As you know if your looking for tires for a C body there aren't a lot of choices. I spoke to a local tire shop that has a set of 255/60/15, they've been sitting around awhile. Said he will check the brand and the date code and get back to me with a price.
Tires: How old is too old?
- Thread starter polarus
- Start date
stubs300
Senior Member
I don't know what the laws are where you live is on for the oldest tire that may be sold to the public is. However, a lot of shops won't fix a flat on a tire any older than 10 yrs. due to the liability factor.
Regardless of how much tread is on a tire, tires older than 10 are starting to live on borrowed time and can start to put your safety in jeopardy.
Regardless of how much tread is on a tire, tires older than 10 are starting to live on borrowed time and can start to put your safety in jeopardy.
barnfind
Old Man with a Hat
Yes they will...... yawn.
cm23uoc
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Never discuss tires, oil or religion.
CanCritter
Senior Member
5-6 years...don't cheap out on yer tires or brakes plz....
patrick66
Old Man with a Hat
Tire longevity is DIRECTLY related to how they are cared for and stored!!! Bias ply tires will generally last a lot longer than radials.
I had tires on my '66 Coronet that I installed in 1996, and sold with the Magnum 500s they were mounted on, in 2009. There was absolutely ZERO sidewall cracking, tread cracking, or other indicators of age. This is because the Coronet is always garaged when it's not in use. The Goodyears looked and rode like a new tire. I had no compunctions about hitting the turnpike at speed with these tires. They looked like a brand-new tire when I sold them.
How does this happen? Proper tire inflation at all times. Storing the vehicle indoors with NO Sun exposure while inside. NOT using tire dressings like Armor All, or any other silicone-based product on the tire. Using soapy warm water, some powdered Ajax or Comet cleaner and a tire brush to clean the sidewalls. Keeping burnouts and hard cornering to a minimum. Pretty easy, really.
But, by the same token, I bought new tires for my van in 1998. I had two blow out within 100 miles of each other, with less than 600 miles on the set. The tire store upgraded me two tire models at no cost to replace the defective set. These were brand new tires that went tits-up! So, age does matter to a small extent. Care of the tires, and how long the tire has been in storage from tire plant to warehouse to dealer to the end user, plus if those tires have been stored in sketchy conditions, all matter a lot, no matter the price of the tire.
The reason they want us to replace tires at the six year point has nothing to do with safety, and everything to do with digging further into your wallet. Take care of your tires, and they will take care of you.
I had tires on my '66 Coronet that I installed in 1996, and sold with the Magnum 500s they were mounted on, in 2009. There was absolutely ZERO sidewall cracking, tread cracking, or other indicators of age. This is because the Coronet is always garaged when it's not in use. The Goodyears looked and rode like a new tire. I had no compunctions about hitting the turnpike at speed with these tires. They looked like a brand-new tire when I sold them.
How does this happen? Proper tire inflation at all times. Storing the vehicle indoors with NO Sun exposure while inside. NOT using tire dressings like Armor All, or any other silicone-based product on the tire. Using soapy warm water, some powdered Ajax or Comet cleaner and a tire brush to clean the sidewalls. Keeping burnouts and hard cornering to a minimum. Pretty easy, really.
But, by the same token, I bought new tires for my van in 1998. I had two blow out within 100 miles of each other, with less than 600 miles on the set. The tire store upgraded me two tire models at no cost to replace the defective set. These were brand new tires that went tits-up! So, age does matter to a small extent. Care of the tires, and how long the tire has been in storage from tire plant to warehouse to dealer to the end user, plus if those tires have been stored in sketchy conditions, all matter a lot, no matter the price of the tire.
The reason they want us to replace tires at the six year point has nothing to do with safety, and everything to do with digging further into your wallet. Take care of your tires, and they will take care of you.
I cought hell for saying the same thing several years ago on this site.....
KcImperial
Active Member
What's the worst that could happen?? :eusa_think:
patrick66
Old Man with a Hat
I had an OLD tire that had been expose to sunshine on a car stored for 15 years outside blow up like that, just sitting! Obviously, not a tire that would be street-driven.
Like I said before, how has the tire been taken care of??? THAT matters far more than age.
Notice that the age suggestion subtly moved from ten to six years for replacement??? Maybe that is an indictment of how shitty tires are these days, the tire industry refuses to take responsibility for their crappy products, and this is how they "take care" of the supposed problem? Hmmm???
Like I said before, how has the tire been taken care of??? THAT matters far more than age.
Notice that the age suggestion subtly moved from ten to six years for replacement??? Maybe that is an indictment of how shitty tires are these days, the tire industry refuses to take responsibility for their crappy products, and this is how they "take care" of the supposed problem? Hmmm???
KcImperial
Active Member
That one sat outside for 10 years just fine. It wasn't until I put the car up on stands and crawled under it that that tire suddenly blew out a few inches from my head.
bluefury361
Old Man with a Hat
My 1964 Dodge D200 crew cab had 92K miles on it when I got it. I added another 40K+ to that. Somehow, in all that time, the original spare tire had never been removed from underneath the rear carrier.I know it's the original because it matches the special order tires listed on the original sales order.
