My elderly parents have a 1996 Saturn SL2 that has about 25,000 miles on it. Three of the four tires are original. While the tread looks fine, I'm wondering if the three 10-year-old tires need to be replaced. The research I've done indicates that while tire manufacturers don't think that age is a factor, many auto companies recommend replacement at about 5-6 years. What do other Saturn owners recommend? Thank you for your help.
Are the tires weatherchecking on the sidewalls? If not, I would run them and just keep a close eye on them.
Ken
What does "weatherchecking" mean, please?
In my own words, it will show up as a bunch of fine cracks on the sidewalls. Here are a couple of links that go into the subject to a much greater depth.
Ken
for safety sake for your parents I would replace the tires every 5 years max!! If they show sidewall rear I would replace them immediately.. you wouldn't feel right if they had an accident because of them.. would you now
Thanks very much for the links.
Yeah, I think I'm going to replace them, just for the peace of mind.
I ride a motorcycle, and won't ride any motorcycle with tires over 3 years old--except maybe slowly and carefully to a shop to have the tires replaced.
With age, the plasticizers evaporate out of the rubber, the rubber gets harder, and the tires have less adhesion. Parking in the sun speeds this process, as ultraviolet exposure facilitates the evaporation of the plasticizers somehow.
Granted, this is much less of a factor with car tires than motorcycle tires, but I'd probably replace any car tires that were over five years old.
What about tires with a warranty 6 years or longer? The first set of tires I put on my SL1 had a 70,000 mile warranty and I only drive 10,000 a year.
ron herfurth
You're a good "kid" . Nice to see you are looking after the "old folks." "
the federal saftey people say change tires that are more than 5 years old.. period. It has nothing to do with wear as much as it has to do with UV
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