Why a new tire is not always a new tire.

Tire rubber breaks down over time as the rubber dries out and hardens and becomes less elastic or flexible. Sometime after six to ten years the tire can be unsafe to use, especially at higher speeds, higher loads or in hot weather.

But you bought those tires just a few years ago so you are safe, right?
Not necessarily so.

Many accidents in the last few years, including quite a few fatalities have been blamed on aged tires.

You can buy brand new perfectly good looking tires that are 4 - 10 years old but still on the shelf. This is especially true of discounted tires or sizes that don't turn over very fast. So how do you tell?

Hidden in the cryptic Tire Identification Code (serial number) on the side of a tire (sometimes on the inside of the tire where it is hard to see) is a date code that identifies which week and year the tire was produced.

In the 1990's it is the last 3 digits, but starting in 2000 they used 4 digits. The first two indicate how many weeks into the year. The next number or numbers indicate the year.

Examples of tires manufactured since 2000 with this Tire Identification Code format:
XXXXXXXX 0608 Manufactured during the 06th week of the year 2008.

XXXXXXXX 0600 Manufactured during the 06th week of the year 2000.

	Examples of Tire Date Codes.             49th week of 2007
	8th week of 2001
	33rd week of 1994 This tire was found on a vehicle at Wayne's Garage  January of 2010. It was installed on the front, the other side of the tire had cracking near the rim.

 

NHTSA has been asked to require tire manufacturers to put expiration dates on all new tires.

In Europe, vehicle manufacturers typically recommend replacing tires that are more than six years old.
 

 

From ABC News: In San Francisco, Calif., reporters from KGO-TV found a tire made in 1999 and two from 2002 being sold as new by Goodyear, the seventh largest tire retailer in the U.S. In Indianapolis, Ind., affiliate WRTV-TV went tire shopping at Wal-Mart, the country's third largest tire seller, and found a tire made in 2001 and one from 1999. In Orlando, Fla., affiliate WFTV-TV also found two aged tires dating back to 1999 and 2000 for sale at a Wal-Mart store. At Sears, the fifth largest tire retailer in the U.S., our undercover "20/20" shoppers found nearly a dozen aged tires being sold as new as part of a special "manager's clearance sale." At three different stores in New Jersey, we found tires ranging from seven years old to one that was manufactured 12 years ago in 1996.  View a video from 20/20 on this subject.

 

 

 

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