Tires - Manufacturer's Date

[nbking]

I am getting all tires replaced on Friday.

Members here always say to make sure that tires are fresh and have not been sitting in a warehouse for an extended period.

What would be a reasonable time to allow when deciding if tires are fresh enough or not?

[MFL]

Just want to plug E-Trailer, concerning tires I ordered for my utility/motorcycle trailer, that I double tow behind my FW. They are TaskMaster 5.30x12 load C, M speed rated 81 mph, engraved right in sidewall. I ordered tires mounted on white spoke wheels, with steel high pressure stems. They arrived today, in a timely manner, with free shipping, boxed nicely, they could not even rub each other. The price was great, both tires dated 4316, so will be about 1 yr old the last week of October.

I have Provider tires by TaskMaster on my FW. Also rated 81 mph, top quality STs IMO.

Jerry

[fj12ryder]

Actually the old "replace your mattress every 8 years" is an old, old motto. That started way back, I'm thinking in the 70's. I know I've heard it as long as I can remember. Not a new sales gimmick, just a revival of an old one.

OTOH I like to know that I'm not buying 10 year old tires. A few years old won't bother me that much since I'm one of those people that never gave the age of their tires a second thought until a few years ago.

As far as the gospel on tires, I'm not sure the the manufacturers' will necessarily give you the honest scoop, especially if it may be a bit detrimental to their product. 🙂 I don't remember seeing Carlisle stating that their Chinese manufactured ST tires may not be the best choice of a heavy trailer. 🙂

[parkmanaa]

IMHO Bob Nester's comments nailed it.
The "aging factor" came in at about the same time as all other "out of date" B.S., i.e., milk, cereal, lunch meat, etc., etc., etc. IT IS A MARKETING GIMMICK, PURE AND SIMPLE. A lot of this started in the late '60s and early '70s, when every Sat. morning kids show commercials were filled with brainwashing on checking the expiration date and don't eat it one day later ! ! ! In our area now a mattress chain is stating "replace your mattress after 8 years" Gimme a break.
For the gospel on tires, visit the tire manufacturers' websites. Some, Michelin, Goodyear, Bridgestone, and others have excellent information on tires, including the aging factor.

You have to admit though, it sells a lot more product (and causes us to scrap a lot of perfectly good products.)

"In the tire industry 40 years; seen it all and done most of it"

[wrgrs50s]

I bought a Maxxis tire at Discount tire on order. When it came in it was about a year old by the date code on the tire. I voiced my concern and was told that the warranty starts on the date of the receipt not the tire. I contacted their home office and they confirmed it.

The reason this was important to me was that Maxxis has a 6 yr manufacturer defect warranty and previously I had to make a claim on the 5th year for tread seperation and contacted Maxxis and they told me it went by the date code on the tire, but later admitted that they honor the receipt date if I still had the receipt . I got a new tire for about $35 under warranty !

So keep your receipts. I now shoot a picture of all my receipts with my phone and transfer a copy to my computer because most receipts are unreadable within a couple of years.

[ford_truck_guy]

I will say this... walk around and talk to anyone, camping or not camping. Ask them if they know about the tire date code... I can promise you that MOST people have NO CLUE.. unless they are on a forum (like this),most would have no idea .. That is how and why tires move

[D_E_Bishop]

I have been going to the same dealer since 1998, not very long but he is an RVer and really feels that six years is a good life expectancy for near 100 percent safe use. He has always installed all six tires at one time and given me tires with the same date of manufacture and the same warranty. If the sidewalls are good on the old tires, he gives me a discount and sends them to a retread shop to sell for use on delivery truck drive axels.

He tells me the same things every time I'm there, don't leave them sitting for long in the same spot and just use clean water on them to wash them, dressing may not hurt them but it doesn't extend their life, it just makes them shine.

[RayJayco]

Not a tire expert or anything as such, however rubber is biological and does degrade. An easy way to see that is with rubber bands. The older the rubber band, the less elasticity and strength it possess...

Your life depends upon your tires and brakes, not something that should be gambled upon, IMHO...

[CapriRacer]

jplante4 wrote:
...... Any Goodyear engineers out there?

Not Goodyear, but one of their competitors.

If you can find Tireman9, he was also a tire engineer for a third company. I can vouch for his expertise.

This has been discussed in intra-company committees for many years. Everyone on these committees agrees that properly stored tires last a long time. Yes, they have data.

Most tire manufacturers have set a limit of 6 years. The one I worked for used 3 years for their internal purposes - that way, they could point to the retailer as the sources of related problems.

And, yes, there are plenty of wholesalers and retailers who do a pretty bad job of this. Tires stored in sealed containers in the desert sun.

On the other hand, there isn't any data that directly ties tire age with tire failures. Too many variables.

[LadyRVer]

I had 4 new tires put on in 12/2015...all tires were 4215. Thought that was super great. To me, 2017 would be good, as many as you are having put on. Not always are all the tires the same date code.

[valhalla360]

Why would tire manufacturers love this? Certainly retail stores don't like it because they have to either slip those in on people who don't check or offer a discount to those who demand recently made tires. I would assume, there is push back to manufactures if retail stores are getting stuck with old tires.

How much impact is likely open to debate but if you've ever been close to a new tire, you can smell it. Just like "new car smell", that's off gassing of polymer compounds. Those compounds help define the physical properties. This occurs even in a dark warehouse away from UV.

[darsben1]

The problem is we do not know how they are stored or handled before they get to us. The only thing we have to go on is date. In the southwest I see tires stored for long periods in the sun and This includes the big box stores as well as independent dealers.
How does someone defend against this practice? Answer is Make sure it does not go on to long. The date code helps. Even the dealer may not know the storage practice of the place he gets the tires from.

[Cobra21]

jplante4 wrote:
Out of curiosity, what do we think happens to tires stored in a warehouse? No UV, probably still wrapped in plastic, not aired up. Is this a myth or a real issue? Any Goodyear engineers out there?

I myself think they are still "new" But the public probably won't
buy into it anymore. No UV rays on them and no air pressure in them
with standing weight of the vehicle. The tire manufacturers got to
love the date controversy.
Brian

[bob_nestor]

jplante4 wrote:
Out of curiosity, what do we think happens to tires stored in a warehouse? No UV, probably still wrapped in plastic, not aired up. Is this a myth or a real issue? Any Goodyear engineers out there?

I'm not a tire or materials engineer so this is just idle speculation.

I wonder how much of the tire date code thing is real and how much is idle gossip, mythical old wife's tale or a tire marketing campaign to move more tires out the door. Not unlike the similar argument about changing oil every 3,000 miles regardless of usage, service environment or type of oil being used.

[jplante4]

Out of curiosity, what do we think happens to tires stored in a warehouse? No UV, probably still wrapped in plastic, not aired up. Is this a myth or a real issue? Any Goodyear engineers out there?