Guest Nolie Posted October 27, 2016 Share Posted October 27, 2016 I pulled an unused spare tire off an Infiniti QX4 from 1998. It cleaned up very nice with all "new" tread and I don't think it has ever been on the ground. I checked it over and found no cracks or any indication the tire could be bad. It cleaned up very well and I put a lot of rubber cleaning products and the aluminum wheels look brand new. I'm thinking of using them on my QX4 this winter when the snow flies. What do you think of my plan? No profanity, please...... Mr. Cheap in Colorado Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lump Posted October 27, 2016 Share Posted October 27, 2016 You mention using, "them," which would suggest multiple tires. Yet you also only described taking the spare out of the trunk of one car? Many years ago, my parents bought a 1950 Hudson Commodore Six, with very low miles, which had been parked in a garage for decades. They found a brand new spare in the trunk, and ended up mounting it on the car. It was unused, but old. While traveling on the interstate, this brand new tire blew out. Dad took it back to Goodyear, who cheerfully replaced it for free. Now of course, tire technology and materials have improved tremendously in the last several decades. But an old tire is indeed, "old." It might work out fine, or it might blow out at the worst possible moment. You must decide which is best for you. But for ME....well, tires, brakes, and batteries are 3 areas that I choose to never compromise on. Just my preference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted October 27, 2016 Share Posted October 27, 2016 (edited) I would not use a tire that was almost 20 years old on a DD but, if you insist, then first have it fully inflated then professionally inspected, balanced, & spun for trueness. If it uses more than an ounce or two or is not quite round the tread may be separating internally. And don't drive over 25 mph. Keep in mind that spares are often not chosen for top quality. ps Lump reminded me that while you could often tell problems with bias tires from the outside, radials can hide issues particularly where steel belts are involved and a loose tread can really tear up a car. Edited October 27, 2016 by padgett (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
60FlatTop Posted October 27, 2016 Share Posted October 27, 2016 This coming Spring will be my 50th year of operating power plants. Somewhere in the beginning I was told "When in doubt, throw it out." It has been a wonderful policy and I can't begin to list the problems it has helped me avoid. Please, join me in my success. Bernie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JACK M Posted October 27, 2016 Share Posted October 27, 2016 The expected tire life these days is ten years. I had some low mileage Michelins on my motor home that looked good and I drove them. Its a bitch when you get a blow out in the middle of nowhere. I stepped up and bought new after that even thought they still looked as new. This is the same reason that you see boat trailers broken down along side the road so often. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Akstraw Posted October 27, 2016 Share Posted October 27, 2016 Agree with lump about not compromising on tires and brakes. I would add steering to the list. Given the stresses that tires see at highway speeds today, it's not worth the risk IMHO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emjay Posted October 27, 2016 Share Posted October 27, 2016 It's may not be worth it. I bought a car new in 1986 with Michelin tires and a full size spare, I rotated the four tires for close to 60,000 miles and six years. I thought I was ahead of the game when I found 3 matching tires, which were then out of production. However, the old spare soon had some failure in the belts and developed a lump and worn quickly there. The good news is the failure was not a side wall blowout. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted October 27, 2016 Share Posted October 27, 2016 Bottom line is don't. Will cost a lot more to replace a tire in nowhere special. But then am a fanatic. replaced the OEM tires on one car at three years and less than half worn because I started seeing the TC light come on in the rain.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amphicar BUYER Posted October 27, 2016 Share Posted October 27, 2016 It's not the miles, it's the months that matter. Time has it's way with everything no matter how good they look, you can not see how deteriorated they are. Do yourself (and those around you) be safe, keep it as a spare, but don't put it into service. You may be that guy with a flat during one of our blizzards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nolie Posted October 27, 2016 Share Posted October 27, 2016 Good words of wisdom. Can't give it to Goodwill because of the danger. Taking it to a local tire shop for disposal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPrice Posted October 29, 2016 Share Posted October 29, 2016 It's very simple. Tires deteriorate from inside out. Tires with good looking exteriors may be rotting on the inside. Don't take a chance with old tires. Rog Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
