Tire Age

I was recently coming back from a car show and the old 429 wanted to go from a gallop to a quick run! I noticed that I was getting a lot of vibration which I interpreted as out of balance tires.

I decided to investigate and I determined that my tires were 11 years old. The tires have less than 1k on them since they were put on at the time the car was restored. I know they have participated in numerous "burn outs" (not by me) because I saw my car on video. It was on the "American Muscle Car" show back in 2004.

Bottom line, I was not willing to take a chance of the tires flying apart and damaging my car so I replaced them today.

You might want to check the date code on your tires. There are different recommendations on when to replace based on age. Mine exceeded all of them.

I did save one just to use as a spare....not for the trunk but for someone to bring to me just in case! I will be looking for an old Magnum 500 now.

my tires had a lot of age on them but still looked good, one of them flew apart on the freeway and cased some damage to to my car , i let them go to long. i well never do that again .keep an eye on your tires.

Typically, 5 years is all you can hope for out of tires, with normal conditions (e.g. sunlight, UV, etc.). My car is always in the garage except when driven every weekend, which will cause the tires to last a bit longer. UV and heat are the killers for tire age (along with the occasional burn-out).

Vibration is always the first sign of a problem. My BF Goodrich TA's lasted 15 years with only 6000 miles on them. One day I noticed a small shudder at freeway speed and found the left front tire was coming apart!!

think my tires are about 15 years old and last time I drove the car I noticed a thumping and thought one of my wheels might be loose but found nothing and now you have me wondering about my tires. Thanks I'm going to look them over or maybe just replace them anyway.

I was recently coming back from a car show and the old 429 wanted to go from a gallop to a quick run! I noticed that I was getting a lot of vibration which I interpreted as out of balance tires.

I decided to investigate and I determined that my tires were 11 years old. The tires have less than 1k on them since they were put on at the time the car was restored. I know they have participated in numerous "burn outs" (not by me) because I saw my car on video. It was on the "American Muscle Car" show back in 2004.

Bottom line, I was not willing to take a chance of the tires flying apart and damaging my car so I replaced them today.

You might want to check the date code on your tires. There are different recommendations on when to replace based on age. Mine exceeded all of them.

I did save one just to use as a spare....not for the trunk but for someone to bring to me just in case! I will be looking for an old Magnum 500 now.

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New tires was one of the first things I did when I got the car back here. They were having vibration and almost a flat spot feel. They were 20 years old and still looked good, as the car was in the garage more than out.

Typically, 5 years is all you can hope for out of tires, with normal conditions (e.g. sunlight, UV, etc.). My car is always in the garage except when driven every weekend, which will cause the tires to last a bit longer. UV and heat are the killers for tire age (along with the occasional burn-out).

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I concur that 5 years or younger is safe. Over 5 years and you run the risk of a blowout or tire separation.

Personal example:

I bought a new lite-weight travel trailer in 2007. It has dual axles so 4 tires and a matching spare. The tires all looked great; good tread, no dry rot, and maybe 5 or 6k miles on them. Last summer (2013, tires were 6 yrs old) we were coming back to Alabama from Tennessee. I had the original spare on the trailer and brought a back up spare as well. The 1st tire blew about 350 miles into the trip. I installed the trailer's spare. The 2nd tire blew about 45 minutes later...installed the back up spare. 3rd tire blew I removed it and slowly rolled on 3 tires (We were about 100 miles from home). 4th tire blew 20 miles from home. At this point I'm tired, it's late and I told the wife that "I don't care if they all blow and I have to drag the camper home on it's belly, I'm not stopping until we get home!" We made it home on the last two tires.

The lesson of the story is a statement my buddy said to me: If you don't have new tires before you leave on a trip it will be OK because you'll still get new tires; you'll just come home with them.

Typically, 5 years is all you can hope for out of tires, with normal conditions (e.g. sunlight, UV, etc.). My car is always in the garage except when driven every weekend, which will cause the tires to last a bit longer. UV and heat are the killers for tire age (along with the occasional burn-out).

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I concur that 5 years or younger is safe. Over 5 years and you run the risk of a blowout or tire separation.

Personal example:

I bought a new lite-weight travel trailer in 2007. It has dual axles so 4 tires and a matching spare. The tires all looked great; good tread, no dry rot, and maybe 5 or 6k miles on them. Last summer (2013, tires were 6 yrs old) we were coming back to Alabama from Tennessee. I had the original spare on the trailer and brought a back up spare as well. The 1st tire blew about 350 miles into the trip. I installed the trailer's spare. The 2nd tire blew about 45 minutes later...installed the back up spare. 3rd tire blew I removed it and slowly rolled on 3 tires (We were about 100 miles from home). 4th tire blew 20 miles from home. At this point I'm tired, it's late and I told the wife that "I don't care if they all blow and I have to drag the camper home on it's belly, I'm not stopping until we get home!" We made it home on the last two tires.

The lesson of the story is a statement my buddy said to me: If you don't have new tires before you leave on a trip it will be OK because you'll still get new tires; you'll just come home with them.

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That's a good story Don! Your friend is right. None of us should risk not only damage to our cars but risk our life or someone elses over bad OLD tires. Since these cars don't handle like cars today it might be a little more difficult to control the car at speed if the blow out happens.

I have had a similar experience with tires on a heavy dump trailer. Those tires are expensive if you buy the correct load rated tires. This is not the place to cut corners. Found that out the hard way!

I had my last set of tires from 1996 until 2012. Put about 15,000 on them in that time. Never had an issue other than wearing out the backs due to burnouts.

There is an issue with collector car's tires that many are unaware of. Ozone is one of the things that causes tires to dry-out and age, developing cracks...making them unsafe.

