Do tires have to be changed at a certain age?

[Sandy___Shirley]

We took our 5er to the local RV dealer because a branch fell over the winter and cracked a vent cover. Currently fixed with duct tape!

He said he is an inspection station and will have to check the tires and read the sidewalls to see if they are too old and have to be replaced! Is this real or is he trying to rip me off! We live in Maryland and the tires look fine, plenty of tread and the sidewalls are in no way cracked.

[Chris_Bryant]

I would call the State- MVA Customer Service Center:1-800-950-1MVA (1682) or 410-768-7000 , as a requirement would be Maryland law.
That said- if they are 10 years old, I would replace them anyway.

[Sandy___Shirley]

As my signature says, it is a 2004 Everest we bought new! Since this is 2013, my guess is the tires are more than 5 to 7 years old!

Might have to revive and modify the old saying I used about boating!

An RV is a fibreglass whole on the highway into which you shovel money !

[phil_crouch]

I would call the tire manufacture and see what they say.. Most RV trailer tires will last 5 to 7 years before you have problems, depending on the manufacture of the tire..

Just because they look good or have plenty of tread, they can still have a blowout and cause lots of damage to the RV..

[Jloucks]

Sandy & Shirley wrote:
We took our 5er to the local RV dealer because a branch fell over the winter and cracked a vent cover. Currently fixed with duct tape!

He said he is an inspection station and will have to check the tires and read the sidewalls to see if they are too old and have to be replaced! Is this real or is he trying to rip me off! We live in Maryland and the tires look fine, plenty of tread and the sidewalls are in no way cracked.

Alas, there is some truth to what he is saying. If your tires are more than 7 years old, even if they look great, you should probably get them replaced. The oils that are in the rubber slowly leach out and decrease the constitution of the tires.

Now, if they are only three years old, he is trying to rip you off!!

5 years old, it becomes a little iffy.

Mine usually get replaced every 5 years. ...but they also start cracking a little so it is obvious.