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Just wondering if I’m interpreting the date of manufacturer on this tire correctly... it’s a Firestone Firehawk... i took a picture on the sidewall and can see DOT VNUT 503...
Is it the 503 that indicates it was manufactured during the 5th week of 2003? Or is there another number I should be looking for?
Thanks...
Looking at Tirerack your interpretation of the date seems correct but look at the comment about both sidewalls having DOT but not all the information for tires after 2000. Does the other side have a different DOT format? https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiret....jsp?techid=11
Thanks for your answers guys... i assume these rules apply to North America...
Still strange to me though... since there only appears to be 3 numbers (503), it’s as though it was manufactured before the year 2000 because the links attached say it was a 4 digit code after 2000.
But I actually bought these tires brand new but can’t remember exactly when, it was a long time ago but it was sometime after 2001 though because that’s when I bought my ‘70 Corvette... So if it’s a pre-2000 tire it would mean that when I bought them sometime around 2002-2003 they would already have been 10 years old, since 503 would translate to 50 week of 1993...
Anyhow, despite them being brand new, i’m not going to take any chances and buy a fresh new set of tires... after spending so much money on a frame off restoration, I’m not going to risk a blowout..
Thanks for your answers guys... i assume these rules apply to North America...
Still strange to me though... since there only appears to be 3 numbers (503), it’s as though it was manufactured before the year 2000 because the links attached say it was a 4 digit code after 2000.
But I actually bought these tires brand new but can’t remember exactly when, it was a long time ago but it was sometime after 2001 though because that’s when I bought my ‘70 Corvette... So if it’s a pre-2000 tire it would mean that when I bought them sometime around 2002-2003 they would already have been 10 years old, since 503 would translate to 50 week of 1993...
Anyhow, despite them being brand new, i’m not going to take any chances and buy a fresh new set of tires... after spending so much money on a frame off restoration, I’m not going to risk a blowout..
Thanks again for your replies...
If there's any doubt, replace. Perhaps you contact Firestone Corporate in earnest, get direct confirmation. Seems its NA Corp HQ at Nashville TN https://www.firestonetire.ca/
Last time I checked, Canada a key part of N America ... and Quebec hasn't seceded ... yet.
I bought my Firestone Redlines from Coker years ago .. Not sure exactly when ... maybe around 2000 .. anyway I just started driving my car after all of those years.. You look at the tires and they look like brand new tires so I thought they were still OK. When I drove the vette the ride was really rough when going over bumpy roads, I thought it was the shocks. Wrong .. The rubber on the tires hardened up and that is what caused the rough ride. I have ordered the new Coker Radial Redline Firestones and I anticipate a much smoother ride.
Last edited by ballen06; Dec 22, 2019 at 12:12 PM.
The DOT numbers on tires usually come in three sets of numbers, one set designating the brand's model and size , another sweet designating the plant where they were manufactured and the third set indicates the date of manufacture. After the year 2000 a 4 digit code was required to indicate the week and last 2 digits of the year, ie. 0503 would mean the 5th week of the year 2003. Before then, only a 3 digit date code was required which would mean it was made before 2000, so your 503 would be the 50th week of a year ending in 3, probably '93 or maybe '83. The DOT only requires that the date part of the full number be stamped on the intended outside of the tire. So a white letter tire would have all three sets of numbers on the lettered side, but the blackwall side would have only the two sets, the date part not required. Michelin says you should replace tires when they are worn or or are 10 years old based on purchase date, whichever comes first. They also say their dealers may sell new tires that are up to 3 years old. My take is to buy the cheapest new tires you can find in your size. They're still better performing and safer than anything available when our cars were new, and they'll be old long before we can wear them out.
When I bought my Vette last spring the tires looked brand new, I knew they weren't . Car road like it had square wheels as it had just been driven in and out of the garage only never seeing the road for ten years. When I bought the new tires the tire shop said they were 20 years old. [ 3 numbers ] I did save them for rollers for another project. One thing that I have seen is that guy's will buy a new set of tires for their restoration project and the tires will be junk before the car ever sees the driveway.
when i bought my vette last spring the tires looked brand new, i knew they weren't . Car road like it had square wheels as it had just been driven in and out of the garage only never seeing the road for ten years. When i bought the new tires the tire shop said they were 20 years old. [ 3 numbers ] i did save them for rollers for another project. one thing that i have seen is that guy's will buy a new set of tires for their restoration project and the tires will be junk before the car ever sees the driveway.
Firestone tire age
