Warning over old tyres

[YellowDog]

I just saw this:

http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=4826897

It appears that tyres have a finite life expectancy, regardless of the amount of tread.

Makes you wonder why it is not part of the WOF.

[firefighter]

I already new that, but it was worth watching as I now know how to check the production date of the tyres easily!

And yes, it's written the same for bike tryes, I just picked up my old Conti Motion sitting beside me and had a look. 2208. Still new!

[duckonin]

Yes it is serious and also very true, we put our live's on the top of tyres...

[YellowDog]

Well I am sorry to say that it is news to me.

I always assumed that if there was tread, they would be fine.

A motorcycle tyre blow out would not be any fun at all.

It makes no sense at all that tyre age is not part of a WoF test.

[cs363]

It's a little emotive (typical American media!) but still true to an extent. If the tyre is in constant use it will most likely be worn out before age really becomes an issue, particularly on a motorcycle with NZ's coarse chip roads. Though of course it is a good idea to check the age of the tyre you are buying before fitment.....
Without taking anything away from the warning, I think this would probably be more of an issue for people doing low mileage and perhaps with several vehicles especially if they are in an environment where sustained high speeds are likely - as in US freeways.
I think most responsible mechanics and for that matter bike & car owners (that take an interest) would notice any signs of premature ageing such as cracking and the beginnings of delamination. Still, good to make people aware of these things

This info on the Continental site is good: http://www.conti-online.com/generato...Howold_en.html

[boman]

A rule of Thumb, is that if they are older than 5 years old, then try not to use them, reguardless of the quantity of tread on them. This can apply to car and bike tyres, and truck too. The rubber has a finite life as does the glues holding them together. I have seen "brand new" spare tyres, older than 5 years, literally blow themselves apart after a small amount of milage. The tread just delaminated off the case and then the case disintegrated. On a car that is not fun, I wouldn't like to try it on a bike.

[cs363]

A rule of Thumb, is that if they are older than 5 years old, then try not to use them, reguardless of the quantity of tread on them. This can apply to car and bike tyres, and truck too. The rubber has a finite life as does the glues holding them together. I have seen "brand new" spare tyres, older than 5 years, literally blow themselves apart after a small amount of milage. The tread just delaminated off the case and then the case disintegrated. On a car that is not fun, I wouldn't like to try it on a bike.

Yeah...I've seen spare tyres like that, tread like concrete it was so hard. You'd think it would be common sense not to use a tyre that was obviously old and very hard, but I guess some people just don't think about it ( as far as using them on a vehicle for normal use)
If anyone is ever in a situation where they have no choice but to use a spare tyre like that then just drive like it's a spacesaver (lower speed and no sudden changes of direction) and just use it to get you home/somewhere where you can get the 'good' tyre repaired/replaced. And then get a good spare!

[AllanB]

I had a 1983 750 twin Kawa I purchased new and owned for 23 years. At one point it did not get much use - maybe a 1,000 kms a year for a couple years.
After that I got back into it but found the handling to be a shit of a lot worse than I remembered (even for a 80's ride). I went though everything - bearings, suspension oil etc and it was still shite.

A casual chat in the bike shop one day pin-pointed the tyres and their age - they had heaps of tread but were 3 -4 years old. The guy believed the period of little use caused the rubber to 'go-off'. I changed the tyres and presto an instant improvement.

[McJim]

It just goes to show how important it is to ride your bike lots and fast so you wear out the tyres and get new ones before they get too old!

[boman]

It just goes to show how important it is to ride your bike lots and fast so you wear out the tyres and get new ones before they get too old!

Thats my kind of logic. The tyres won't have a chance of going off then.

[Swoop]

Old tyres do "go off".
Having purchased an older bike, some years back, that was fitted with tyres that had a good tread depth but were aged... I can confirm this.
Losing the back end in the dry, is not fun.
Cycletreads, thank you Sir!
Replace and be happy!

[sleemanj]

I've heard about tyres "drying out"/"hardening up" over time etc, but other than the year what are signs to look for.

I had an off about a month ago, in the dry, at night, going straight through a roundabout (on an 80k stretch of road), so if there was any lean involved it was minimal, I wasn't pushing hard.

For the last month I've been going over in my head just W.T.F happened. I've had plenty of offs in my life, and always been able to point and say "yep, that there was the problem", but this one...

Aside from the possibility of hitting some diesel or something (it's a busy 2 lane road, I wasn't going to saunter out into the middle to have a close look), well, I can't figure it and the best I can think is that the tyres on the bike (on it when I got it, about a month prior), although they have good tread and the manufacture date is 2005 I think, may well be poked and that there could have been the tiniest bit of something on the road which they just couldn't handle and it all went to hell in a flash.

Maybe I should just bite the bullet and replace them, even if it's just psychological (and I stash the old ones to put back on).

[R6_kid:Me]

Just brush some Kiwi Black Shoe Polish into them and you'll be sweet.

[James Deuce]

Just brush some Kiwi Black Shoe Polish into them and you'll be sweet.

Don't forget to sand them with emery paper before you do that.

[boman]

I've heard about tyres "drying out"/"hardening up" over time etc, but other than the year what are signs to look for.

I had an off about a month ago, in the dry, at night, going straight through a roundabout (on an 80k stretch of road), so if there was any lean involved it was minimal, I wasn't pushing hard.

For the last month I've been going over in my head just W.T.F happened. I've had plenty of offs in my life, and always been able to point and say "yep, that there was the problem", but this one...

Aside from the possibility of hitting some diesel or something (it's a busy 2 lane road, I wasn't going to saunter out into the middle to have a close look), well, I can't figure it and the best I can think is that the tyres on the bike (on it when I got it, about a month prior), although they have good tread and the manufacture date is 2005 I think, may well be poked and that there could have been the tiniest bit of something on the road which they just couldn't handle and it all went to hell in a flash.

Maybe I should just bite the bullet and replace them, even if it's just psychological (and I stash the old ones to put back on).

IMHO if you do not know the history or can confirm the tyres are good, then replace them. It may seem expensive to do this reguarly but so is rehab. I tend to replace tyres and brake & clutch fluid & oil/filter as soon as I can, then I know whats going on with the bike.