60FlatTop Posted October 29, 2016 Share Posted October 29, 2016 Never thought of taking it to Goodwill, There is an irony about that. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted October 29, 2016 Share Posted October 29, 2016 Humid climates are worse than dry. Nitrogen is an answer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinneyhill Posted October 30, 2016 Share Posted October 30, 2016 36 minutes ago, padgett said: Humid climates are worse than dry. Nitrogen is an answer. Why and why? What is the mechanism of this deterioration from the inside out? That means it is not UV exposure that is the problem, so what is? I haven't noticed this phenomenon here, although my cousin told me his 6-year-old tyres were rejected by the Warrant of Fitness tester because of cracks in the inside of the tyre, i.e. under the car. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C Carl Posted October 30, 2016 Share Posted October 30, 2016 Certainly U.V. is detrimental. All other things being equal , a tire which sees no sun will last longer than a sun baked one , obviously. But Padgett is correct about nitrogen. I read a very thorough description of the inexorable degradation of tires some time ago. It was stated that nitrogen could prolong the life of the tire by retarding the degradation. I can not remember the chemistry, but I am sure this would be easy for someone (Spinney with your academic abilities and curiousity?) , to research. This might be worthwhile, as compressed nitrogen is cheaper than tires. Particularly cheaper than expensive tires. Hmmmmmm .......... - Carl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted October 30, 2016 Share Posted October 30, 2016 Ever drain a tank compressor and get about a quart of water ? I have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Skyking Posted October 30, 2016 Share Posted October 30, 2016 Last year I needed tires for my 2000 Ram so I bought 3 and used the original spare that was under the bed since new. It was on a steel wheel and I had it switched to one of the Ram chrome wheels and it was perfect inside and out. I don't foresee any problem with this tire. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JACK M Posted October 30, 2016 Share Posted October 30, 2016 We sometimes use nitrogen in the race car tires. Sometimes they give us a long race and the tires will gain pressure with air. Don't park here !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misterc9 Posted October 30, 2016 Share Posted October 30, 2016 Old tires are trouble. Radials especially, they can give out when you least expect it. A hot day on the highway with old tires can be a recipe for disaster. They may look nice but don't trust them. Tires ten years old or more are unsuitable for highway use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted October 30, 2016 Share Posted October 30, 2016 I find it incongruous that in a hobby that's all about disposable income and expensive toys, people will use old tires just to save a few bucks. Tires are the #1 most important safety item on your car. If your brake pedal went to the floor but the car would still stop using the hand brake, would you say, "Nah, that's fine. I'm sure I won't have any problems," and keep driving it that way just to save a few dollars? Of course not. You'd spend the money and fix the brakes so the car would be safe. Why are tires different? Because it looks round and holds air? "Nah, that's fine. I'm sure I won't have any problems." (Please spare me the stories of doing just that in your youth--that doesn't make it OK.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Skyking Posted October 30, 2016 Share Posted October 30, 2016 I would like to know who puts new tires on their collector car every 6 years? Matt, you can start......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted October 30, 2016 Share Posted October 30, 2016 6 isn't 17, is it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Skyking Posted October 30, 2016 Share Posted October 30, 2016 1 minute ago, Matt Harwood said: 6 isn't 17, is it? The poster above quoted 6 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted October 30, 2016 Share Posted October 30, 2016 (edited) And you reassured him that it would be fine because you're using a 17-year-old tire on your Dodge and "don't foresee a problem." Good luck... I've had a lot of experience with tires and as a matter of fact, I do replace the tires on my cars regularly. I actually haven't owned any of my current cars long enough to need a second set of replacement tires, but yes, as soon as I buy an old car, I replace the tires. It's usually the first thing I do. I have put 18 tires on my 1929 Cadillac since 2014, 5 new tires on my 1941 Buick in August (you can see details of my tire woes in another thread on this very forum), 4 more tires on my 1941 Cadillac in the last few weeks, and more than $10,000 worth of tires on various cars in my inventory just this year. Melanie's Mustang came to us with a set of Goodyear GT+4s on it, which haven't been made since the 1990s, so I bought a new set of BFGs for that car shortly after we bought it even though the Goodyears looked OK. It's my wife and kids in that car, why would I take a chance? I could sell a car with a set of crappy, old, used tires on it, but that feels wrong to me. Safety matters and with the quality of many of today's radials, why take a chance with an old one? I've had radials that look fresh fail with alarming regularly. Take a look at this photo and note how much tread is remaining on those tires--I bet they have less than 1000 miles on them. That right there is an expensive brand-name radial on a car that hasn't been driven fast, far, or often. No obvious cracking on the sidewall or other evidence of problems. Car has always been stored indoors in a climate-controlled environment and away from UV rays. Yet it exploded as we moved the car in the parking lot at 2 MPH. Date code on the tire suggests it is 8 years old. So is six years OK, but eight years is too late? I don't know. But in a hobby where we spend tens of thousands of dollars on toys, why skimp on a few hundred bucks' worth of tires when they are so critical to safety? That seems foolhardy to me. But hey, I only drive hundreds of cars each year and see dozens of tire failures. What could I possibly know? Do what you want, it makes no difference to me. Edited October 30, 2016 by Matt Harwood (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F&J Posted October 30, 2016 Share Posted October 30, 2016 31 minutes ago, Matt Harwood said: I've had radials that look fresh fail with alarming regularly. Take a look at this photo and note how much tread is remaining on those tires--I bet they have less than 1000 miles on them. Pictures sometimes deceive, but it seems to have age cracks deep in the tread grooves? I see this a lot over the last 10 years for