OLD TIRES - real world usability

[MountainCruiser62]

I just picked up a pair of new 33 x 10.50 bfg mt's with a manufacturing date of 2003. i could use some input as to how well they will hold up to road use. They will be on a daily driver that sees multiple 4 hour plus road trips a year and moderate trail use.

if they are too old to use, i figured they would be good for spares?

any input is appreciated, especially first hand experience driving on older tires. Thanks Mud!

 

[cruiser_guy]

It wouldn't bother me any so long as there is not too much weather cracking (there shouldn't be if they are new).

 

[slcfj62]

I personally wouldn't use them. Tires age over time whether they have ever been mounted on a vehicle or not. This quote is from:

Car Bibles : The Wheel and Tire Bible Page 1 of 2

"as a rule-of-thumb, you should never use tires more than 6 years old. The rubber in tires degrades over time, irrespective of whether the tire is being used or not. When you get a tire change, if you can, see if the tire place will allow you to inspect the new tires first. It's not uncommon for these shops to have stuff in stock which is more than 6 years old. The tire might look brand new, but it will delaminate or have some other failure within weeks of being put on a vehicle."

 

[MountainCruiser62]

well they dont have any cracking or splitting, but the rubber is a little dry to the touch.

as for the tire bible, that is exactly what i am afraid of

btw, my spare for my current 31 AT's is a tire i bought used also manuf. in 2003 and i drove around on it for about a week when i got it to see how it road, but a week isnt much to go off.

 

[Devils Paw 80]

Considering your long commute and that MT's aren't ideal for highway use, I'd look to sell these and go with something else. That said, I believe it'd be a huge waste to discard low mileage 6 year old tires simply due to age. Around here, where some folks may only drive 3-5K a year, no one does that.

 

[MountainCruiser62]

i dont have a long commute, i just spend alot of time on the road, like snow trips, camping, ect. i am mostly conserned with the real probability of one of these breaking down on me while driving, especially on a long trip.

i'm leaning toward buying 4 new mt's and using one of these as a spare, unless convinced otherwise.

 

[Eporter]

I think age is a tire company conspiracy, to a point. I've got 6 year old BFG ATs on my truck that I'll drive cross country without thinking twice. The tread is getting on the low side of good, and they're about due for a change, but they still work just fine.

There are a million factors that can mess with tires. Hell, Bridgestone had a _couple_ tire issues with BRAND NEW tires a few years back.

All in all, tires are one of the most important, and most overlooked, safety items on your vehicle. It's like those tire ads with the baby sitting in the tire. They're pulling at your pursestrings, sucker! If you can afford newer tires, go for it. Are unused older tires safer than really used newer tires? I think so, other opinions may vary.

It's funny, when I lifted my truck 6 years ago I bought 4 33x10.5 BFG ATs because that's all I could afford. There were no used spares locally. I then drove from NY to Moab, where I bought a used 33x10.5 BFG AT to use as a spare. Good thing I didn't need a spare for 2500 miles!

 

[Savage]

i have aprox 20k miles on my 33/10.5 BFG MT's and i would say they are still around 40-50% tread.

bought them in 05. after the swamper LTB;s i bought wore out in about 10k miles.

 

[cruiser_guy]

So by this analagy what happens to retreads which so many highway trucks run? I'm far more concerned about an improperly inflated or repaired tire than the age of a tire (so long as it doesn't display obvious age or weathering issues).

 

[slcfj62]

Considering your long commute and that MT's aren't ideal for highway use, I'd look to sell these and go with something else. That said, I believe it'd be a huge waste to discard low mileage 6 year old tires simply due to age. Around here, where some folks may only drive 3-5K a year, no one does that.

You don't get the heat in Alaska like we get in the lower 48, so you can probably get away with a little more than we can.

So by this analagy what happens to retreads which so many highway trucks run? I'm far more concerned about an improperly inflated or repaired tire than the age of a tire (so long as it doesn't display obvious age or weathering issues).

They won't retread an old carcass.


I was at the tire store replacing a tire someone stuck a knife into, and a Bronco was brought in on a tow truck for new tires. Turns out a kid had recently purchased it with 10 year old tires. The tires had plenty of tread on them, but one shredded so he put the spare on. Then two more came apart at the same time.
Maybe it is a tire company conspiracy. I dunno. But if I'm loaded up and driving down the highway in 95o heat, I don't want to be thinking about those old tires on my rig. It's all how close you want to get to the edge. Everybody has their own comfort level.

 

[MountainCruiser62]

thanks for all the input guys. I am on a budget, a full set of new tires would be tough to swing, but I wont be driving my cruiser anytime soon so I dont need to make any decisions right now.

I was planning on buying 3 from the local tire shop, since the dealI came across was only for 2. I think I will just save up a little cash, buy 4 and keep one oldy as a spare.


Which means I might be looking to sell one of these tall skinnies...

 

[cruiser_guy]

Based on the above link the tires on my FJ55 (464) are from the 46th week of 1984 and the ones on my BJ60 (351) (due to be changed out this year because of wear when we arrive in Portland, OR from Central America) are from the 35th week of 1981. Both are a three digit code, no triangle to indicate 1990's. None of the tires have delaminated or otherwise failed in my driving here in Guatemala and Mexico on sub-standard roads.

If you can get tires made in 2003 I'd see if the shop will swing a deal and I'd run them.

If tires that are more than 6 years old are unsafe then I guess mine must be death traps

 

[slcfj62]

Maybe you are just lucky with Cruiser Karma oozing out of every crevice!

 

[BC40]

thanks for all the input guys. I am on a budget, a full set of new tires would be tough to swing, but I wont be driving my cruiser anytime soon so I dont need to make any decisions right now.

I was planning on buying 3 from the local tire shop, since the dealI came across was only for 2. I think I will just save up a little cash, buy 4 and keep one oldy as a spare.


Which means I might be looking to sell one of these tall skinnies...

If they were new and haven't been outside in the wet or sun, I'd still use them.

One thing to check though is that you can still get three more or the older style mt's, they switched to a different tread pattern last year with the KM2.

 

[Savage]

forgot to add that your consern with long trips, i make a drive from Portland, Or to Redlands, CA about 5 times a year, last 2 times i went i took my 85 with the BFGs and make this drive non stop, so cruising at about 80-85 in Socal, had no issues or anything. personally from all the Mud tires ive ever bought, i have never had them last as long as the BFG MT with daily driving

Edit - ya can see them in the link in my sig if ya want, that pic few months ago.

 

[MountainCruiser62]

this thread is not about mt's and daily driving, that doesnt concern me. I would run tsl/sx radials if they had the size i wanted. I dd my old mini truck with 33 mt's for years and loved them. I just want to make sure the age of a "new" tire is not gonna leave me stranded on donner pass come mid december. So i think i'm set on just forking up the extra cash for tire # 4, thanks for the insight on both sides of the debate, but peace of mind on the road is worth a heck of a lot.

by the way savage are your mt's 10.50 wide on 15x8 steelies