Do I really have to get new tires?

[akear]

I’m currently running Yokohama AV1-60i’s. They are a great summer tire with plenty of tread and look brand new. But they aren’t – they are probably 15 years old (according to the web the tire was discontinued in 2000). They’ve spent most of their life on the car in my garage in southern cali and so out of sun, elements, extreme temps. Everything I’ve read says I better replace them due to age so I guess I’m asking for confirmation of that. I hate to throw away such nice tires.

[fj20spl311]

yes!


There is a date code on the side of the tire.....they say 5 years....I go 10 years.........
A blow out will ruin your day.

[spl310]

I have driven stale dated tires. I even went on track laps on 15 year old michelins. Not the best idea, but I did it (oh, that was after 6 hours one way to Road Atlanta - and 6 hours back...

[fj20spl311]

I have driven stale dated tires. I even went on track laps on 15 year old michelins. Not the best idea, but I did it (oh, that was after 6 hours one way to Road Atlanta - and 6 hours back...

I pulled a mobile home with (3) 30 year old tires and one newer tire of a lesser grade.......you guested it......the newer tire blew........Tires are too important to scrimp on.....I am very disappointed - I have yet to wear out a set of tires on my roadster......I keep going to higher and higher performance trying to wear them out.....r888 next?

[RCMike]

The Toyo guy at Hot Import Nights told me in normal driving to expect 5-8 thousand miles from a set of r888s.

As far as the stale tires, I would inspect them carefully for cracks in the tread and then drive them.. AFTER you make sure your AAA card is up to date and you have the 100 mile towing option..lol

[fixitman04]

id run them as long as they are not cracking

[notoptoy]

I have 25 year + Pirellis on the back and 12 year old Dunlops on the front. I am nervous about the Pirellis, but will run the Dunlops for a while. I'm good as long as they are not cracking and I have the roadside assistance package that I have with Hagerty.

[akear]

Thanks for all the input. I looked again at the tires; no cracks but the rubber is pretty hard. I was looking a bit online to see what deals might be out there for high performance summer rubber. I found Bridgestone Potenza G3s for $62 here:
http://www2.tires-easy.com/cgi-bin/rsho ... sowigan=So" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
From what I can tell from the web, these tires were not sold in US and have been discontinued in most markets and replaced with the RE050. It looks like they are still sold in India though. Reviews I found are good. Ever heard of these tires? Ever heard or dealt with tires-easy.com? If this deal is as good as it appears, it wont hurt so much to toss the Yokos. Thanks again.

[dbrick]

I would recommend you replace them, because that is good advise, but that said I would run them myself and keep a close eye, at least until you find another set. Be sure to verify the date code on any set you buy, no sense installing 5 yr old tires

[theunz]

I wouldn't worry about the AAA card, I would worry about making sure my life insurance is paid up! Driving on 15 year old tires can change your life. Mike

[Alvin]

Replace them!
I ran the avs60i about ten years ago...awesome tire!



Tire rack, discount etc all offer nice choices

[akear]

Just ordered a set of Direzza Star Specs from TireRack. They are on closeout but still pricey, at least for my wallet. But I figure that this is probably the last time I will be able to get a good set of summer rubber in a 195/60-14 so what the heck. And since the last set lasted 15+ years... Thank you everybody for your advice!

[Alvin]

great tire choice!

[fj20spl311]

great tire choice!

+1