TIRES AGE...JUST LIKE WE

Recently 20/20 and others have exposed a critical piece of information regarding your vehicle’s tires: just like you and I, they age; and the older they get the more dangerous they become.

I am not referring to how a tire will wear due to use, I am referring to the simple fact that rubber ages and becomes less elastic. Bonding agents become brittle and do not have the adhesive and shear strength that they had when they were new. What is more, they can age just sitting on the shelf in the store! And the dangerous thing about this is that you and I could purchase a tire that could be as old as eight years! Yes, that is right. A tire can sit in a warehouse or on a shelf in a neighborhood tire store for many, many years. But when you look at them, they look perfectly new.

My wife sent me an email with the following link: http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=4826897. This video pretty much covers the whole picture pretty well. As a matter of fact, it motivated me to put out this tip.

The story covers a family who lost a 19-year-old son and his friend. On a graduation trip to Canada, a tire blew, causing the teenager to loose control of the family van, killing both him and his friend. Investigation revealed that the tire that blew was eight years old. The father of the 19-year-old believed that he was sending his son off on good tread, which was the case. However, his father was not privy to the information that I am going to give you: i.e. how to determine the age of your tires.

In the video cited above, done by ABC, they bring to light the fact that a British tire consortium of some type recommended to the British government that tires should have a shelf life of a maximum of six years. Having spent time in the UK, I am well aware of how keen they are with regard to their sports cars and other vehicles. Additionally, they are very, very safety conscious people (almost to the point of obsession). So I think it is important to listen to what the British recommend.

We all know that tires wear out. We cover quite a bit of information about tires in our video, “Basic Car Maintenance For Pretty Hands!®”, including how to determine when to replace them, how to check tire pressure and so on. One thing I wish I had included in our video is this: How to check your tire’s age.

The tire’s age is stamped on the inside wall of the tire (not your most convenient location when installed on your car) at the end of the US DOT Tire Identification Number. It specifies the company, factory, mold, batch, and at the end, date of production (2 digits for week of the year plus 2 digits for year; or 2 digits for week of the year plus 1 digit for year for tires made prior to 2000). So for example a DOT number ending with 319, would mean that it was manufactured in the 31st week of 1999. A DOT identification number ending with 2302, would mean that it was made in the 23rd week of 2002.

It is strongly recommended that you do not purchase a tire from a store without checking this date. Personally, I would not pay a brand new price for a tire that is older than one year. With each year older the tire gets, I should get a discount that is relative to the life lost on the tire. DO NOT purchase a tire that is six years old, period.

If you have the time, I highly recommend you viewing the video cited above before its shelf life expires.