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Teach me Tires, Follow Up- GOT NEW TIRES
montanajoe
Forums Admins, Member, Moderator Posts: 60,240 ******
How old is too old??? (is that even a fair question)
The new used car we bought for our granddaughter checked out great with our long trusted mechanic.
So now I look at the tires. They are Cooper Ultra touring M/S 205 65R15 with a date code of 42nd week of 2015. The tires have lots of tread left and show no dry rot or cracking. Still good to go?
Car is an 2001 Cam Marie with 83K miles. Thanks.
Comments
My feeling is that 2015 is OK if this is for an everyday, drive around town to shop & work. I've had Coopers and had no problems. If she was going on a big interstate trip, I might consider buying new ones and selling your current ones, not let them go to your tire dealer.
Is the driver knowledgeable and observant or just the typical younger driver?
She has a pretty good general knowledge of cars and pays attention.
The older but solid tires should be OK. Tire maintenance is a constant vigil that many driver's choose to ignore. Personally, I haven't purchased a new tire for a decade. All my vehicles run on re-caps or used tires bought from a reputable internet seller. The money I save pays the time I spend well.
About time to start smoking them off till bald
The aging process in synthetic materials varies depending on exposure to sun & heat, so time is not the only consideration. Here in MN, tires kept in a cold garage can be expected to have a longer life than outdoors in AZ.
What is her safety and your peace of mind worth? Replace or least have them checked out by a tire professional you trust. That's just my 2 cents worth of opinion, but I would have them checked. Bob
Michelin says 7 years.
Where's Bpost? He's the authority on tires around here.
What's the tires' location? Montana? Here in Alaska I had tires on my '63 Land Rover that were at least 15, maybe 20 years old. BF Goodrich Mud T/As and they had crazing all around the sidewalls. I drive it daily and they never leaked, never needed any air added, worked great in the snow and ice and in the mud and rocks offroad. I imagine Montana will be similar, we're not cooking our tires in the sun.
floating around the ohio river on his new boat, will have to wait few days for his expert opinion.............
i get tires at wal mart also. usually order thru wal mart .com and have local store install. i also get their 10.00 road hazard guarantee good at any wal mart anywhere. it has paid off for me several times in the past several years.
To me time is the most important component of my life. You only get so much, you don't know how much till the end, and you can not buy any more. I hate wasting time due to vehicle failure. I don't buy new vehicles, but chose older models that have a reputation for reliability and that have been well cared for. I don't like spending the time and money for maintaining my cars but I see the necessity and believe in having a good mechanic that I trust and buying the very best parts I can get. There are two vehicles in my yard at night and the value of both would not impress anyone, just a few thousand dollars. But they run and drive great. Both have Michelin tires in excellent condition, and Mobile One in the crankcases and in the tranny for one of them. I do at least 40 miles a day on a major highway and I see the results of worn tires when it rains. Cars hydroplaning into the cables that divide the highway. Oh and windshield wipers, another pet peeve of mine. I usually change them every six months and good ones cost $30.00 or $40.00 a set. Yup you can get them for ten bucks but when it is pouring rain and the wind is blowing, that extra few dollars makes a world of difference. Buying cheap parts costs too much in the long run. Sort of like spending $1500.00 for that new .300 Magnum rifle and screwing a $129.00 scope on top. Makes no sense to me.
Just make sure she has a good spare. Then either show her how to change a tire or have her show you that she can do it right. And make sure she can tighten the lug nuts sufficiently.
That's just cheap insurance.
Joe
i still have the original factory spare on the 9😏4 f150
Both Discount and Belle tire say 8 years in Michigan. They will not mount a tire that is over specified age.
Glad you got it done Dano.
@Ricci.Wright try some Aquapel or Rain-X to supplement your wipers. Real Aquapel is hard to find, it’s all knockoff online. But I never even use my wipers anymore.
I use rainx windshield fluid and yes it does work Thank you.
Shelf life is 7 years. That is just shelf life.
We bought a used trailer to haul an ATV...The tires were pretty bad...The owner stated he had been a tire dealer in the past and put on a set for us...They didn't last 100 miles...When we got home from our first trip with trailer we noticed big chunks missing out of the tires...Took it to our local tire shop and were told the tires were 15 years old...They were in fact new tires but just had never been mounted before!!! The shop said they will not under any circumstances mount a tire more than 10 years old...
