|
Have just looked at my 4 to 5 year old Conti Eco Contact tyres and they have tiny crazing/cracks in the walls as if they are perished especially near the rims. Do modern tyres perish ? should I be worried ?
|
|
Yes, they can perish on the sidewalls, and yes you should be worried. They need to be replaced.
|
5 years old!!
Change them!
|
5 years old!! Change them!
ROSPA advise 10 years. They agree about crazing being a sign of aging, but say the tyres should be inspected carefully to determine the extent.
|
They can advise what they like - I wouldn't want to be doing 80 on 10 year old rubber!
|
|
|
|
|
This was the only reason I change my tires. Never had a one yet, which has been replaced due to tread wear, instead due to the rubber degrading to the point where the sidewalls had tiny hairline cracks. The last set of tires was about 5 years old when they perished, but one of the old Pirellis turned out to be one of the 12 year old originals. Get them done ASAP
|
|
Thanks for the advice I will get them replaced this week !
|
|
|
I have just changed a Bridgestone due hairline cracks.
I assume it was an original in which case it was 5 years old and done 60K on the back else it must even younger.
The car was bought with three Bridgestones and one recent Conti.
Strange that only one had hairline cracks.
|
|
Remember that UV light does much of the damage on the sidewalls. Is the car normally parked such that one side is into the sun?
|
My girlfriends MX-5 is an 03-plate, and all four of its Bridgestones have perishing cracks around the edge of the sidewalls. Two of them are 3 years old but two of them are nearly 5 years old, and have some cracks in the tread grooves too. I've not been overly concerned 'cos she rarely exceeds 35mph and only does 5000 miles per year, but I suppose she'll have to bite the bullet and get some new ones..
I spotted them when I checked it before its MoT, and expected the tester to mention it but he didnt say anything and the car passed the test. But I bet the main dealer will make a fuss about it at its service next month!
|
>>and expected the tester to mention it but he didnt say anything...
This is probably right. Tyres should only fail the MOT if cuts/cracks are longer then a inch *and* go down as deep as the cords.
Most of the cracking being discussed here is optically initiated, and very close to the surface, and while it isn't desirable, isn't seriously affecting the safety of the tyre.
Having said all that, I agree with the sensible advice, given higher up, to change the tyre out.
Number_Cruncher
|
|
|
|
|
|
I remember reading last year that there is a possible EU directive which will have a direct impact on MOT's.Tyres will be date stamped and when they are X number of years old they are deemed unroadworthy,no matter how much tread they have on them.I cant remember the figure quoted but i think they mentioned a maximum tyre age of four years.
|
|
Tyres are already date stamped!
|
Yes indeed they are Ian, and shall I take this opportunity to remind backroomers to actually check the age of a 'new' tyre when purchasing.
I had a set of *******'s delaminate on me, and when I approached the dealer and manufacturer, the rep from the company rejected the claim as the tyres were more than 4 years old.
I had only purchased them 23 months previously, so they were sitting in a warehouse somewhere in the meantime.
|
The Chris Longhurst Wheel and Tyre Bible has a section on how to decipher tyre date codes:
www.geocities.com/chrislonghurst/engineoil_bible.h...l
|
|
Blimey! I was struggling to understand what a date code of "179" meant on my tyres, now it seems 17th week of 1999! Think I'd better replace them sharpish!
|
|
|
|
|
Are they dated 'in clear' or is there some incomprehensible code?
|
|
|
|
Yes,I know but they do not yet have an expiry date
|
|
turbo, the next question is obvious - can a car be failed on the MOT for having 'old' tyres? and how will they decide - if the tyres are 3 years, 11 months and 29 days old, will it pass?
|
|
Good question.Also how would your insurance be affected if you had an accident and your tyres were out of date,susequent to your MOT.
|
On soemthing like tyres, I would seriously adise against a hard rule such as replacing at 4 years old.
It has to depend on the condition at the time of inspection!
Otherwise you'll get " my tyre looks aged, but as its only 3 years old I don't have to change it"
One of my rear tyres (because its the one that hasn't suffered a nail-puncture) is over four years old. The tyre looks good and has miles worth of tread left on it. The car is regularly garaged and so avoids UV embrittlement. Yes, yes, I know it will eventually become porous and for that reason I regulary check the pressure.
|
The car is regularly garaged and so avoids UV embrittlement.
Another good reason to take all the rubbish in the garage to the tip, and keep the car in the garage.
--
L\'escargot.
|
|
|
|
|
|
