MacKay & Company released its 2024 U.S. Tire Aftermarket Report on Friday.
The report focuses on Class 6-8 commercial trucks and trailers and profiles aftermarket demand for commercial tires by type (new and retread), position (steer, drive and trailer) and design (bias and radial).
"Tires are a major cost for fleets, accounting for up to 20% of all maintenance costs," says Dave Kalvelage, client consultant at MacKay. "Fleets can't afford to have tires fail early and have a truck down, so it's no surprise that fleets report 'best dependability' as the No. 1 reason when choosing tire brands."
MacKay forecasts 2024 annual replacement tire demand to increase 1.8% to 37.4 million tires for medium- and heavy-duty trucks and trailers. The forecast is formulated using the total vehicle operating population and fleets' survey input about average annual miles, replacement mileages and utilization. With replacement rates, miles drive and utilization mostly unchanged, tire demand increases are driven primarily by increasing vehicle populations.
[RELATED: MacKay & Company offers updated forecast at VIPAR Heavy Duty Conference]
Most fleets purchase tires from local tire dealers, the report says, consistently averaging around 70% market share. For new tires, the next most common purchasing option is through the tire manufacturer, either using a dealer or through direct ship.
DataMac Tire profiles the U.S. market using several categories such as new and retread tire brand performance, fleet size, vocation, distribution channels, points of service, and tire size and purchasing rationale.