Old but New tires ?

[RangerRich104x4]

Found a set of Brand new (w/stickers) BF GoodRich T/A Mud-Terrain Tires that have been stored in a temperature controlled garage for over 10 years. Seler says they still feel soft.

Opinions on are they still good to buy old tires even though they are brand new never mounted/used

 

[Shran]

How much are new ones and how much is he asking for his set?

I would have absolutely no problem running them if they're not dry rotted anywhere - a lot of the tires in my fleet are at least 10 years old, some are much older. But I would expect to get a really, really good deal on them... half of new price or less. A lot of tire shops won't even mount tires like that any more. You can use that little fact to negotiate a price.

Just make sure you check them really good for dry rot. Bend the sidewalls and see if you can sit on one or squish it to check for cracks between the tread lugs. I had a set of BFG AT's - the first gen AT's from probably the early 90's - when I started wheeling in '08, they looked good until I aired them up and they had big cracks between all the tread lugs. They were so bad that the tires would leak so I ran tubes... but the tubes would get pinched in the cracks and then they would leak.

 

[RonD]

+1 ^^^

But I would pass on them, in my opinion

If they were 6 to 8 years old they would be marginal to used a few more years on a vehicle

Rubber oxidation starts the day the tire is made, so tire makers Date Stamp all tires, storage can matter but if there is AIR then oxidation is happening

Now if we assume tire makers just want to sell more tires, lol, and they say 6-10 years is the safety limit for rubber oxidation to weaken a tire enough for it to fail then we can add a few more years, so 8-12 years
So those 10 year old tires "may" last a few more years............roll of the dice
But yes inspect them for cracks in sidewalls and treads
Most new tires are worn out by miles in 4 to 7 years

Oxidation crack: https://www.tyremarket.com/tyremantra/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/tyre-degradation-Cropped.jpg

Oxidation failure: https://d12oja0ew7x0i8.cloudfront.net/images/Article_Images/ImageForArticle_10087(2).jpg

 

[mikkelstuff]

I went through this once. A new set of 10 year old Goodyears. Looked perfect. The first one shredded at about 100 miles. The whole tread came loose from the tire carcass. So much for this good deal!

 

[sgtsandman]

My cut off is 5 years if I plan to use the tires on the road. You have more leeway if they are for off road use only. I would pass on a 10 year old tire regardless of where and how it was stored.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

If they arent dry rotted and youre getting a good price i wouldnt think twice

 

[Blmpkn]

As others have said.. if they're a good enough price, still soft, and no cracks.. id run them.. but I'd keep an eye on them.

 

[Shran]

I bought a set of Cooper Cobras for my F150 in 2011 and Goodyear MTRs in 2012 for my crawler that are still in excellent condition. They all live in the garage 24/7 but have zero weathering at all. I'd be shocked if I didn't get another decade out of them... the Coopers only have like maybe 2 or 3000 miles on them.

Somewhere I have one of the infamous Firestone tires that came on Explorers back in the day... it is like new, on a wheel, it was a spare I believe. I'm on the lookout for 3 more just like it.

Also in my tire pile I have a brand new BF Goodrich bias ply - I don't know exactly how old it is, but I'm guessing early 1980's at the youngest. It even had the sticker on it. For fun I mounted it on a wheel and it does hold air but the sidewalls have a lot of ominous looking cracks.

 

[gaz]

@RangerRich104x4 ,
Having tires over 10 years old is a liability no matter how nice they look and feel; as mentioned, MANY automotive centers, tire shoppes won't even touch them. Additionally, if you do experience a failure...what are the odds that you can marry up a replacement to the remaining 3???

Considering the expense of mount/balance, provided you already have a provider, I wouldn't buy them unless the cost were $0.10 on the dollar. Even then, I consider that a bad bet, simply on the single tire replacement issue.

If I were going to use them immediately on a cross continental round trip, junking on 6,000-10,000 miles in one shot...then I may be willing to role those dice; I would add a new full size spare, that is my 1st choice in new rubber. If I lost one tire on my trip, I would be set up for the new rubber purchase, afterwards with some wear on my spare.

 

[RangerRich104x4]

I passed on them.

They were dated 2012 and he was asking way too much considering new ones aren't that much more than he was asking.

They are actually older than the tires I have on my truck now and is why I want too get new tires even though my current tires still look good.

 

[racsan]

when I bought the 97 a while back the guy I got it from said it had been vandalized & he put junkyard tires on it. they were weathercracked but held air , tread was good so I didn’t think much about it. Then a month later on a interstate going 70 while passing a semi I blew the left front. Looked later and the other front tire had a date code of 1986. uniroyal tiger paws. never again will I trust used tires. that was extremely old but could happen with anything 7 years or older.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

I can almost guarantee that all tires on all my vehicles are over 10 years old. I've had 2 tires let go but its because of tire wear from improper alignment....cords were showing! Never had a problem keeping control either.

 

[Shran]

I had a front tire blow out on my work truck a few years ago - there was no warning, I had run it all morning and on my trip home that afternoon it just suddenly deflated on the highway. It was only maybe a year or two old. Typical Goodyear junk. I had two rear tires on my old Crown Vic start shaking really bad, also Goodyears, from the outside they looked perfect but the inside was full of little ground up rubber balls. Bet I've had a dozen or more of those cheapo Goodyear Wrangler 235/75-15's dry rot out too and only a couple years old.

If you can't tell, I hate Goodyear and never buy them but unfortunately end up with a few here & there on vehicles I buy. Not a huge fan of Peerless either, I had a set of those on my Explorer and had broken belts on three out of the four.

Anyway my point is you can have tire failure even on tires that look good and are fairly young. Tire age is simply a negotiating factor for a better price unless there's dry rot or weather checking.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

I bought my old Firestone MT's when they were like 2-3 years old and ran them until they were like 13yo.

Ran great, actually drove my 7mo pregnant wife 13 hours from home on them the year before I replaced them.

I only really replaced them due to age once I got my slide in camper. They had great tread and no cracks, IIRC I got like $300 for the set.

 

[Curious Hound]

I bought my old Firestone MT's when they were like 2-3 years old and ran them until they were like 13yo.

Ran great, actually drove my 7mo pregnant wife 13 hours from home on them the year before I replaced them.

I only really replaced them due to age once I got my slide in camper. They had great tread and no cracks, IIRC I got like $300 for the set.

I believe she was more than 7months old on that trip.