Tire Expiration

[killramos]

Hey guys so I'm coming to beyond with a topic that I am less than familiar with. Coming time to swap summers onto my fiancées truck (08 FJ Cruiser).

The problem? The tires have not been on the vehicle since August 2009. The tires are also to the best of my knowledge the original equipment that came on the car. The truck has been on winters since 09 (don't ask, not my car, not my decison) but now that I have taken over dealing with regular maintenance on her vehicles since she is aparently incompetant we are going to do proper tire swapping lol.

So the tires, mounted on rims, are quite old. They have been garage stored wrapped in totes since.

Are these tires pooched due to age? They show no visible damage and have greater than 50% tread remaining.

The other consideration is aparently the tires are pretty shit as far as reviews on tire rack go so I might be a good time to put some better rubber on.

I have read a bit online saying that due to the age they are probably trash but I wanted to get a second final opinion before I drop another grand on torea this year ( 4th set in 12 months :banghead: )

Thanks in advance,

:goflames:

[HomespunLobster]

If they aren't cracked they'd make a good summer tire. I'd not want to chance them on ice.
Run them this year and buy a new set next year?

[ExtraSlow]

Being kept out of the sun helps a lot. Rubber deteriorates with UV, which is a big problem for Trailer tires.
The rubber compound can become less elastic (harden) over time, so not a good choice for winter driving.

[jacky4566]

Always good for drift tires!

If these are for a DD I wouldn't see a problem unless they are cracked, faded, peeling, what not.

[Aleks]

This thread says 6 years tops to be safe.

http://www.tiresafetygroup.com/tires-expire-in-six-years/

Also if FJ is a truck, can I refer to my Tundra as an SUV? :burnout:

[benyl]

I've seen it in more than one place. 10 years is stored properly.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=138

[Thaco]

Originally posted by Aleks
This thread says 6 years tops to be safe.

http://www.tiresafetygroup.com/tires-expire-in-six-years/

Also if FJ is a truck, can I refer to my Tundra as an SUV? :burnout:

a truck is anything on a truck frame, a pickup is a truck with a box, i call my yukon a truck all the time... potato potatoe

[speedog]

6 years, hah. I sold a vehicle last year that had been stored away indoors for 20 years - it had Michelin Sport EPX's (225/60R14's) on it, pumped the tires full of air and the son/Dad that bought drove it back to Lethbridge that night. Sidewalls were cracked and I told them how old the tires were and they didn't think it was a big deal - I certainly wouldn't have driven 120 miles on those tires.

[tirebob]

6 year old truck SUV tires like that? I wouldn't hesitate to run them assuming they have been stored properly and not lying in puddles of oil etc...

[CanmoreOrLess]

I'd not chance driving on old tires, if it goes bad, it goes real bad. I'd always be worried about a blowout, add to it the fact it is on a vehicle of the person you intend to marry? Well, if I'm fucking something up it won't be placing my wife to-be in a real shitshow of an experience. Pick your place, the Deerfoot at 120 would be the worst.

A tire at 50-60% is already very near if not already crap, real fun on the highway or in a rainstorm.

I was going to say call Bob... but I see he is in the opposite camp and sells tires. Eh, what's he know?

[tirebob]

Originally posted by CanmoreOrLess
I'd not chance driving on old tires, if it goes bad, it goes real bad. I'd always be worried about a blowout, add to it the fact it is on a vehicle of the person you intend to marry? Well, if I'm fucking something up it won't be placing my wife to-be in a real shitshow of an experience. Pick your place, the Deerfoot at 120 would be the worst.

A tire at 50-60% is already very near if not already crap, real fun on the highway or in a rainstorm.

I was going to say call Bob... but I see he is in the opposite camp and sells tires. Eh, what's he know?

The thing is, that is not old... It all comes down to condition. Tires are realistically made to go a long period of time. This aged tire debate has been blown out of proportion by media, liabilities, etc...

That said, not all situations are to be handled identically. If these tires were left laying in a farmers field, half buried in mud and ice during the winter and baking in the sun during the summer, I would not recommend just using them, but stored in doors, away from the elements etc, 6 years is nothing for a street use tire. Think about what tires go through every day of their lives during use, and this would be a considered holiday for them.

[revelations]

Sell them on KIJIJI based on tread life if youre so worried. Someone might just use them on dirt roads and kill them in a year or less anyway.

For eg. we have a truck purely used for the occasional hauling needs. This would be a perfect tire for us if we had to replace.

[Thaco]

Originally posted by CanmoreOrLess
I'd not chance driving on old tires, if it goes bad, it goes real bad. I'd always be worried about a blowout, add to it the fact it is on a vehicle of the person you intend to marry? Well, if I'm fucking something up it won't be placing my wife to-be in a real shitshow of an experience. Pick your place, the Deerfoot at 120 would be the worst.

A tire at 50-60% is already very near if not already crap, real fun on the highway or in a rainstorm.

I was going to say call Bob... but I see he is in the opposite camp and sells tires. Eh, what's he know? my wife had a blowout on stoney at 120 on a 4 month old tire... it could happen reguardless of tire age.

[That.Guy.S30]

Off topic, but the OE tires for an fj cruiser (non trd) are complete garbage.