Original EAGLE GT question
Thread Starter
4th Gear
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 4
Likes: 0
Original EAGLE GT question
Hi, I am seeking some advise on my tires. I just obtained a very nice all original 1980 L82 with 15K miles. I am excited to show it and drive it just a bit. I am trying to decide my tire strategy, it has very nice original factory GTs. All I know is I do not want to drive on them. Can anyone comment on what their value may be and if I can sell these? I will either buy another set of wheels and tires & swap for shows, else most likely replace the rubber with GT II's and sell the GTs if there is interest. Any suggestions welcome.
thanks!
mike
thanks!
mike
Race Director
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 10,362
Likes: 5
From: San Diego - Deep Within The State of CONFUSION!
Originally Posted by mjmalecha
Hi, I am seeking some advise on my tires. I just obtained a very nice all original 1980 L82 with 15K miles. I am excited to show it and drive it just a bit. I am trying to decide my tire strategy, it has very nice original factory GTs. All I know is I do not want to drive on them. Can anyone comment on what their value may be and if I can sell these? I will either buy another set of wheels and tires & swap for shows, else most likely replace the rubber with GT II's and sell the GTs if there is interest. Any suggestions welcome.
thanks!
mike
thanks!
mike
Team Owner
Joined: Jul 1999
Posts: 26,545
Likes: 46
From: Huntersville NC
I had a set on my 68 when I bought the car. I determined that the tires were not original equipment (of course they were not original on a 68, what I mean is they were not original equipment tires on any year car. You can tell by the codes). They were at least 10 years old and maybe 20. The codes give you the year of manufacture, but if the number is "5" you don't know if the year is 1995, 1985, or 1975! I did not want to drive on them so I gave them away. In your case, if they are original tires they may have some value for someone who wants to have their 1980 vette NCRS judged, but I don't think they are worth a whole lot. 
These were the tires I gave away: For all I know the guy I gave them to sold them on ebay for $500.
These were the tires I gave away: For all I know the guy I gave them to sold them on ebay for $500.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,450
Likes: 1,478
From: Little Rock AR
I finaly replaced my '80 Vette rubber last year. The car had Polyglass GT tires with about 43K on them. They were worn way down past the wear indicators. They looked good on the outside but the inside was becoming dry rotted. The car had been in storage for most of the last 15 years and I hated the idea of replacing the rubber. Having a blowout or a failure out on the road somewhere would be a big disaster so they went in the trash. 
My old Camaro has a set of Dunlops that are probably close to 20 years old and still look great so they will stay on the car for a while longer. It depends on how they were stored as to how long they will last. I would not reccomend to anyone else how long to keep running them as it is a safety issue.
You might want to check your date codes on the tires. If they have good dates on them, they might be worth selling. You might be able to pay for a set of new ones if you are lucky.
-Mark.
My old Camaro has a set of Dunlops that are probably close to 20 years old and still look great so they will stay on the car for a while longer. It depends on how they were stored as to how long they will last. I would not reccomend to anyone else how long to keep running them as it is a safety issue.
You might want to check your date codes on the tires. If they have good dates on them, they might be worth selling. You might be able to pay for a set of new ones if you are lucky.
-Mark.
Safety Car
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 3,775
Likes: 4
from personel experience, driveing on 20 year old tires is not a good idea at all.
my rear tire started falling appart when i was driveing home. i ended up limpping the car home with a 1/4 deep, 4 inches round hole in my tire. the onlything that was keeping the car going was the steel belting was still holding hte innertube in place and keeping it full.
trust me, going almost 2 miles like that is not fun.
my rear tire started falling appart when i was driveing home. i ended up limpping the car home with a 1/4 deep, 4 inches round hole in my tire. the onlything that was keeping the car going was the steel belting was still holding hte innertube in place and keeping it full.
trust me, going almost 2 miles like that is not fun.
