During an investigative news program on television a few nights ago, there was a piece about tire warnings that are mandatory in the UK but not in the states. England has a law that warns car owners when their tires approach six years of age.

Apparently it has been determined, that the carcass of a tire deteriorates with age, even if it is not used. According to the article, a tire is just as much at risk of a failure because of its age, regardless if it is used or not. It was my understanding that in the UK, "new" tires cannot be sold if they exceed this age limit.

Since apparently 1991, a code is stamped into the sidewall of every tire sold in the states. It is a four digit code, placed on the inside of the tire, the sidewall away from the specification and identification ratings. This means that to inspect them, you have to crawl under your vehicle for a look.

The code started off with three digits, and now it is four. The first two digits identify the week of the year in which it was made. The next one through 1999 will be the year in which it was made. IE: 251 means that it was built in the twenty fifth week of 1991. Tires built after 1999 have four digits. A tire marked 3706 would be built in the thirty seventh week of 2006.

Some reporters were sent to many tire shops to see if older tires were being sold as new. There were many instances reported in smaller shops and especially the Sears and Walt Mart chains. Some being sold new, were over a decade old!

The program never specifically said anything about the tires of which we would be most interested, those being LT and trailer. The article was specifically about passenger tires, and questioned why in some instances, the same tires that were sold without any restrictions here, were not allowed to be sold in the UK.

There are many passenger tire blow outs every year, and while low pressures are a common cause, the overloading factors we (The truck/trailer users) commonly encounter are usually not present. Many failures were found to be in the carcass itself, not a delamination of the thread from the carcass. Apparently the UK  and European studies came up with the age results, which are presently being ignored by our DOT.

 When you buy your new tires, an additional simple check would be to determine the actual age of the tires you are purchasing. It doesn't cost anymore for a new "new" one than a new "old" one. It also might be a good idea to keep track of any tires that are now being used, that exceed six years of age.

Thought this might be of some interest.

Gard

Unfortunately you can't believe everything you read on the internet, some folks are just blathering. 

http://www.aa1car.com/library/tire_expire.htm

NEWS UPDATE: May 10, 2008

20/20 RUNS SPECIAL REPORT ON DANGERS OF OLD TIRES

On Friday, May 9, 2008, the ABC news show 20/20 ran a special report on the dangers of old tires. The news show used undercover reporters to purchase "new" tires from various retailers and tire stores. Some of these so-called new tires were anywhere from four to 14 years old!

The report said these old tires are "ticking time bombs." As rubber ages, it increases the risk of the tread separating from the tire, causing a sudden blowout and loss of control of the vehicle.

The average consumer assumes that when they buy new tires for their vehicle, they are getting new tires, not old unsold tires that may have been sitting in a warehouse for years. The date code is not obvious, and if you don't know how to read it, it is just a meaningless number on the side of the tire.

The 20/20 report said that because there is no expiration date on tires, it creates a potential hazard for consumers who buy new tires but are actually getting old tires that may be too dangerous to use.

The 20/20 report said some experts are now recommending an expiration date of only 6 years from the date of manufacture, whether a tire has been in use on a vehicle or has been sitting in a warehouse.

I don't think there are any present laws that restrict the sale of new old tires. In Europe it is recommended that the tires be replaced after six years, according to the TV show it was mandatory in the UK. However that was refuted by a UK inhabitant.

My intent in bringing this matter to the forum's attention, was to make everyone aware of the potential dangers of tires that look serviceable but may fail because of age. Also the program didn't specifically target anything except passenger tires. However, I would infer that if one type of tire will degrade with age, that all tires built of the same materials would be subject to similar problems.

Your only recourse is to be aware of what you have installed on your vehicle. The code box on each tire will give you the build week and year. If they are older than the recommended six years, you might want to consider replacements. When you purchase new tires, physically check each one before it is installed to verify that it is in fact, new. Just ask the sales person to show you the block code number.

Gard

Year before last, we put new tires on one of the farm dually trucks. Less than 4 months and 1500 miles later, one of the front tires got 2 big bubbles on the inside. Husband was coming home from Lowes and stopped at a light when someone flagged him down to let him know there was something wrong with a front tire. The local tire shop that sold us the tires new, then realized, that they were made 4 years prior. Which meant, that the "new" tires, in fact,  were older than the truck itself. The local tire store got them right off the shelf from the regional tire warehouse. Since they were Goodyear tires, we were then instructed to take the truck to a Goodyear owned store who promptly replaced all the tires with a very minimal prorated fee of something like $8 a tire. The mounting and balancing was free. I questioned them as to why I had to pay anything at all since the tires were so new and had so few miles on them. And they told me it was to replace the old valve stems since they were dry rotted! Yes, the local tire shop had put the ORIGINAL valve stems from the original tires that came on the truck new, back on the new tires. I was appalled to say the least! We have never lived anywhere where you had to REQUEST new valve stems to be placed on new tires! The local tire shop is owned by neighbors that live less than a mile from us. They know how fanatic we are about everything we own. They are always discussing how manicured our place is or how nice we keep the vehicles. Then they put old, dry rotted valve stems onto new tires and blow it off as being customary in these parts...................

Since apparently 1991, a code is stamped into the sidewall of every tire sold in the states. It is a four digit code, placed on the inside of the tire, the sidewall away from the specification and identification ratings. This means that to inspect them, you have to crawl under your vehicle for a look.

The code started off with three digits, and now it is four. The first two digits identify the week of the year in which it was made. The next one through 1999 will be the year in which it was made. IE: 251 means that it was built in the twenty fifth week of 1991. Tires built after 1999 have four digits. A tire marked 3706 would be built in the thirty seventh week of 2006.

BOL  Gard

Well I hate to say this and be a traitor to my own state,but,if the shoe fits ect.

It probably IS customary in these parts.

.