How long are street tires usable and safe?

[cantdrv55]

The Michelins on my wife’s SUV are almost 6 years old and has less than 20k miles on them. The car is garage kept and hardly ever goes on dirt. I’m wanting to wait another year but don’t know if that’s a good idea. Google says replace by 10 years max regardless of mileage. I think that’s too long. What do you think?

[sc_rufctr]

6 years is fine. I'd keep running them but only if they're in good condition as in perished side walls, cracks etc.

- If a tire has a bulge in the side wall I get that changed immediately.

[Scott Douglas]

I'd say you're safe since it's garage kept. Outside, exposed to the sun all the time, I'd say 7-8 yrs.
Our CR-V has Michelin's on it that are probably close to 6(?) yrs old I'm guessing. I should check the record book to be sure. They were put on at 33-34K miles and it now has 50k. They don't show any cracking and are wearing nice and even according to the last time I had them rotated at the shop. I don't plan on replacing them any time soon.

[stevej37]

I've got over 9 years and 10K miles on Toyo Extensa HP tires on my Prelude.
The car is always garaged and the tires look like new yet. I plan on giving them a couple more years at least.

[red 928]

The world is full of companies telling up to
buy more of their products, and do it more often.

Remember when the oil companies told us we should
change our oil every 3000 miles?
I bet there are still people here who think that makes sense.

[908/930]

With a quality tire I would think at least 10 years if stored mostly out of the sun, the rubber does get slightly harder with time.

[JackDidley]

Originally Posted by 908/930

With a quality tire I would think at least 10 years if stored mostly out of the sun, the rubber does get slightly harder with time.

I agree 100%. Sun is a big factor.

[pwd72s]

I've been wondering the same about Cindy's garage kept Camry. Tread depth is fine, but original equipment tires on a 16,000 miles 2016 car...was thinking maybe a new set of all seasons before the winter rains begin. Dealership sells yoko and michelin...

[porsche930dude]

I would say it depends how she drives it. Regular 80mph blasts on the highway or mainly putting aroud town at 30 type of thing. In my experience old tires usually dont just blow out. Trailer tires do. But car tires usually break a belt or grow a bubble. Then you know its time.

[LEAKYSEALS951]

The 911 I bought had 20 year old tires that were embalmed in armor all. Looked great. Ran great, but something about skidding on summer damp roads under light braking was a signal it was time to move on.

[ramonesfreak]

They may look ok and structurally be ok but they can get hard resulting in poor grip, especially in rain and snow. SUVs are heavy and harder to stop….take it out yourself next time it rains and see how they perform

[unclebilly]

13 years is too much. The street tires on my 911 are at least 13… last weekend, I tried some high speed cornering… I had to throw out that pair of underwear…

No sun exposure, just kept in my heater shop and doesn’t see many miles anymore.

[kochtools]

I have 30 years of work experience at one of the world's largest tire manufacturers ... in R&D.

The industry guidance of 10 years is sound and based on science and testing.

At a super high-level ... Rubber is subject to degradation by oxygen, ozone and UV ... all are chemical reactions, so the rate is temperature dependent ... but practically speaking, it won't move the 10 year needle much, if at all.

I would consider tires a critical safety item, so its sort of silly to try an optimize the last 10%.

Plus there's nothing better than a new set of tires ... noticeable improvements in noise, ride and handling.

Fun Fact: When new diesel pickups went to the DEF based emissions systems, the region cycles generate exhaust temperatures in excess of 800F ... and that exhaust is next to the spare tire ... I believe contermeasures were implemented to avoid cooking the spare.

[Por_sha911]

Originally Posted by red 928

The world is full of companies telling up to
buy more of their products, and do it more often.

Remember when the oil companies told us we should
change our oil every 3000 miles?
I bet there are still people here who think that makes sense.

The ripoff fast oil change places still say 3k

[Por_sha911]

Originally Posted by ramonesfreak

They may look ok and structurally be ok but they can get hard resulting in poor grip, especially in rain and snow.

100%
I had a pair of tires on our 380SL with what looked like new tread and no cracks but it was treacherous driving on anything but a totally dry road in town. It dawned on me that the car was driven so little (the wife's) that the tires aged out a long time ago (she only drove in town on nice days to go to the store).

IMO, 8 years max especially if you do spirited driving or in bad weather. Sooner if you see cracking or the tread depth is going away.

[stealthn]

I thought the recommendation for sports cars was 5 years?

[look 171]

I driven on tires that are over 10 years old and they were fine.

[speeder]

I have 2017 Michelins on the old Benz that I just drove cross-country in 110 deg. heat in places, they are still fine. First 5 years or so were in WA. state, so not much heat or UVs, which can drastically shorten safe life span. I think that the 10 year rule mentioned above is solid advice. Driving on public roads on 18 year old tires is crazy...what if you hit someone because you could not stop in time?

[aigel]

What is the date code? We have high ozone levels in CA as well, that is the same in the shade and in the garage and does a number on rubber and plastic.

Rain performance will be degraded. It could be the difference between braking her way out of an accident or having one. The tires are the only thing between you and the road

One thing you will notice is much improved ride and handling with a new set. Don’t save money on safety.

[cantdrv55]

Originally Posted by aigel

What is the date code? .

1117 which I believe means manufactured on the 11th week of 2017.