The old tire debate.....

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Feb 23, 2009
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Location
Michigan
My tires have me debating whether I should replace, or wait a little longer....

My little Chevy is running some General Altimax RTs (pre 43s) and the tires have a little less than 6k on them. Their born on date is 4/13, so they have just turned 7 years old. The car has always been garaged, and stored for a few years as well. A recent drive seems to show the handle and ride like new.....

So I am wondering if I should just stick with the 6 year rule and replace them anyways, or give them another year or two of use?

P.S- price is not really an issue (14s) but using them up as much as I can.....
 
They're probably fine. The range is typically 6-10 years. You're in a cold climate so maybe you're good for closer to the 10 year range.
 
Garaged? Do you see any visual cracking? I would think they're fine. Now if they were sitting in the sun here, that would be a different story.
 
Typically sun/uv damage is a catalyst for the 7 year rule. are they weather checked or show any signs of cracking?

If not Id hang onto them.

If you are concerned safe swap out the fronts and use up the backs.


UD
 
Originally Posted by dishdude
Garaged? Do you see any visual cracking? I would think they're fine. Now if they were sitting in the sun here, that would be a different story.


Nope, no cracks at all. They look pretty good for 7 years old....
 
Tires don't seem to age here. I have winters from 2005 that are fine. Garaged in Michigan should be fine for 10 years at least.
 
If they still perform fine in the wet then you should be ok to continue using them. I have seen tires between 6-10 years that look fine but perform terribly in wet weather.
 
Originally Posted by The Critic
If they still perform fine in the wet then you should be ok to continue using them. I have seen tires between 6-10 years that look fine but perform terribly in wet weather.


Iva had brand new tires that were terrible in the wet.

Wouldn't distance to the wear bars and age be a better guide?



UD
 
It's usually evident if the tires need replacing by visible cracks-- these are often most noticeable on the shoulder where the tread meets the sidewall.

I've had tires last 10 years with no cracking, yet I've replaced some that were only 4 years. Depends on the climate, exposure (garaged or not), and a host of other variables. No sense using an arbitrary number of years for replacing, just let the condition of the tire be the judge.
 
Originally Posted by UncleDave
Originally Posted by The Critic
If they still perform fine in the wet then you should be ok to continue using them. I have seen tires between 6-10 years that look fine but perform terribly in wet weather.


Iva had brand new tires that were terrible in the wet.

Wouldn't distance to the wear bars and age be a better guide?



UD

True, but I have observed a significant reduction in wet traction on older tires due to the rubber hardening.
 
Originally Posted by tcp71
Tires don't seem to age here. I have winters from 2005 that are fine. Garaged in Michigan should be fine for 10 years at least.



That's because their isn't any sun up there. If there is you're a little bit farther away than most of us.
 
Take into consideration what is the fastest you drive on them? Are they ever heavily loaded like filling the vehicle with gear and people and towing something? Or do they have an easy life like having the vehicle always lightly loaded and lower speed roads? The way the tires are used does matter. Tires that are old should not be taxed with heavy loads and or high speeds.
 
My daughters Horse trailer tires started getting side wall tires at ten years. The tires do get harder.
 
The Firebird in my signature(purchased new) has only had 3 sets of tires in 40 years. The current tires have been on since 2010 and they still look awesome & I'm not going to get rid of them any tims soon.
 
Thanks everyone!
cool.gif


When I took the car out last week I had a little fun (around my local area) and drove it around-and the tires handled just fine.

It doesn't go too far or go on road trips- but I think they could handle them. And they still look good with no sight of aging either...but I think being in the garage may have helped quite a bit.

Think the Generals will hang on there for a while........
 
Some additional thoughts:

If you don't have sidewall cracks, the tires still might NOT be good!

Ya' see, some tire manufacturers use crack resistant rubbers in the sidewall - AND - since we are using the sidewall as an indicator to what is going on at the belt edge (the most highly stressed area of the tire!), a crack resistant rubber doesn't tell us what might be going on where we need the most information.

So, cracks = bad. No cracks = go by time!

And since we are talking about cracks in the sidewall, what are warning signs is when the cracks extend INTO the rubber - not superficial. "Crazing" is OK, but when you can see depth to the cracks, that's the time to replace them.

Dates? The date you want to use is when the tires were installed. But if we don't know that, go by the manufacture date.

Tires in storage age very slowly, compared to tires in service - to the point where you can almost ignore the time between manufacture and installation.
 
Originally Posted by daves87rs
My tires have me debating whether I should replace, or wait a little longer....

My little Chevy is running some General Altimax RTs (pre 43s) and the tires have a little less than 6k on them. Their born on date is 4/13, so they have just turned 7 years old. The car has always been garaged, and stored for a few years as well. A recent drive seems to show the handle and ride like new.....

So I am wondering if I should just stick with the 6 year rule and replace them anyways, or give them another year or two of use?

P.S- price is not really an issue (14s) but using them up as much as I can.....

I have tires in use older than yours. If there's no cracking, I would and do use them. The six year rule was thought up by tire makers wanting to sell tires.
 
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