Tire question

They harden with age, regardless of use.

The allowed shelf-life in stores is 6 years, after that it's illegal to sell even unused tires over here. When they get hard, they lose grip. IT's legal to DRIVE them however.. at your own risk.

The mfg date is on the sidewall, with all the other small print.

Jan

So I shouldn't rely upon this original 1970 spare tire? Oops. j/k

I did put on an old tire once. I didn't realize just how old until a week later I noticed all the tread had worn off already and it was showing threads. Yikes.

Run them and see how they feel, they could have very little traction in the rain, and keep an eye out for cracking(dry rot).

Most tire manufactures discontinues a tire line every few years, try getting Komhus 771's any more.

Beetles (stock) wearout tires very slowly even as daily drivers its having the wheels at the corners of the car,( didn't Chrysler just come up with that idea about ten years ago.

I have had new tires go bad in short useage, so even new tires should be inspected by owner often. Hey its your A$$ .

Mario

You must sit in your VW *very* strangely.

Bill, I experienced the same dilemma just 2 months ago.

The 4 tires on my car were about 8-9 years old, plenty of tread left, and the car is garaged most of the time. The tires were the cheap Pep Boys ones that have been discussed here in the past.

About a year ago, I saw something on TV about old tires being unsafe, and started to think about replacing the VW's tires. I decided it would be done when I had the extra $$. The tires had the typical fine cracking that you see on older tires, but other wise looked OK w/ plenty of life left.

In August, I was checking air pressures when I noticed that the one tire was developing a golf ball size blister on the side wall, while another looked like the tread portion was separating from the tire body ( the mesh steel was showing through a newly developed gap on the sidewall).

That week, I bought 4 new Firestone Eurometrics (the only brand that was available in stock in my area). These were more expensive the the cheapies. Pep Boys, Sears, NTB would have to order them.

Steering, ride quality, etc. is MUCH better. I could not believe the difference. Whether it's because the other tires were old/ cheap, I don't know, but shop around before you buy.

I would say don't risk your safety (and your prized car) with old tires that may have low miles and have been well cared for/not abused. Buy the new ones before something tragic happens.

=================================

" ..... I ain't no bandleader!!"

Wheels at the corner of the car? Nothing new there, my Dad has a 1947 MG TC like that.

I think they wear slowly because Bugs are light weight and the tires are large diameter.

My tyres are certainly hardly showing any wear. They were new in 1998 and I've done 15,000 miles.

Thanks for all the help guys. I called a local tire store and they said that the last 4 digits of the DOT number are the year and month of mfg. Bill Berckman

Ozone in the air oxidizes the rubber in tires. That leads to deterioration. This type of deterioration isn't usually visible. The last I heard, 10 years was the upper limit on safe tire life. If you only drive at low speeds--like under 30mph, tires older than ten years aren't as immediate a concern. But, if you ever drive faster, I'd change them pronto. They might disintegrate under the strain.

wear slower?! hmmmmm mine has worn out front tires.... bad tie rod ends and they didnt last 2 years.

BTW... i have a sears 165/15 polyester bias ply (slick as can be) as a spare for my 69... i'll have to go take a pic of it... i dont worry about it because it wont hold air for more than a few days... and I cant drive the car!

I made 90 000KM with a Michelin 165/15 XZX the tubes I 'm using now have 23 years and they don't have any leak. The tires I have now have about 15 years and 40

Joao

"dragenwagen" wrote: