How do you check how old tires are and how old can tires be before they go bad? Do tires expire? In this #shorts video I cover how to tell how old tires are. You never want to buy new tires older than 18 months and you want to start thinking about replacing your tires if they are 6yrs old and at 10yrs or more definitely replace them!
When I got my first set of new tires for my first car I was so excited. On the drive home I spun out on a turn and almost wrecked my car. I didnt take the turn fast or anything and I was so confused at what happend. After doing research I found my "new tires" were actually 7 years old and the rubber had become brittle and less grippy. Tire-easy would not let me exchange the tires because they were mounted so I learned an expensive and almost deadly lesson. Always check the tire age before buying tires!
When I got my first set of new tires for my first car I was so excited. On the drive home I spun out on a turn and almost wrecked my car. I didnt take the turn fast or anything and I was so confused at what happend. After doing research I found my "new tires" were actually 7 years old and the rubber had become brittle and less grippy. Tire-easy would not let me exchange the tires because they were mounted so I learned an expensive and almost deadly lesson. Always check the tire age before buying tires!
Hey guys chris fix here with a quick tip about tires that could potentially save your life now pretty much. Everybody knows, as you use your tires, the tread wears down and when it wears down to your wear indicators, it's time to replace the tire. But did you know it's just as important to look at the age of the tire? Well, whether you have new tires or old tires over time, the rubber breaks down and becomes more brittle, which gives you less grip. It also makes it easier for road debris like a nail to puncture the tire, and it also increases the risk of tread separation or a blowout which wouldn't be good so to find your tire age, look on the sidewall for d.o.t and then right off to the Side will be four numbers in an oval now.
The first two numbers are the week the tire was made and the last two numbers are the year it was made. So it's very important anytime, you get new tires, always ask the tire shop to see the tire date on each of the tires you're buying before they install them and make sure they're all less than 18 months old. That way, you don't buy old, dangerous, tires and finally, consider replacing your tires if they're more than 6 years old and if they're, 10 years or older definitely replace them.
In 2012 or so I bought a '95 Impala SS with a little over 6000 miles on it. It still had the original tires. Seller was a little used car dealer and the jerk of a salesman balked when I wanted the price reduced to reflect that it was going to need tires instantly. He literally said that he'd drive 'em until there was a problem. Nevermind that such a problem would likely be a blowout.
The spare tire on my car is dated 1983, even says made in west germany, but hasn't got a single crack, pretty impressive (ofc I will never run it)
I learnt about this many years ago and any time I buy new tires I do check them. But I go and extra step and, as I have to buy two or four tires each time (most times it's two but every once in a while I have to change them four at once) I also make sure they are have the exact same number.
Why? well, in most cases it won't matter. I buy tires at hypermarkets (say our own version or walmart or whatever) that sell enough of them they never get too old on the shelf, I think I've never seen any beyond six months. So, there's little to no chance I'm buying an old tire or mixing an older one to a newer one.
But, though this might sound OCD for some, I prefer having them from the same week (and I would love it if they also had the day printed on it, but…) because chances are they have the exact same composition and therefore they will both behave the same. Yes, you may buy the exact brand and model, but there's always a margin when it comes to making anything and tires are no exception.
Here in Spain (I guess it might be anywere, or at least it should be) you have to use the exact same brand and model of tires in an axle. You may have one brand and model in the front axle and a completely different one in the rear, that's perfectly fine, but given one axle, both left and right have to be the same brand and model.
I'm just taking this a little bit further. Will I ever notice? most likely not, but it gives some little extra peace of mind.
This is especially true for vehicles that are not used very often, such as trailers, R.V.'s, or farm equipment. My B.I.L. had a blowout on his camping trailer. It's not uncommon to see tires that are very old one these vehicles.
it's also worth mentioning that keeping your car in a garage also plays a big role in how fast your tires dry rot, for the condition of your car in general actually. The difference between my car that's parked inside vs my other cars parked outside is huge.
Very important video, but since I’m not good at explaining nor do I have the tools you should do a video explaining how to not get scammed on brakes for the others.
