anyone changed tires after this?

Looks to me like a silly tire advertisement being passed off as news.

Check your tires for dry rot periodically if you aren't driving them very often. Buy tires from some place that sells a lot of tires. Don't buy crappy tires. And learn what to do in the event of a blowout and how to get the car to the side safely.

Tires today are a whole lot more reliable than they were when I was learning to drive. The downside of this is that people are a lot more surprised by tire failures and less likely to know what to do when a tire fails.

--scott

not so sure.

I looked at the tires I just got from Tirerack.com and was surprised all 4 tires had been manufactured at different time intervals, one tire was 6 years old, three tires were 5 years old

code on sidewall 1104, 0605, 4305, 4405

they were definitely not an identical sibling set while they otherwise looked identical

And this is a problem why?

--scott

This came out in the newsgroup some time ago. And it is true. If the tires are stored

This came out in the newsgroup some time ago. And it is true.

If the tires are stored properly, there may be no significant deterioration, but if they arent, then oxidation, ozone cracking, "dry rot" etc can cause them to lose some of their vitality.

There was one poster on the group that made a big issue about getting aging tires off your car, as he cited that this sort of deterioration could make them unsafe after a set period of time, regardless of treadwear or mileage. It is probably a significant comment, but most of us just dont do it.

It is fair enough to ask Costco to use recent date codes.

I watched it. There was not a shred of evidence presented showing "old" tires were any more likely to come apart then new ones. All it shows is a lawyer who makes millions suing people making unsupported statements of danger. Industry groups who will benefit by making you throw away good tires and buy new ones, and of course, the news media who have to show stories to scare you, whether fact based or not, to get ratings. If there is research showing a statistically meaningful relationship between age (unused) and use why isn't it ever cited. The closest they came was showing a picture of an unidentified tire being spun on a machine while they said "research shows". What research, who did it, where can I get a copy, etc... I've had numerous "old" tires and have NEVER had a problem with them. On the other hand, we've had MANY NEW tires come flying apart, usually Firestones.

I agree. To get back to the original post, months ago (or is it years now?) I would have to go into the archives, and I may do that if I run out of everything else to do.

My sis just had a tread throw off a relatively new BF Goodrich, taking a substantial part of the Ford 150 bed fascia and under pinnings with it. Tire was about 2 years old, tread was good. It was not underinflated, nor was she driving at high speed. Cost several thousand dollars to repair the damage, but she wasnt hurt. We got the Goodrich's off and put on a new set of tires I researched off tirerack.com

We'll see...

I made the post couple/few years ago when I was *active* in this n/g, and caught a little flack for it. Posted by Lawrence snipped-for-privacy@comcast.net

This is an OLD story, but I still don't know what to make of it. You hear that 40,000 die on highways in the US every year. How many are from tire failure? Nobody knows.

Lg

I remember you very well. I think you got a little irked at me when I told you my Michelins had 7 years on them and plenty of tread, and didnt intend to replace them.

Finally, I did replace them, but they lasted a long long time.

I am trying the high end Kumho's now. So far, they are excellent.

All 40,000 died of speed too fast. After all, Cops with a GED are experts at everything related to highways.

Never *irked* at you personally. I think I had just taken enough shit from the Bob's to put me in a bad mood overall.

Yah tires are important. They are all that stand between us and death when we're up to speed on the interstate. We should be able to trust them with our lives.

I'm still running on my Continentals with 40K on them, good tread left and since I keep it garaged, no UV damage or ozone degradation. I'm surprised they have as much tread on them as they do, but then again, I keep an eye on the tire pressures and adjust seasonally according to weather conditions (hot/cold). I know Nate doesn't like em, but on my Merc, they work a treat.

Anyhow, it's a complicated subject because there are so many players in the market now. Chinese tires, US tires, who knows what else. My next set will be Continentals as they were OEM on the vehicle, and I'm sure that Ford/Lincoln/Mercury took time to get the right tires on that car for good handling and best ride combination. Recalling 5 million tires isn't what anybody wants. Or if the ride isn't good to begin with, the customer doesn't buy the vehicle to begin with. So they're important for safety and sales. Often overlooked by the average joe.

Happy holidays to you and the group, and wishing you a prosperous and healthy 2010.

Lg

Speed Kills. No doubt about it. Ever seen a car cut in two by a tree by some guy who couldn't keep it on the road? I've driven by this more than once.

Anyhow, cops have Interceptor Tires, rated for much higher speeds than the stuff you and I buy. Same with their engines. Interceptor engines. Their vehicles are hunter/predator vehicles, and are designed for performance, not comfort. At least in the USA where I live. Don't know about elsewhere. But if you want to torture test a tire, put it on a New York City taxi cab ;0) Then again, they don't do highway driving at hi speeds, so maybe they're not a good overall choice.

The most important things are you wheels/tires and brakes. Everything else is somewhere under those top two items of interest IMO, when it comes to safety. And ironically, they may be the two things that most people ignore the most.

Lg

Thanks and the same to you. The manufacturer doesnt always pick the "best" tires for you. I learned that with our Avalon. It came with expensive Michelins which lasted about 30K miles.

They had great adherence, and were quiet, but treadlife was not acceptable.

That is why I went to Kumho.

I dont mind trying something new, but I dont swallow the first hook that goes in the water.

Are you stuck in the 60's?? They have the same Z-rated tires that come on most anything else. Due to drive shaft issues the cop crown vics were, for several years, speed limited to less then 130 mph. I used to drive almost that fast in a 70 Plymouth with low bid gvt bias tires on it.

Are you stuck in the 60's. Due to the cost of getting an engine emission certified no one does "interceptor" engines anymore. They are the same engines anyone else can buy. The only difference, sometimes, is they may not offer that engine in the car unless it's ordered as the police vehicle because they don't want to screw up their CAFE number.

The current PI Crown Vic is essentially the same as what anyone can buy. The main difference now days between teh cop versions and non-cop are higher output electric system to handle the lights and radios and an added oil and ps cooler.

The 60's???

If you want to torture test a tire put it on something that carries a lot of weight at high speed, such as the typical fat county sheriffs car after the dumbfrick has packed in his morning dozen donuts.

At least your closing makes some sense.

Nahh, a lot of them die from too much beer before driving and/or too much attention paid to the cellphone and the hamburger they're eating. Driving too fast for conditions is certainly right up there, though.

--scott

Actually, I have a 2006 Crown Vic P.I. car. The cop tires are very different, to the tune of $350 per tire (Firestone 235R55/17), as compared to the Firehawks I wound up buying at about $700 for a set of 4.

I would guess the cops order the special packages on some of their units, not on others, and the amount of equipment available used to be substantial.

My tires are rated at 168 mph, or more, just like the Michelins they replaced. Main difference is the OEM selected Michelin has a much poorer expected tread life.

A couple of my friends, Porsche owners, essentially talked me out of buying a Porsche, because they had to replace their tires at 10-15K miles, at about $2100. It isnt Porsche's fault, really....mostly very specific purpose tires and possibly some over aggressive driving.

I looked at the van and the tire they said failed, its an astro van that's about

I don't doubt that tires get harder and more likely to fail as they get older, but I think this guys old van had old shot tires on it when it crashed. But there is no money in that so off to the ambulance chaser he goes.

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