When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Gone are the days of just measuring your tire tread with a penny to see if you need to replace them. Now you need to know your tires’ birthday too! Because research indicates that tires more than six years old should be retired, regardless of their tread depth or their miles on the road.
Here’s why:
As tires age and are exposed to heat, the rubber deteriorates. That’s because rubber absorbs oxygen, which causes what is called thermo-oxidative aging. Sean Kane, president of Safety Research & Strategies, Inc., an organization that researches and analyses motor vehicle issues, gives us an everyday point of comparison:
“If you take a rubber band that’s been sitting around a long time and stretch it, you will start to see cracks in the rubber.”
Research over the past 30 years, and even earlier, raised questions about the safety risks of aging tires, but the rubber industry and automakers were slow to share this information with lawmakers or consumers.
In 1985, tire manufacturer Uniroyal first publicly shared its concerns about the tire safety of newly introduced radial tires, which were advertised to last much longer than old style tire models.
The national uproar over Ford Explorer rollovers in the early 1990s focused on SUV stability standards, but failed to note that tires older than six years experienced tread separation that, at highway speeds, contributed to lethal accidents.
In 2002, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposed an aging test for tires, but opposition from the rubber and auto industries was so powerful that the proposal went nowhere.
Five years later, in 2007, NHTSA delivered a Research Report to Congress on Tire Aging, with the results of a study of tire-related auto insurance claims between 2002 and 2006. This research indicated that 77% of tire-related claims came from five hot-climate states, and 84% were based on tires more than six years old.
Finally, in 2008, NHTSA issued a consumer advisory urging motor vehicle owners to check with manufacturers about tire aging to see what they recommended. Car safety advocates continue to call for actual regulations about tire age, but to date none have surfaced.
Tires are a very interesting topic since I have found that 99% of drivers, even amongst car enthusiasts, are completely misunderstood. I have found over 30+ years of driving that tire age is only one component that should be monitored as the tire ages and used as a determinant as to whether a tire should be retired from service. The reason that age cannot be used as the sole factor to determine its useful life are the following:
1. Different manufacturers make differing quality tires based on materials and construction techniques-A Michelin tire (premium manufacturer) is going to be very different than a Chinese tire, even if its the same type tire with similar speed ratings
2. Speed Ratings Matter: Most people think that I don't need a Z rated (above 149 MPH rating, Y sub rating-186 MPH) tire because I don't drive anywhere near the aforementioned speeds. The fact is and the driving force behind the decision that every tire I own for every car-new and old-have a ZR rated tire is because these tires have a MUCH STRONGER construction than a crap S rated tire (112 MPH)-A Michelin Pilot Super Sport ZR (W/Y sub rating) is in a different universe from say a BFG Radial TA S rated tire-no contest! I am not referring to racing either-just normal street/highway driving.
3. Proper Tire Inflation-Again, the fact is whether the tire is 8 years old or 3 years old, under inflation will make a tire run MUCH HOTTER than with inflation of 30-35+. Tire inflation is just as important in cold weather as hot since tire inflation naturally drops with cold temps-reason you see many tire blowouts if the temperature drops low quickly from one day to the next. Result: tire blow outs at highway speeds. A high speed rated tire will resist this tendency much more than a low speed rated tire since the higher speed rated tire is designed to run much hotter at very high speeds. Improper tire inflation is probably the #1 factor in tire blowouts..
4. Visual Inspection: Rather than depend on the date of birth of the tire, make it a habit to look for cracks in the tread and especially the sidewalls of the rubber compound…Any cracks in the sidewall area necessitates replacement, regardless of age….I have seen cracks in very young tires and zero cracks in older tires-See why the manufacturing date does not tell the whole story?
5. Ultraviolet Sun light exposure-Probably one of the biggest reasons the rubber in tires deteriorates at varying degrees depending on exposure. If the tire lives in the desert or desert like conditions 24 hours a day, every day, the rubber will deteriorate much faster than ones in cooler climates, covered in a garage, most of the time. My 78 L-82 has 255/45/17 ZR's that spend 99.9% of the time in the garage under a car cover-tires look perfect after 7 years…no need to replace-will probably go 10 years with these tires, maybe more based on the visual inspection. Example #2: 2001 Pontiac Grand Prix currently has Goodyear Ultra Grip V rated Snow tires (Many State Police Agencies use this winter tire) with a build date of 2002-no cracks anywhere, rubber though is getting harder-will replace after this winter-Driven less than 4,000 miles per winter per year, covered in the garage for 9 months every year.
