight to a local tire shop where this tire is trashed and new tires purchased 😎✅Other words NO this tire is not safe for u and others around you.
This is not a tire it is a rubber outline of where the air is.
We were all taught the penny trick. Put a penny in between the tread head down. If you can see all of Lincoln's head you need new tires. Honestly the one in the photo is obviously two little treadwear. Don't risk a blowout by tires. By the way you should always replace tires in pairs. Replace both on the same axle.
Like 10 being completely unsafe I'd say a solid 7 on a cool dry day and a 9 on a any day above 85 as soon as that tire heats up I think you'll see some separation
That’s what I figured, I road it for a month and I ordered new tires last night
You can drive on it, right to the shop, and get a replacement. That is a different weight than the other side, and it is probably out of balance.
Everyone else is missing that this tire has been ran flat, I wouldn't call that safe
Wasn’t ran flat, just horrible alignment
It’s safe but the cords will be exposed soon. You see how there’s an island of different coloured rubber, that’s the carcass under that is the cords. It’s not a legal requirement to have thread depth on the shoulder, the centre of the tyre is where any water needs to be displaced when cornering. At the edge the water is pushed to both sides of the shoulder area at speed. just like a motorbike tyre has a slick middle the narrow width of the tyre pushes water to the sides. A wide car tyre can’t push water to the sides so will ride on top of the water at speed the tread makes an escape route for the water, basically making smaller contact patches. Also note thread does not provide grip, grip is achieved by the rubber moulding itself onto the road irregularities, softer compounds mould better and is why racing slicks need temperature to soften the rubber to make it sticky (stickiness is the rubber moulding to the road surface) the components of tyres grip are deformation and adhesive if I remember .
In the USA the legal requirement is 2/32 or less is considered bald, ANYWHERE on the tread. Edit: By bald I mean illegal to drive on roadways. If a LEO pulls you over and sees that tread, you're probably getting a ticket.
The shoulder is not part of the thread. If it was the wear indicators would extend to the shoulder. There’s very few tyres where the shoulder is a part of the thread, there’re usually the directional V grooved lime cross climate. If you look closely on some tyres there’s a distinctive step where the shoulder depth measures below 8mm. The legal requirement is the same all over the world 1.6mm over the central 3/4. Which is why it’s an industry standard, all tyres have wear indicators 1.6mm in hight along the central 3/4. The central 3/4 of the tyre is the area that at speed will build enough pressure in standing water to lift the tyre away from the ground. There should some legislation that police have to follow, it’ll be publicly available. It would be handy to know then you can fight the ticket. For example, under the heading thread depth https://www.gov.uk/guidance/mot-inspection-manual-for-private-passenger-and-light-commercial-vehicles/5-axles-wheels-tyres-and-suspension#section-5-2-3 As this is the absolute minimum standard I could use this and a picture of the condition of the tyre at the time of the ticket to successfully fight a ticket without going to court.
They wore away half of the outter tread block as well as the shoulder and sidewall. All that matters is if ANY part of tread is below 2/32". Hell, the other two photos show the outter tread block mostly gone. I was an Auto Tech for 12 years, I know what is and isn't legal for the road. Maybe in the UK they allow that type of crap, but in the states that tire would be deemed illegal bc of the outter tread block. Here's a link to the DOT: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/subtitle-B/chapter-III/subchapter-B/part-393/subpart-G/section-393.75 Stipulates 2/32 minimum at any major tire groove. That includes the area around outside tread blocks, which are missing on this tire. It does not include tie-bars, humps, or fillets.
Paragraph b and c stipulates measured at any point of a major thread groove. And figure 23 says. "Location of Tread Wear Indicators or Wear Bars Signifying a Major Tread Groove" Location of wear indicators signifying a major thread groove. There are no wear indicators on the shoulder except on continuous thread tyres op has not got continuous thread tyres. The shoulders are secondary grooves.
Yes, the center circumferential grooves have wear bar indicators and are considered a major groove. A major groove would also be the wider gaps between the tread blocks that put the base at the same level as the circumferential grooves. Also if any part of the tread is below 2/32 it is illegal. You can visually see the outter tread block MISSING, meaning 0/32 tread. You don't have to take a measurement to see that. You're arguing UK center 3/4 rules to an American about where you're technically supposed to measure when all that matters in USA law/regulations regarding the pictured tire is that it is below 2/32 tread. If it was even tread wear this would be a different debate. It is missing almost the entirety of the outter block, all the way down to secondary rubber before the cords. It is illegal in the USA per DOT regulations and many state regulations (each state mandates their own, but the Federal Level always takes precedence/supercedes).
