zero_to60

How long will a set of tyres last when not on the car and sat in the packaging. Anyone know?

MarkB

Depends on conditions and whether they were new when you stored them.
They will begin to perish eventually though, then they become hard and lose their flexibility, which means less flex and therefore less grip.

Amstrad2000

The guy who I bought my car from used to be a lamborghini dealer, he said that all Diablo\Countach tyres had a shelf life of 4 years whether on the car or not. There were quite a few people that had these cars and would only do a couple of hundred miles a year and still have to change the tyres just to be on the safe side. I'm sure the tyres would be fine after this period of time but the manufacturer is just covering their @rse.

Bright Red

I queried this a while back with a tyre expert. Tyre "rubber" has an ingredient that lengthens tyre life. In order to work the tyre has to be used and the sidewalls flexed. If used regularly, even for low annual mileages, the tread is likely to wear out before the sidewalls deteriorate significantly.

Note how quickly an unused caravan tyres visually crack when left open to the elements. Apparently salt in washing up liquid, when used to wash a car, is one of the most common causes of premature sidewall ageing.

As for unused shelf life. If a spare correctly stored in a cars boot and is not used for 5 years it should be replaced. Once put into service the sidewalls are likely to deteriorate very quickly making the tyre likely to fail.

zero_to60

I've got tyres on the F car that are 14 years old but the sidewalls seem fine with no cracking or crazing but kinda thinking they should be replaced really...comes down to cost though as it's a grand to do all four and I can think of better things to do with a grand

RichUK

14 years old???

Bright Red

14 years old. Seems to agree with what I was told. Not using the tyre is what causes the problems

euan

I seem to remember something about cars possibly failing MOTs in the future as they were going to insist that tyres had to be no more than 6 years old or something.

Doesn't sound too implausible, esp in view of other legislation these days.

zero_to60

14 years at a rate of 2000miles per year. They look absolutely fine visually but the car does get kind of regular use as opposed to just standing still for months on end

Bright Red

Euan

How does a non owner know how old a tyre is? Few have serial numbers, more have batch numbers but some have nothing. Many have the number worn off due to kerb rubbing.

Can you see an MOT tester bothering to phone the manufcturer of each tyre to check its age. I think that's a non runner