6. Real World Operation: I have experienced 2 sets of tires over the many years where the visual inspection indicated replacement AND the tire was exhibiting poor braking performance under moderate to hard braking on a dry surface-the front or rear tires would LOCK prematurely from the hardening of the rubber tread from age/climate exposure which was never experienced before. Time to replace ASAP.
I applaud the lack of legislation mandating replacement of tires after X number of years since the issue really is more about many factors than one DOB number. The last thing most of us need is the government trying to protect us from ourselves with more rules/laws and universal planned obselenscence for every tire -no thanks .Just another viewpoint.
Last edited by jb78L-82; Mar 21, 2015 at 12:34 PM.
I have bias ply firestone redline tires on my 1969. Are the DOT numbers and letters stamped on my brand of tires? I need to take a closer look!!
Yep they're on all tires....location of the date made is a little different per tire. Google "tire manufacture date" and they'll show where to look on your tire.
When I got my BF Goodrich tires about a year ago, I told the salesperson that I wanted the tires made in 2014 and I wanted to see, on the tire, the code (date). They were all 2014 tires.
Yep they're on all tires....location of the date made is a little different per tire. Google "tire manufacture date" and they'll show where to look on your tire.
When I got my BF Goodrich tires about a year ago, I told the salesperson that I wanted the tires made in 2014 and I wanted to see, on the tire, the code (date). They were all 2014 tires.
Tire Rack also has a short tutorial on reading date codes. It's generally accepted that when tires hit the 6-7 year mark it's time to replace them.
I had some Firehawk Indy 500's that were 10+ years old with good tread because not driven more than a few thousand miles a year. Needed balancing and went to Discount Tire. They would not even touch the tires that old. Did not want to invest near $800 for a new set of tires, so ended up going with 225/70-15's instead Firestone Destination LE2. And, 4 tires for price of 3. Really don't see that much different visually but I really like the performance for what has turned into a 65 mile daily commuter again. Smooth ride. Picked up 2 mpg with the slightly narrower tire and newer rubber/tread technology. Great in rainy weather, which we have had an abundance of in the last 3 weeks in southeast Texas.
Last edited by Wrecked82; Mar 22, 2015 at 05:51 PM.
If you're just putting around town, you can get by with a little older tire. But if you plan on doing a little spirited driving, why risk it.
I have had a sidewall blow out on a modern tubeless tire and it was pretty dramatic. Major bang (gunshot?) then it got a little squirlly. Luckily, I was going about 40 down a straight road. The tires were a major brand, good quality tires. The other 3 looked good, but the company replaced all 4 because they were 6+yrs old. So, it can happen.
I recently replace my c3 tires that were 8 yrs old that had about 30% tread wear left and xlnt looking sidewalls. I feel a lot safer on the local mountain roads.
3yrs ago this happened to mates '79 after a good looking old tyre let go going up a hill on a club run.
didn't think at the time to take a photo of the tyre.
prompted me to look at my tyre dates.
2 were around 15yrs and the other 2 were even older.
and my car has been downunder since august 2006, so they old before it left you guys
The date code for tires is displayed in the format xx (week) yy (year)...so 2610 would be 26th week of 2010...
Btw-scary stories of tire blowouts. Fact is the number of tire blowouts for newer tires are extensive as well. Check your tires, proper inflation 30-35+ psi regardless of psi on car sill, high speed rating...minimum of V, prefer Z rated tires-if you have 15 inch rims you are pretty much limited to S/T rated tires...change those much more often..
Last edited by jb78L-82; Mar 23, 2015 at 03:43 PM.
When I bought my 69 it had an almost new set of tires, ~15 years old. I wanted to upgrade to wider tread but was still having misgivings, after all there looked to be quite a bit of life still left in them. I felt much better when the tire center manager told me "I thought these were still good, but when I pulled them from the rims, the sidewalls disintegrated."
Better that it happened in the tire shop than on the road ...
Tires are a very interesting topic since I have found that 99% of drivers, even amongst car enthusiasts, are completely misunderstood. I have found over 30+ years of driving that tire age is only one component that should be monitored as the tire ages and used as a determinant as to whether a tire should be retired from service. The reason that age cannot be used as the sole factor to determine its useful life are the following:
1. Different manufacturers make differing quality tires based on materials and construction techniques-A Michelin tire (premium manufacturer) is going to be very different than a Chinese tire, even if its the same type tire with similar speed ratings
2. Speed Ratings Matter: Most people think that I don't need a Z rated (above 149 MPH rating, Y sub rating-186 MPH) tire because I don't drive anywhere near the aforementioned speeds. The fact is and the driving force behind the decision that every tire I own for every car-new and old-have a ZR rated tire is because these tires have a MUCH STRONGER construction than a crap S rated tire (112 MPH)-A Michelin Pilot Super Sport ZR (W/Y sub rating) is in a different universe from say a BFG Radial TA S rated tire-no contest! I am not referring to racing either-just normal street/highway driving.
3. Proper Tire Inflation-Again, the fact is whether the tire is 8 years old or 3 years old, under inflation will make a tire run MUCH HOTTER than with inflation of 30-35+. Tire inflation is just as important in cold weather as hot since tire inflation naturally drops with cold temps-reason you see many tire blowouts if the temperature drops low quickly from one day to the next. Result: tire blow outs at highway speeds. A high speed rated tire will resist this tendency much more than a low speed rated tire since the higher speed rated tire is designed to run much hotter at very high speeds. Improper tire inflation is probably the #1 factor in tire blowouts..
4. Visual Inspection: Rather than depend on the date of birth of the tire, make it a habit to look for cracks in the tread and especially the sidewalls of the rubber compound…Any cracks in the sidewall area necessitates replacement, regardless of age….I have seen cracks in very young tires and zero cracks in older tires-See why the manufacturing date does not tell the whole story?
5. Ultraviolet Sun light exposure-Probably one of the biggest reasons the rubber in tires deteriorates at varying degrees depending on exposure. If the tire lives in the desert or desert like conditions 24 hours a day, every day, the rubber will deteriorate much faster than ones in cooler climates, covered in a garage, most of the time. My 78 L-82 has 255/45/17 ZR's that spend 99.9% of the time in the garage under a car cover-tires look perfect after 7 years…no need to replace-will probably go 10 years with these tires, maybe more based on the visual inspection. Example #2: 2001 Pontiac Grand Prix currently has Goodyear Ultra Grip V rated Snow tires (Many State Police Agencies use this winter tire) with a build date of 2002-no cracks anywhere, rubber though is getting harder-will replace after this winter-Driven less than 4,000 miles per winter per year, covered in the garage for 9 months every year.
6. Real World Operation: I have experienced 2 sets of tires over the many years where the visual inspection indicated replacement AND the tire was exhibiting poor braking performance under moderate to hard braking on a dry surface-the front or rear tires would LOCK prematurely from the hardening of the rubber tread from age/climate exposure which was never experienced before. Time to replace ASAP.
I applaud the lack of legislation mandating replacement of tires after X number of years since the issue really is more about many factors than one DOB number. The last thing most of us need is the government trying to protect us from ourselves with more rules/laws and universal planned obselenscence for every tire -no thanks .Just another viewpoint.
Last thing we need is our corrupt, lying, moron government sticking there nose into anything.
I just learned a lesson on tire dates myself, I found a practically new set of Michelins on Craigslist for a great price, fortunately when the tires were being mounted the bead separated which prompted the tire guy to check the dates, turns out these brand new tires were 15 years old. $300 later I now know how to check the dates on tires. So I am still looking for 245 60 R16s
WELL aware of the junk that's been sold over the recent decades....just know ONE thing.....Mom's '63 Olds F85....fore runner of the Cutless hotrods.....well that car sat in the folks garage from ~68 through ~92? and finally got sold off, I just pumped up the tires, they not flat, and don't remember if they came with the car or not only 35k on the car....
course it sat in a garage, door down most of those decades....but still never an issuellll house faced east garage on south side....even the paint fades on the car in spots because of the garage window....but not the tires, never gave then a second thought....
I think it's crap construction, along with everything else these daze.....
Replacing the 10 year old Eagle GT II's on the front of the C3 this year. Installed them in summer 2005. Prolly under 10k miles but time is just as bad as use on a sunny day driver.
Will install the Mastercraft (Cooper) Avenger GT's in their place (P255-60R15).
WATCH your tires!!