I had a tire from 1995 on my 99 ranger. Had to tow it to a buddies place and it blew up halfway there…. I was steering my truck. Scary thing to happen
“You’re not buying old and dangerous tires”
Unless it is something special, you can easily get away with an older tire, especially with normal driving. A 2 year old tire is in no way more dangerous than a 1 week old one
I always do check though, because where I get tires, I get €10 off per tire if it’s old stock, and as I go through a set of tires each year, I couldn’t care about the age of them.
Also, my Capri, fitted with Michelin TRX tires from 2001 is, and will keep going strong. Atleast it’ll have to, as you can’t buy Michelin TRX’s anymore, and if you can find some, you’re paying 200-300 a piece
I’m stubborn, I know, I’m gonna get killed in a car one way or another, I’m gonna atleast go out in a bang.
Chris thanks for making a Video on this subject. I have struggled with this a bit with suppliers. First off, they don’t expect customers to address the manufacturing date. This is a big deal when you are potentially buying from an online supplier. The largest supplier on eBay (Simple Tire) has written in their policy they don’t sell tires more than 4 years old. I was shocked to read this and addressed it with them through back and forth conversations. I have read according to NHTSA, (National Highway Traffic and Safety Association) consumers should consider replacing tires at 5-6 years. There are plenty of videos and articles on finding the tire manufacturing date. There are plenty of articles and videos mentioning the 6 to 10 year replacement period, with some suggesting replacing even if they are not dry rotted because of oils within the tire breaking down. But I have to say no one has mentioned what you mentioned about when NOT to buy… that is, don’t buy a tire older than 18 months. Thanks for validating manufacturing date info, purchase by date, and when you definitely want to get new tires due simply to their age.👊🏻
Correctly stored and used quality tires can be used safely up to 10 years. At resellers, up to 3 years it's considered as a new tire, 4-5 years is newish tire, and it can be used for another 5 years.
It all depends on how they are stored. 10 yr old tires stored correctly (covered, in a garage, out of the elements) will be just as good as tires just purchased from the manufacturer. Age does not mean how good the tires are anymore….
And it has been proven time and time again.
An honest/accountable shop would write the DOT date stamp of each tire on the invoice. It would take almost no time, and it would set them apart from the competition. There's no excuses for bad character.
Hey there, Chris, I used some kind of feather duster to clean the gauge bezel on my new (NEW) car and it completely scratched it. Has anyone an idea of how I could fix that? Thought of sanding it with ultra fine grit paper but I really don't know tbh
In my experience tires up to 5 years with good external rubber are just fine, ive even raced 5 years old tires in the track with no problem.
For me:
Up to 5 years and no cracks in the rubber = good tire, use it without restrains.
5-10 years old tires with no cracks = use it normally and dont over-speed (keep it under 60 miles per hour).
has cracks or older then 10 years = use it on dirt roads and never go over 35 miles per hour. (if u dont drive on unpaved roads then sell them cheap to some farmer, he will definitely use the tire for something like this.)
tire age is BS. as long as its withing 10 years…. its good. and an 18 month old tire is BS. its been proven and Michelin says 10 years is about the max life before they go bad.
if you go to a decent shop, all the tires are going to be new. please stop spreading bad myths
I was surprised to see my new summer tires for 2022 were made in November of 2019.
They were 18 months old when they shipped to me. The tire supplier said this is fine and only discounts tires after they are 3 years old. I wish I could have know the manufacture date when I ordered them, but I'll know for next time.
Hey Chris or anyone, I have a problem that I cannot find a proper answer.
My father has a Honda Vezel 2014 hybrid SUV with DCT. Sometimes, usually when going up a hill, the engine RPM goes up but car doesn't accelerate. I know there are problems with DCT transmission in Vezel but my father replaced clutch plates less than a year ago. Some people say it's a problem with ECU (software) and others clutch plates itself. Also a friend of my father told that "It can happen when driving on the same gear". Once when we drove more than 200km(without stopping) this happened and car just broke down. That's when we replaced the clutch plates. Also if there are anyone with the same issues please reply this comment…
If anyone know about this please at least link me to a site so I can read. That would be much appreciated guys!!!
They told us to put the dot date on the inside (when possible) when they were over a year old so customers couldn't see it. They also didn't check balance of the tires more than once, so balanced it, put weights on, and hoped they did it correctly. Then just torqued the lug nuts on as much as their air guns could. That was my one and only day at that shop.