Combat Vet VN
D.A.V Life Member
my luck runs a lot different than some of the rest of you. i rarely get thru a set of tires without ruining at least one. something going thru the sidewall or a rapid deflation at 70+ mph almost always ruins a tire for me. so i have done pretty well for my $40 in the past. and every wal mart in the country honors the warranty.
$284.00? Dano what size tires are those. I can't remember tires for under $70.00 since the '80's!
Well, they are crap from wallfart, so...
I also have never used the road hazard, usually a scam. BUT I can say that walmart actually honors that warranty. So a $200 tire that runs over a piece of steel, they replace it for free. I buy all my tires from Wally world, order online and ship to store(mostly). I got Michelins that were less than $400 for 4, 235/75/15. Walmart ALWAYS uses a torque limiter when installing, so no over torque issues. Say what you want about Wally world, but a deal is a deal. Only other option is to buy the EXACT same tire set for $250 more and have the local shop torque it so tight that it breaks and strips lugs!
They are fine. We sell hundreds of thousands of tires a year. A lot of our tires sold are 1-2 years old from the date code. You can rely on them to be safe for about 7-8 years from MOUNTING. As long as the pressures are fine and rotations are done every 5-7,000 miles they are good for at least another 3 years. Sun and sitting do more damage than the years do.
Wow Dano. I had no idea. Thanks.
The spare on my '06 pickup has never been on the ground. The tire still looks new but the rim has some rust on it. Quite a bit, actually. Probably will never use it since I run good tires.
Took the car to our local tire shop for brake/tire inspection.
Brakes show only 25 % wear
Tires, recommended to be replaced due to age and wear. They said they are past the first wear layer groove/mark (?) Said would be fine for awhile yet if only local around town driving, but do not trust for a trip. Where did I hear that advice before???
They suggested a set 'Falken' 205 65R15 for $500 mount and balance.
Never heard of Falken tires. Good,better, best,or bad???
Thanks all.
Not yet, but plan to.
Spend the money and buy Michelins. They are not that much more and they are a whole lot better than anything else by a long shot. Unless you don't care about the quality of the ride, safety, especially in wet weather, and they will most likely last longer than the lesser brands.
That's like riding around on a 883 sportster and thinking it's a fast bike. Just don't ride anything else or you will quickly see just how slow it is. The same with tires. There is no problem telling the difference for most folks. I don't know what kind of tires you got for $300.00 but I don't want to take a chance with them. And I don't know why the Michelins would have been that much more. The large set I have on my full size were $750.00 installed. Strange ain't it??
You know forget it. Why do I give a rat's behind what kind of tires anyone buys. As long as I can buy the ones I want, hell, put week old Krispy Kreem donuts on your mess if it makes you happy.
Went to WalMart. Service was excellent. Got 4 new tires; Good year Reliance All Season 65,000 mile tire. 205 65R15.
Mount / Balance
New valve stems
Road Hazzard
Free rotation
Dispose of old tires
$386 out the door. Oh, and the date code is 17 th. week of 2021.
Rides soooo smooth. NO steering wheel shimmy or vibration.
NO tire humm
NO drifting
NO pulling to one side when braking
Very happy
Thanks for all replies.
Ya dun good grandpa! Bob
Going to need tires in about 6 to 9 months . 18 inch tires are ridiculously priced . Michellins are pushing 200 to 275 depending on tire. prices from walmart web Middle of the road cooper etc will runn about 650 to 700
I go 4 years on trailer tires, mayyyybe 5... but that’s rare.
5 yrs on vehicle or truck tires, max.
Where I drive a lot you may be 200 miles or more from an open tire store, and if you’ve never changed a tire on the side of the interstate in 110 degree heat you’ll never know why I’m so picky about this.
Your mileage may vary.
Stay safe.
I currently have a minimum of 160 tires on the ground at any one time plus no less than 20 spares. This includes licensed vehicles and farm equipment. Most of the tire maintenance is performed right here on the farm so I do get a chuckle from many of these comments.
The tires Walmart sells are partly sourced from rubber trees grown in third world countries. Also, they have been known to use petroleum based products that come from drilling holes in the ground.