Why replace older tires - what actually happens to them?
03-31-2018, 03:39 PM
#1
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Why replace older tires - what actually happens to them?
Yesterday I bought a little-used 2005 Carrera S with tires that are eight years old. They're BS Potenzas with at least 50 percent tread life remaining and zero side cracking, BUT they were manufactured in 2010. The seller and many others have told me that six years is a recommended age limit.
I predict that based only on expected tread wear they'll be fine for a few more years. Would be glad to postpone replacement and save some cash. So, what's going to happen to those tires if I drive another few thousand miles on them?
I predict that based only on expected tread wear they'll be fine for a few more years. Would be glad to postpone replacement and save some cash. So, what's going to happen to those tires if I drive another few thousand miles on them?
03-31-2018, 03:50 PM
#2
Rennlist Member
Rubber starts to crack and harden. So they are more prone to fail and since the compounds have hardened, they won’t stick to the road as well.
https://www.edmunds.com/car-care/how...our-tires.html
https://www.edmunds.com/car-care/how...our-tires.html
03-31-2018, 04:05 PM
#3
Rennlist Member
Here’s a great experiment to demonstrate in an accelerated way what happens to tires.
Step 1. chew a piece of gum. Get it going for a minute. this is your tire.
Step 2. Put a fingertip’s worth of peanut butter on your tongue. This is a catalyst that fairly accurately represents the aging of rubber from UV, the elements and natural decomposition.
Step 3. Start chewing again.
thats what happens to your tires.
Step 1. chew a piece of gum. Get it going for a minute. this is your tire.
Step 2. Put a fingertip’s worth of peanut butter on your tongue. This is a catalyst that fairly accurately represents the aging of rubber from UV, the elements and natural decomposition.
Step 3. Start chewing again.
thats what happens to your tires.
03-31-2018, 04:13 PM
#4
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Research the Carrera GT crash by Paul Walker.
03-31-2018, 04:29 PM
#6
Sir Thomas Lord of All Mets Fans
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Originally Posted by LexVan
Research the Carrera GT crash by Paul Walker.
03-31-2018, 05:14 PM
#7
Burning Brakes
Here’s a great experiment to demonstrate in an accelerated way what happens to tires.
Step 1. chew a piece of gum. Get it going for a minute. this is your tire.
Step 2. Put a fingertip’s worth of peanut butter on your tongue. This is a catalyst that fairly accurately represents the aging of rubber from UV, the elements and natural decomposition.
Step 3. Start chewing again.
thats what happens to your tires.
Step 1. chew a piece of gum. Get it going for a minute. this is your tire.
Step 2. Put a fingertip’s worth of peanut butter on your tongue. This is a catalyst that fairly accurately represents the aging of rubber from UV, the elements and natural decomposition.
Step 3. Start chewing again.
thats what happens to your tires.
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03-31-2018, 06:52 PM
#8
You're driving a high performance car that was $75-100k new and you'd like to go cheap on old tires? I never understood this logic, Tires are the ONLY thing keeping you on the road. If you want to drive safely, don't use stale-dated tires. Rubber gets hard with age unless you've bagged them when not in use and kept them near room temp I wouldn't use them past six years, regardless of tread depth or mileage.
03-31-2018, 07:11 PM
#9
Three Wheelin'
Just buy some new rubber....if you think it rides on rails now, you’ll be amazed.
Also always use premium fuel from a top tier supplier and change the oil twice as often as recommended and again stick to the recommended Brand and appropriate grade for your area (0W-40 in SoCal).
Also always use premium fuel from a top tier supplier and change the oil twice as often as recommended and again stick to the recommended Brand and appropriate grade for your area (0W-40 in SoCal).
03-31-2018, 07:58 PM
#10
Three Wheelin'
Tires aren’t simply made from generic (natural or synthetic) rubber. They are a mix of natural and synthetic rubers, fillers and curing agents. The exact mix of each is dependent on what the tire will be used for (e.g. airplane tires would have a higher percentage of natural rubber while a performance car tire would have less). The ingredients, proportions, and manufacture are trade secrets. But however a tire is made its functionality is dependent on the chemical bonds that hold everything together. And the thing about chemical bonds is that they can be broken by heat, UV radiation, temperature, and time. So, from the outside an older tire may look fine and have a lot of tread left, but the rubber compound components have been breaking down little by little over time. This older tire may only perform at a fraction of its intended ability compared to a new one. If you could test a five year old tire on the track, then switch out all fours for new tires you’d feel the difference immediately.
Think of it this way. You take a vitamin every day and go out and shovel 2 tons of dirt day after day. You switch vitamins and the new one looks exactly the same but it is only 60 percent as potent. Now you are only shovelling 1.25 tons per day. Sure, you are still moving dirt but not as much. Same thing with tires - the older rubber is not as efficient or effective at handling the loads.
If you want to keep older tires that is up to you. But bear in mind that you won’t be getting as much out of them and that will adversely impact the performance of your car.
Think of it this way. You take a vitamin every day and go out and shovel 2 tons of dirt day after day. You switch vitamins and the new one looks exactly the same but it is only 60 percent as potent. Now you are only shovelling 1.25 tons per day. Sure, you are still moving dirt but not as much. Same thing with tires - the older rubber is not as efficient or effective at handling the loads.
If you want to keep older tires that is up to you. But bear in mind that you won’t be getting as much out of them and that will adversely impact the performance of your car.
03-31-2018, 08:42 PM
#11
Rennlist Member
Mine never last anywhere near long enough to age out.
04-01-2018, 01:03 AM
#12
6 years is the balance between how long a tire will actually last and when the lawyers step in to make sure tire companies aren't liable for tire failure. If you're not tracking the car, tires will last more than 6 without breaking a sweat. If you're tracking, doing really spirited driving, or staying up at night, put new rubber on. If not, drive the damn car and put some miles on. The tires won't last more than a couple years' worth of mileage anyway.
04-01-2018, 11:07 AM
#14
Three Wheelin'
some of these threads... I'm not sure if it's even real. I hear there is a lot of money that can be saved on oil changes too. Just leave the oil in and keep going.
04-01-2018, 11:18 AM
#15
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So you don’t crash and burn?!?!? I dunno, is this supposed to be a trick question? One would think crash and burn would be good enough.
RIP Roger Rodas. A dear, sweet friend of mine I had not thought about recently until reading the above. Obviously the same for PW, I just was not very close friends with him like I was with Roger.
listen, if your too cheap to put new tires on a Porsche, then you shouldn’t be buying a Porsche and just wait until you get the maintenance bill. Much more than just tires to the Roger Rodas, Paul Walker incident though . . .
RIP Roger Rodas. A dear, sweet friend of mine I had not thought about recently until reading the above. Obviously the same for PW, I just was not very close friends with him like I was with Roger.
listen, if your too cheap to put new tires on a Porsche, then you shouldn’t be buying a Porsche and just wait until you get the maintenance bill. Much more than just tires to the Roger Rodas, Paul Walker incident though . . .