Liability....WHAT liability?

[ultrarunner]

Speed and heat are what ruin modern radial tires. Comparing nylon and bias tires that never see 50 mph is like comparing tin foil and a 12" steel I - Beam and saying they are both metal.

Chris

I agree 100%.

This is why we are not a one size fits all... simply too many variables.

When I was in auto parts as a teenager we had several elderly customers that only drove to church, the doc and to the local grocery store.

The first thing I would say when asked about tires is tell me about your driving and we would go from there... I knew from the oil change stickers some where driving 600 miles a year.

Still remember one of "My" customers was sold top of the line tires worth more than her car... she was a widow and had a restricted license... no freeway or night driving... it really was a crime for her to spend her savings on tires when her tires would have lasted her a lifetime of driving..

Nylon tires really do last... even if they were a little lumpy the first mile or two... never saw one with age problems and still don't.

I keep Michelins on my trucks... they work hard and often near max GVW... have Continentals on the BMW which is my road car... also put a lot of miles on it in Germany before shipping it home and setting the cruise at 100 mph was just keeping up with the flow of traffic.

All the other 40+ vehicles, except for the car trailer, keep what they have... even if the tires are 40 or 50 years old...

Interesting part about valve stems is almost all of my older cars have metal stems... some going back to 1905... stems could be over 100 years old... Dill and Schrader are the most common.

Not a big fan of today's rubber stems... had one pop just sitting in the driveway on the BMW and the stems not even a year old... two of the other 3 were badly cracked... went back to the shop that mounted them and said they had a bad batch of stems last year and they were imported.

Anyone remember the WWII Gas Ration Stickers? One of my cars still has one on the window and says something like...

Is this trip necessary?

To conserve fuel and tires

Drive under 35 mph

 

[JDgreen227]

Not at all hype, just like belts and hoses, rubber is not an everlasting thing and tires flex a lot. I am a mechanic and tow truck operator after hours and I, by trade, see this very often. Old, dry rotted tires represent I'd guess about 30% of the failures I see. I've had a person come to our shop with an old "80s chevy van with 4 crappy dry rotted tires for a blown tire. Replaced the one and off he went, blew the second, the third and the fourth all in the following days. If you think its a fluke that's fine but at least take a look at your tires. Some do age better than others, but for cars that sit out in the sun all day and get baked day in and day out are the ones that will have troubles down the road.

Trailer tires also are meant to be replaced every 4 years or so, they just aren't made the same as vehicle tires.

I am sure many tires fail quickly because they are subject to weathering...but every car and truck I have owned during the past 16 years has been garaged and out of the sun 95% of the time, and in addition to that I have always been a stickler about proper inflation pressure and rotation, plus when I rotate tires I clean the sidewalls well and apply 2 coats of Protect-All. As far as trailer tires go...my '95 Jayco still has the original Goodyears (ST type) and from what I have read, ST tires are made with special rubber compounds that prevent weathering.

I agree 100% with what Industrial Toys states: Products were made MUCH better in the older days. I have a dish drying basket myself that dates to 1978 and it still looks like new. Buy something comparable today and it will be such sh*tty quality you need to throw it away after a year.

 

[Industrial Toys]

This gets me to wondering if tractor and equipment tires are made of worse material than passenger car and truck tires on account of the increased danger with speed.

All my equipment shows cracking of sidewalls after a shorter period then in the past, or so it seems. I was horrified when I noticed the front tires of my JD 770 cracked after only about four years and always kept inside. When outside even for short periods, I try and park equipment in the shade.

 

[jwstewar]

Or about $160,000 after taxes.

Chris

Since it was a lawsuit, it isn't income. No taxes.

 

[txdon]

Since it was a lawsuit, it isn't income. No taxes.

But she still has to pay the medical bills with the settlement.

 

[tessiers]

I took a very slightly used tire to a nationally known tire shop and they refused to mount it. They said they cannot mount used tires. This tire was basically new - it still had the yellow chalk marks on it when I bought it. I found another shop.

About all I use is used tires, always getting take offs put on Farm truck, hay wagons, and farm equipment, my tire shop even saves good ones for me when they get the sizes they know I need. I got a sweet set of 235-85-16 for my one ton, guy used them for plowing, had 1 season on them, still great shape maybe 75 to 80% I paid his mounting and balancing bill for the tires, $100 installed on my rims.

 

[ultrarunner]

I think I was maybe 30 before I bought new tires...

Tire shop was across the street from where I worked and I knew the owner.

He would always have a rack of used tires to choose from.

That shop closed when the owner retired at 80... now it's a parking lot.

They also recapped tires on site...

 

[redprospector]

I put a new set of tires on one of my dually's last year. At 9 and 10 months old two of the tires came apart. Should I replace all of my tires before they are a year old judging by these results?
What really irritates me is the rule that if a hole is within an inch of the edge of the tread the tire has to be replaced. I bought a brand new PJ trailer, and on the way home from the dealer I picked up a nail exactly 1" from the edge of the tread. Tire shop said the tire was no good. I took it home and fixed it myself. That was in March of 2011, and that tire is still in service with probably 40,000 miles on it.
An expert is someone who thinks they know everything, and can't be told anything.

 

[schmism]

Put me solidly in the camp of "old tires are time bombs" issues.

when i bought my E350 the PO had purchased used tires to put on it. I had 3 diffrent types/brands on it and they were also non-stock size. As i knew i would be towing a lot with it (which is why i bought it) i wanted to get proper sized load range E tires. not having funds at the time for brand new tires i found some take offs (read used) that were the right size all the same brand load range E. (my guess 6+ years old) At the time we were in the middle of moving between our 2 properties about 120 miles apart. making reg trips about once a week to get more stuff pulling the trailer, and about once a month to take the tractor back and forth for maintenance etc.

long story short, about 2 months in (about 6th trip or so) right rear breaks cords tosses center tread while pulling the trailer. Put spare on. 2 weeks later headed down to the property again, this time front right starts bulging. We happen to be about 30 min outside Springfield IL. Its sunday about noon. Only place i know that i can get tires is sams. Dont have a choice at this point but to have them put 2 new tires on, (one on the spare, one on the lumpy one, put the other front one as a spare)

Several more trips pass about 6 weeks later im headed home (van/trailer loaded) right rear starts bulging. Pull over at a rest stop and put spare on. About 2 days later i hit the local sams and have them replace the other 2 tires.

TLDR - In a crunch i bought 4 used (old) load range E tires and had 3 fail over the next 6 months. Never again old tires for me. oh and yes proper inflation is maintained and checked at the start of each trip. all 70psi rear.

 

[ultrarunner]

There have been numerous recalls and not just off brands...

I really think the unfortunate truth is tire quality varies greatly as does the quality of stems.

Several friends are mechanics in Germany and they were here for a visit... they commented on the number or tire casings on the side of the road as they were traveling the Southwest.

Many tires sold here can't be sold their because speed ratings come into play... stock off the lot cars there are driven 125 mph or faster on the German autobahns...