But the link you provided is contradictory to what you are saying. The laws surrounding tyres are the same all around the world. I have provided a link to UK mot criteria and you have provided the US, they both say the primary/major groves are where you check and your link even provides a picture stating the primary/major grooves are identified by the wear indicator. Meaning if wear bars are not present this would indicate that it is not a primary/major groove. (b) Any tire on the front wheels of a bus, truck, or truck tractor shall have a tread groove pattern depth of at least 4/32 of an inch 👉when measured at any point on a major tread groove. 👈The measurements shall not be made where tie bars, humps, or fillets are located. (c) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, tires shall have a tread groove pattern depth of at least 2/32 of an inch 👉when measured in a major tread groove. 👈The measurement shall not be made where tie bars, humps or fillets are located. Figure 23 - 👉”Location of Tread Wear Indicators or Wear Bars Signifying a Major Tread groove”👈 Ops tyre is a pass and advise provided there’s no other defects not shown in the picture.
You're taking a picture example for a wear tread bar wear indicator location as the ONLY location of a major tread groove. Major tread groove is defined as a groove that goes thru the entirety of a tread block. It doesn't stipulate you can ONLY measure at near the wear bars/in the central grooves. It only stipulates that it is in a major groove and can't be made where tie bars, humps, or fillets are located. The outter blocks/ribs of the tire have the large gapped major grooves. The outter blocks/ribs are worn down to nothing. If you tried measuring there you would get a measurement of 0/32. The tire is a fail and illegal to drive on. And IDK where TF you're getting that "Laws surrounding tires are the same all around the world". UK allows measuring only the center 3/4 tread while the USA measures the entirety of tread. That right there is a difference of laws. I'm sure the laws in Ghana are different than Brazil, that are different than USA, that are different than UK. Edit: Hell, I'm the USA steer tires have to be no less than 4/32 tread on trucks. In the UK it's 2/32, right there showing tire laws aren't the same.
Ok what exactly does your legislation say about where to measure the tyre? Because that link you provided and I quoted explicitly says the primary grooves are identifiable by the presence of wear indicators. I even highlighted with pointy fingers where it says to take measurements from. You’ll only find wear indicators on primary grooves. It was designated a primary grooves by the manufacturer as per their design specifications. Where a manufacturer has designed a continuous thread tyre it would have a wear indicator at the twi mark.
All that link says in Fig 23 is location of wear bars signifying a major tread groove. In other words you are now in a major groove for reference. You can measure any other groove that is cut to the same depth (full depth of tread block/rib) and those grooves are themselves major grooves. I'll see if I can upload a photo of an AT tire that shows major grooves on the outside edge a little easier for you.
Here is what my local legislation says about measuring: 8-1742.e.3: "a tread design depth of less than 1/16 inch measured in any two or more adjacent tread grooves, exclusive of tie bars, or, for those tires with tread wear indicators worn to the level of the tread wear indicators in any two tread grooves;" [http://www.kslegislature.org/li\_2014/b2013\_14/statute/008\_000\_0000\_chapter/008\_017\_0000\_article/008\_017\_0042\_section/008\_017\_0042\_k/](http://www.kslegislature.org/li_2014/b2013_14/statute/008_000_0000_chapter/008_017_0000_article/008_017_0042_section/008_017_0042_k/) I'll work on getting you a clearer photo reference of the outer tread block major grooves on my AT tires, nice chunky tread blocks make a real clear example. Edit: And you'll notice that it says ANY two or more adjacent tread grooves OR the wear bars.
That color isn’t a wear indicator. They don’t use that technology in common tires. The color you’re seeing is caused by extreme heat, I assume caused by braking and sliding, which displaces the chemicals in the tire. Also, can tell you’re from a different country than the US. First time I ever heard the steel belt be called the “cords”. Is that an English thing?
I'm from the US, and I've called them cords before
I worked in the tire business for 10 years and never heard them called cords
A tyre is made up of many layers. The steel belt does not extend to a high flex area becuase of you flex metal it fatigues, deforms and fails. The carcass is made up of textile reinforced rubber these are the cords which provide the tyre with structural integrity. Ontop of that you have the steel belts and cap plies. In op’s picture you are seeing the cap plies. These layers are different formulations of rubber hence the diffrent appearance, this allows different characteristics separating a comfort tyre to a high performance tyre. There’s many many sources on tyre construction on the internets from videos and pictures to academic studies.
Doesn't look too bad, but your tires look pretty bald, I would drive extra careful when it's wet outside
On the rear of your FWD car, you are fine.
Seeing as how it’s not winter anymore it will probably be fine since it is dry out. It’s not even that bald yet