some reason. radials concern me, even though I drive everything slower that most people do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capngrog Posted October 30, 2016 Share Posted October 30, 2016 Matt said in his Post #20 above that "Tires are the most important safety item on your car"; however, I'm not sure they are the MOST important since steering and brakes are right up there on the list. Tires, and their condition are certainly more critical, since they are the most likely of the three items to fail WITH NO WARNING WHATSOEVER! Brakes and steering usually give a hint of imminent failure, and they can possibly fail abruptly; however, with redundant braking systems and modern steering, such failures are extremely rare. A frequent poster on this Forum lost a good friend last year when the rear tire on his Morgan three wheeler blew out. I would not recommend playing "Russian roulette" with questionable tires. Cheers, Grog Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinneyhill Posted October 31, 2016 Share Posted October 31, 2016 I haven't seen any science on this topic yet, so here is my layman's summary. This web site is my main source. http://tires.about.com/od/Tire_Safety_Maintenance/a/The-Science-Of-Tire-Aging.htm Aging of tyres is mainly by oxidation. The rubber dries out and stiffens, then cracks. UV is also deleterious, but not the main problem. The four main factors affecting aging are: the inner lining and how impervious it is. A layer of specialised butyl rubber is put on the inside, but it is never fully impervious to oxygen. the oxygen concentration. More oxygen = faster oxidation. Thus an inflated tyre on a wheel will deteriorate faster than one on the rack, because there is more oxygen on the inside of the tyre. The 2 or 3 atmospheres pressure inside also increase the rate of permeation of oxygen into the tyre. higher temperatures speed up oxidation. Thus hot places (climates and indoors) speed up aging, as does under-inflation. usage slows aging. Flexing and pressure causes circulation of the internal oils in the tyre, keeping it lubricated and slowing drying and stiffening. I also read somewhere that low profile tyres last slightly longer than higher profile tyres cos there is less side wall and they are subject to less bending and flexing. The following is from https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=138 The British Rubber Manufacturers Association (BRMA) recommended practice, issued June, 2001, states, "BRMA members strongly recommend that unused tyres should not be put into service if they are over six years old and that all tyres should be replaced ten years from the date of their manufacture." "Environmental conditions like exposure to sunlight and coastal climates, as well as poor storage and infrequent use, accelerate the aging process. In ideal conditions, a tyre may have a life expectancy that exceeds ten years from its date of manufacture. However, such conditions are rare. Aging may not exhibit any external indications and, since there is no non-destructive test to assess the serviceability of a tyre, even an inspection carried out by a tyre expert may not reveal the extent of any deterioration." More recently, the Japan Automobile Tire Manufacturers Association (JATMA) recommended practice, issued May, 2005, states, "Customers are encouraged to have their vehicle tires promptly inspected after five years of use to determine if the tires can continue to be used (recommends spare tires be inspected as well). Furthermore, even when the tires look usable, it is recommended that all tires (including spare tires) that were made more than ten years ago be replaced with new tires. Additionally, because in some cases automobile makers--based on the characteristics of the relevant vehicle--stipulate in the owner's manual the timing of tire inspection and replacement. Please read and confirm the content of the owner's manual." So there you have it. Last week I thought you were all carrying on alarming and couldn't understand it. Now I do and it is depressing! You might think hour tyres are expensive; tyres for older cars are at least twice the price here. I still have questions, of course. What is the effect of tyre paint? Does it help by making the tyre less pervious to oxygen? What about the old 6 ply and 8 ply tyres, which had very thick walls? I have some that are perhaps 30 years old and have no cracks, but boy are they stiff and hard work getting off the rim! They have been retired, basically because they were too big for the rims. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thegreendragon Posted October 31, 2016 Share Posted October 31, 2016 I agree with all the above but I had a funny experience a few years ago. I bought a 90 year old car that had been in a museum for probably 50 years---the tires looked good--had the original molding beads on them--but when I got home I had two flats in the trailer---I pulled the tires apart and I could pull the tubes apart with my hands but the tires looked and felt like new. I took the tires into our tire dealer and they couldn't believe it----they were like new and the tire company that made them had been out of business for over 40 years----I put in new tubes and have been driving the car for the past 7 years with no trouble (knock on wood) -----the car must have been up on blocks and out of the sun for that period. RHL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted November 1, 2016 Share Posted November 1, 2016 Also with tubes, there was no moist, pressurized air contacting the tire itself. Just looked at an '02 tire that has been dismounted and inside a temperature controlled garage and it looks new both inside and out. That said if you must use a vintage tire for a show or whatever then a modern tube inside is a really good idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nolie Posted November 1, 2016 Share Posted November 1, 2016 Thanks for the suggestion. Not a bad idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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