Old tire competition
 

OK, the numerous recent threads about old / aging tires has prompted me to start this competition.

Who has the oldest tire that is still is use on the car? It is actually one of the four tires touching the road.

Who has the oldest tire that is ACTUALLY being used as a spare tire?

I will come up with a suitable prize for each of these.

You MUST post a picture of the date code of your tire to be considered in the competition.

It does not matter if the tire is bias belt or radial, all that matters is that the tire is actually being used as a road tire or a spare.

OK, show us what you got!

I Have the original spare / rim for my 66 and it still holds air.
It was in the tire tub when I bought the car in 1986.
I can post a pic of it later.
And no I would never think of using it.☺

Good call.

And it is not really being used as an active spare.

The tires on my '54 are 20 years old and are still round.

I have a low mile '57 Chebby which has its original spare.

The 78 I have here have the original tires with 547 miles and the original spare
All in perfect condition

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...ec5a496f3f.jpg
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...b05491c712.jpg
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...f8954262e6.jpg
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...e2f9362254.jpg
Original spare and rim from my June '67 built coupe. No dates on tires this old, by the way.

I have the original spare that came in my '65 Nova SS. It'll be in the trunk when the car goes back on the road. It's a pretty good size match for the 195 X 14 Michelin X radial tires I bought for the car about 1980. I could mount up the 8.50 X 14 M&H RaceMasters I have for the car. They have tubes in them but I think they hold air okay No good for drag racing anymore. They are 1965 vintage tires.

The original spare is in the tub on my '65 Corvette. General Jet Air. Still holds air Don't know how it rolls.

I have a set of F 70 X 15 fiberglass belted radials mounted for the '65 Corvette. I bought them about 1975. I drove the car two hour round trip to Bowling Green about 5-6 years ago and they were rolling good. Replaced them with Coker Gold lines/KO's. Age of tires unknown but I'd guess ten years.

My Corvair has a full set of BFG Radial Trans Ams on it. I bought the car about 1980. They still on it so they have to be at least 38 years old. Still round, still holding air.

Various motorcycles and garden tractors collection here that are mid-60's to mid '70's that still have original tires on them and still good.

The FIrestones on my '15 Ford (all 4 of them) are from prior to 1978....probably 1974-75. No date codes. So, 40+ years old. My buddy is running 4 Wards Riversides on his '26 T, and his dad purchased and installed them in 1950. From 1994-96, I ran a set of 1966 vintage triple stripe whitewalls on my '66 Coronet...they were as old as the car at the time, 30 years.

I have the original gold line spare tire off my 66. I actually used it for the car to roll around with when I was restoring the car. I'd never use it under normal use. And it holds air just fine.

Not even close.

I still have two of the original tires off of my 63 on the original wheels, Heck, they may even have some original St Louis factory air. :) I wore them down and replaced them with Firestone 500's on Cragars before they were a year old.

And we will all hope that nothing bad happened to the buyer or any potential riders in his vehicle.

I refused to sell what looked like a beautiful set of 205/75R15 tires with 1500 miles on them. They looked great, and had no wear or aging indications at all. They were all dated the 42nd week of 2007. I did not need or want the money at the expense of my conscience. A decision we each have to make for ourselves.

To be fair, I have used tires that were older than 10 years on occasion, but only as garage roll arounds.

I believe that DOT markings were mandated starting in 1971

Having old tires using them sparingly for shows etc. Is fine in my opinion but travelling regularly at highway speeds is just asking for trouble with radials or polyglas tires. They will separate and peel the tread right off of the tire. The old bias belted tires don't have the same concerns.

I entered this contest hoping for a prize. When are you awarding trophies and does everyone get one?

I was surprised to see many 70+ year old and original tires among antique/early cars.
Guess with relatively lower speeds, less weight and substantially lower forces these old tires can really last.