This https://cgcookie.com/course/mesh-modeling-bootcamp is really great to start with, has a lot of information on topology.
It’s definitely not the easiest part of 3D modelling, but topology is really important and often even essential.
Also, I happened to have made a small demo recently, which is actually not so much about modelling a tire, but I still had to make one and it shows how you can get a decent result with very little effort. Treads are not separate from the rest of the tire, it’s ‘one’ piece of moulded rubber so model it as one piece (that’s my opinion). Just watch the first five minutes or so if you like and don’t worry about the drivers part;)
https://blog.cgcookie.com/forums/topic/slight-problem-with-adding-a-bevel-to-some-parts-of-the-shell-edges/
