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Old 02-06-2018, 11:11 AM
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Question Tire question

The Trans am I just got has Indy 500 firehawk tires on it. Are they an old brand? They look to be good, but someone said that’s an old tire and they might not be safe? Any thoughts on this?

Thank you.

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Old 02-06-2018, 11:23 AM
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I have them on my car MA , and I like them a lot. They have been discontinued. Not sure where it is now, but there is a date code on your tires. Mine are (I think) 8 or 9 yrs old with no issuses, and can't find any dry rot. I recently last year replaced a wheel and checked inside that tire before having it mounted and it was fine.

Dave

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Old 02-06-2018, 11:25 AM
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Are they weather-checked and/or look in bad shape MaryAnn? How's the tread? Tho just to be safe I'd put a new set of tires on it.... peace of mind is good.
New car (to you) deserves new shoes. Better safe than sorry.

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Old 02-06-2018, 01:00 PM
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I had two 7 year old tires blow out on me driving down the road. The belts came apart. They looked great, no weather checking or dry rot. If I were you, I’d replace them if they are over 5-7 years old.

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Old 02-06-2018, 01:24 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tinindian68 View Post
I had two 7 year old tires blow out on me driving down the road. The belts came apart. They looked great, no weather checking or dry rot. If I were you, I’d replace them if they are over 5-7 years old.
Hey tinindian,
Boy ,that is scary. Was that on your everyday driver? I was wondering if tires last longer with less than 2000 miles a year and stored in climate controlled garage?

Dave

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Old 02-06-2018, 01:24 PM
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There should be a date code on them. Look for DOT after that there will be some numbers. The last numbers will give you the week and year made. Google it and you’ll get a picture of what to look for. I can’t remember when this system was put into place. The old markings aren’t as clear as to the decade they were made

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Old 02-06-2018, 01:28 PM
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It was on a 68 LeMans. I bought the wheels with tires. They looked great. Date codes on the tires were 7-8 years old. They were name brand (Michelin) tires and from the outside, looked perfect. They looked like they were used maybe 1-2000 Miles.

Luckily, I was driving slowly, and they didn’t explode and make a mess of the car.

I’m not sure if tires last longer inside, but I’ll be replacing them every 5 years if they need them or not after that.

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Old 02-06-2018, 01:34 PM
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Great ok I’ll have to look for the date. They look really good tread is nice and so smooth areas.

Thanks guys.

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Old 02-06-2018, 02:02 PM
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UV rays break down rubber. If UV exposure is avoided, or minimal as in a garage-stored classic car, rubber will last indefinitely which is why tires are kept out of landfills. Of course there is more to a tire than just rubber - the various plys are bonded with adhesives, etc. and that's what worries me about even well-stored old tires. I just replaced 12yr old BFG's on my goat last year. They still look and feel smooth and pliable with no signs of cracking or delam. but I figured it was time, and I upgraded to 15". If your just gonna tool around to shows and such MaryAnn you can probably get by on them for a while longer but if highway speeds (or jumping creeks ) is in your plans you might want to go new.

sidenote - also replaced the frontrunners on the drag car last season. I realized they were 10+ years old and were hitting 140 at the top end . They too still look ok but enough is enough.

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Old 02-06-2018, 02:17 PM
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MaryAnn, I use spay silicone to wipe down my side walls. Protects the tires and keeps away the cracking and dry rot. Works great... better than that other stuff they sell.

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Old 02-06-2018, 02:34 PM
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I can see this thread exploding as with an oil or gas octane thread. Recommend safety time length of a tire is 7 years. I’m now officially out of this thread.

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Old 02-06-2018, 02:36 PM
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https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiret....jsp?techid=11

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Old 02-06-2018, 02:40 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tigergto View Post
I can see this thread exploding as with an oil or gas octane thread. Recommend safety time length of a tire is 7 years. I’m now officially out of this thread.
yep. its amazing how people buy expensive things but cheap out on safety

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Old 02-06-2018, 03:19 PM
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What’s that supposed to mean?

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Old 02-06-2018, 03:25 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by stags View Post
UV rays break down rubber. If UV exposure is avoided, or minimal as in a garage-stored classic car, rubber will last indefinitely which is why tires are kept out of landfills. Of course there is more to a tire than just rubber - the various plys are bonded with adhesives, etc. and that's what worries me about even well-stored old tires. I just replaced 12yr old BFG's on my goat last year. They still look and feel smooth and pliable with no signs of cracking or delam. but I figured it was time, and I upgraded to 15". If your just gonna tool around to shows and such MaryAnn you can probably get by on them for a while longer but if highway speeds (or jumping creeks ) is in your plans you might want to go new.

sidenote - also replaced the frontrunners on the drag car last season. I realized they were 10+ years old and were hitting 140 at the top end . They too still look ok but enough is enough.


Yes I actually was already thinking about changing them, for one safety, second the wheels must have been on a red car, because there’s red paint around the lug nuts and rims, so those are coming off to get done right instead of half assed.

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Old 02-06-2018, 05:01 PM
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The way it was esplained to me... Modern tires are engineered to go many more miles & return better fuel consumption that what we grew up with. An "unintended consequence" or perhaps intended one
that the years that a tire lasts has been affected. Take this for what it's worth.
Now this is just a guess but the reproduction tires that are available may have more traditional construction & materials and as a result may last longer??
It just sucks that an expensive tire with only a couple of K on it might be junk or worse, unsafe.

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Old 02-06-2018, 05:53 PM
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Buy a new set and wear the tires out driving the car that way you don't have to worry about throwing away a good looking set of tires, they will be wore out before they go bad.

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Old 02-06-2018, 06:00 PM
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A lot of good info here, safety is always first no matter how many thousands of dollars have already been spent. The car won’t be going anywhere for a long time as we change things around to my liking. It’s been insured by Hagerty as of today, so I can get my Antique tag. The car will likely have new tires before it leaves the property, or will only be driven 2 miles to the United tire store to get new shoes. I like the look of the tires that are on the car that’s why I posed the question of integrity. Thank you all for your in put.

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Old 02-06-2018, 06:03 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by skullbucket View Post
Buy a new set and wear the tires out driving the car that way you don't have to worry about throwing away a good looking set of tires, they will be wore out before they go bad.


Ummmmm no! The car will be driven but not like that. That’s what I have a Challenger for, until it sells. no bridge jumping for me lol.

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Old 02-06-2018, 07:13 PM
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Fifteen inch Firestone Indy 500 Firehawk tires were discontinued towards the end of 2011 so at best they are already around 7 years old.

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