The big creator of ozone? Bright sunlight, of course...everybody knows that. Cars left in direct sun day after day are always victimes of dried-out rubber components: wipers, window trim, bumper trim, interior plastics and rubbers...and tires.

But there are many babied, garage-kept collector cars that are rarely driven that also suffer from ozone-damaged rubber.

In a garage, or any place you store your car...be sure not to keep it near any appliance with an electric motor. Electric motors are pridigous creators of ozone. Electric washers and driers are big offenders, air-handling cabinets for your home A/C system can be also. Even refrigerators and freezers can contribute ozone to the atmosphere in your garage.

In a closed garage, under conditions of high production, you could easily be bathing your one-of-kind pride-and-joy in an extremely ozone-rich enviroment for several hours a day without ever realizing it.

Try not to park close to anything with an electric motor, but that may not be practical in your situation.

Keep your tires ( and other rubber trim) clean and protected with an ozone-shielded protectant. Covering your car, even in the garage will also help dramatically.

Tires have been on my list. The BFG's on my car I bought at least 10 years ago. Not sure what the date code is. Will check when I get her out of storage. My 66 Stang tires started splitting on the edge where the tread meets the sidewall. That was warning enough to replace those tires!

A few years ago I purchased a new set of Pirelli's for my wife's car from a retailer and upon checking the date code I noted that they were manufactured over 3 years prior, I pointed it out and with no argument they switched them out with tires manufactured that year. I suspect they sold them to the next customer asking for those tires. I have a friend who worked at a tire retailer and he was the one who advised me to always check the date code on any new tires you buy and don't accept them if they're over a year old. Often tire retailers will have steep discounts on certain tires to get rid of their aging stock.

Most people don't check the date of manufacture on new tires they buy but should.

Another year has passed since I posted here about my tires and I still haven't replaced them. I know I'm flirting with disaster and every time I take this car for a drive I'm taking a big chance. I'm thinking I at least should take them to the local tire store and let them look them over.

Another year has passed since I posted here about my tires and I still haven't replaced them. I know I'm flirting with disaster and every time I take this car for a drive I'm taking a big chance. I'm thinking I at least should take them to the local tire store and let them look them over.

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I would hate to see something happen to your car it is a beautiful car. Your tires are just too old to take a chance. I know here in Houston it is common to see tire parts all over the freeways. I have been behind more than one vehicle and watched it happen. Trailers are the worst because the driver seldom notices the problem.

Want to take a chance, I would go to Las Vegas.

I've had a set of 33x15.50 TSX Super Swampers on my Jeep CJ-7 since 1996 - no issues, no sidewall or tread rot or anything out of the ordinary. It is usually garaged, kept clean and the tires protected also with proper inflation. These are 6-ply steel belter bias tires, though - so, vibrations early in the drive are expected... the thing rides like a paint shaker until the belts warm up after having sat for so long.

I'm going to regret having to replace those at some point - they're roughly twice the price these days (almost $300/tire!!) and I still have over 3/4" of tread all around.

Not to mention, I have a graphic of the tire tread down the side of my Jeep as well... so I think I'm kind of stuck, because you don't put Goodyears on it if you have Super Swamper stripes painted on the side, after all.

I am guilty: the fronts on mine are 2-3 years old, the rears are about 15 years old.

I've had a set of 33x15.50 TSX Super Swampers on my Jeep CJ-7 since 1996 - no issues, no sidewall or tread rot or anything out of the ordinary. It is usually garaged, kept clean and the tires protected also with proper inflation. These are 6-ply steel belter bias tires, though - so, vibrations early in the drive are expected... the thing rides like a paint shaker until the belts warm up after having sat for so long.

I'm going to regret having to replace those at some point - they're roughly twice the price these days (almost $300/tire!!) and I still have over 3/4" of tread all around.

Not to mention, I have a graphic of the tire tread down the side of my Jeep as well... so I think I'm kind of stuck, because you don't put Goodyears on it if you have Super Swamper stripes painted on the side, after all.

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I understand that. My son in law has those same tires on his Jeep Rubicon and the last time we visited he showed me some pretty major cracks in his and he drives on the beach a lot with like 10psi in them. He wants to buy new ones but the cost to replace is very prohibitive. I'm sure he will though that Jeep is his baby.


Nice Jeep! You and my Son in law would get along great.

A few years ago I purchased a new set of Pirelli's for my wife's car from a retailer and upon checking the date code I noted that they were manufactured over 3 years prior, I pointed it out and with no argument they switched them out with tires manufactured that year. I suspect they sold them to the next customer asking for those tires. I have a friend who worked at a tire retailer and he was the one who advised me to always check the date code on any new tires you buy and don't accept them if they're over a year old. Often tire retailers will have steep discounts on certain tires to get rid of their aging stock.

Most people don't check the date of manufacture on new tires they buy but should.

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I'm positive your right about that. Most tire places won't let you near the guys installing tires and those guys are moving so fast almost like their on a pit crew I'm sure they don't look at dates or even care. I'm glade you posted that I'll be looking for sure. Thanks

I know here in Houston it is common to see tire parts all over the freeways. I have been behind more than one vehicle and watched it happen. Trailers are the worst because the driver seldom notices the problem.
Want to take a chance, I would go to Las Vegas.

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I blew both front tires on my Mustang GT when I ran over a shredded trailer tire on I-10 going to New Orleans. It's no joke how dangerous tire belts on the roadway can be.

I have tyres on the front of my Lotus dating back to 1996. The car's been garaged so the tyres are in good condition (the sun hasn't cracked them). I had them checked out recently by the local tyre company and they said they're fine too.

Here is a link to a good article about tire life.

http://www.edmunds.com/car-care/how-old-and-dangerous-are-your-tires.html

John J