One day in 2003, with a load on the truck, the left rear Goodyear radial tire Came apart on an interstate off ramp, shredded.
I was about 3 miles from a service area with air and another 7 miles from home.
I dropped the old spare and it had cracks all through the sidewalls and between the threads. I mounted it on the axle and slooooooly lowered the jack. It held at about half flat. I limped to the service place where air was available and added air until it looked round again, (very carefully). That 39 year old tire got me all the way home, with the load. I still have it and it still holds air.
One day in 2003, with a load on the truck, the left rear Goodyear radial tire Came apart on an interstate off ramp, shredded.
I was about 3 miles from a service area with air and another 7 miles from home.
I dropped the old spare and it had cracks all through the sidewalls and between the threads. I mounted it on the axle and slooooooly lowered the jack. It held at about half flat. I limped to the service place where air was available and added air until it looked round again, (very carefully). That 39 year old tire got me all the way home, with the load. I still have it and it still holds air.
polara66hardtop
Senior Member
That looks like a three month old Firestone on my 98 2500 Ram. Those things were the junkiest tires ever. Goodyear Wranglers.
mcmlvii
Well-Known Member
A tire salesman a few years back told me at the 8 year mark you should be looking for new tires if they're not yet worn out. The same tire joint then proceeded to put 2-year-old new tires on my truck. I didn't pay attention to the date codes on the tires until I got a recall notice in the mail about a year later regarding the tires. I was a bit surprised to find I had 3-year-old tires that I'd bought new a year ago. Fortunately the recall gave me four new tires, pretty much hot out of the mold.
I typically run my tires until I see degradation though, not strictly by age...
I typically run my tires until I see degradation though, not strictly by age...
tbm3fan
Old Man with a Hat
One thing you can't protect against. Ozone.
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Wildaugust
Senior Member
Two years ago, I replaced the Good Year Eagle GT Plus 4 tires that had been on my Newport since 1994. I replaced them because they no longer had enough tread. No other reason. They were not cracked. They didn't have broken belts, they weren't separating. They rode and drove just fine, no hops, no wobbles. I liked them and was so impressed with them that I tried to order them again, only to be told that they aren't made anymore.
I ended up replacing them with BFG Radial T/As of the same size. I drove my car a total of just over 300 miles that summer. Last summer, I didn't drive my car at all. According to this scaremongering "research", even if I only put 1200 more miles on these tires, I will have to throw them away four years from now.
All of this paranoia about tires started when Ford SUVs were rolling due to faulty Firestone tires blowing out at high speeds. They were not old tires either. They were the tires that Ford had equipped the vehicles with, as I understand it, and was mainly the reason for the introduction of TPMS on newer vehicles.
They, government, the tire manufacturers, etc see everyone who drives a car, truck or SUV as an open wallet on wheels. We exist for them to reach in and repeatedly grab as much money from us as they can. Who exactly is the "tire safety group" and who paid for the study? That would tell us a lot. Was it the tire manufacturers, the NHTSA or some combination of both? We are ever increasingly living in a bullshit world these days. This "research" is part of that BS world and serves two purposes, in my opinion. It gives them yet another way to gouge more money out of those of us who can afford to throw away perfectly good tires, just because of some stupid expiration date and, for those of us who can't afford it, it gives them another way to force more cars off the road.
:rant: There, that's my rant
I ended up replacing them with BFG Radial T/As of the same size. I drove my car a total of just over 300 miles that summer. Last summer, I didn't drive my car at all. According to this scaremongering "research", even if I only put 1200 more miles on these tires, I will have to throw them away four years from now.
All of this paranoia about tires started when Ford SUVs were rolling due to faulty Firestone tires blowing out at high speeds. They were not old tires either. They were the tires that Ford had equipped the vehicles with, as I understand it, and was mainly the reason for the introduction of TPMS on newer vehicles.
They, government, the tire manufacturers, etc see everyone who drives a car, truck or SUV as an open wallet on wheels. We exist for them to reach in and repeatedly grab as much money from us as they can. Who exactly is the "tire safety group" and who paid for the study? That would tell us a lot. Was it the tire manufacturers, the NHTSA or some combination of both? We are ever increasingly living in a bullshit world these days. This "research" is part of that BS world and serves two purposes, in my opinion. It gives them yet another way to gouge more money out of those of us who can afford to throw away perfectly good tires, just because of some stupid expiration date and, for those of us who can't afford it, it gives them another way to force more cars off the road.
:rant: There, that's my rant
tbm3fan
Old Man with a Hat
Why the rant. You are not required by law to replace old tires anywhere. If you were I could see the rant but since not you can just ignore the recommendation since it doesn't carry the force of law with it. I've ignored it on one car and no one has ever heard me rant.
Wildaugust
Senior Member
It's been my experience that this sort of thing always starts out as just a recommendation, but nearly always ends up becoming law. I don't believe that they would spend the money to fund the "study" if they weren't planning on pushing for legislation.
Anyway, that's my opinion on it, not an attack on anyone on FCBO.
fc7_plumcrazy
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