OT: Slightly used/take off car tires.

[heartattackride]

I have purchased take off wheels with tires from reputable tire stores for years without issues. I recently came across on FB marketplace a private party who kept his new take offs in storage for 3-4 years. Are mounted tires ok that have been unused and setting in storage? I’ll be using the wheels and tires, not just the tires.

[Steve in SLO]

If the tires and wheels have been stored in a climate controlled area out of sunlight, then it should be no problem as long as you are not placing near maximum load/speed or big lateral Gs on them. Just make sure to check them for sidewall cracks before you buy them, and keep an eye on them after you start to drive them, as the rubber will dry out over time, but shouldn’t be too bad at this age. Would also check the manufacture date codes on the side walls before you buy to confirm they are only as old as the seller is saying they are. If you don’t know how to do this, just search Google for tire date codes.

[Ken Robb]

I think ultimate traction can really decline after a tire is 4 years old so I would rather have new moderately-priced tires than 4 year old super-duper test winners. I don't mean I would get tires the wrong speed rating but if you look at Tire Rack's web site you can see there is a wide range of prices in tires in the same performance category and at the site you can see tests of various tires by category and also see customer satisfaction ratings. If you drive a lot of miles and will probably use up the old tires in a year or so they may be a good deal. OTOH if you think you will not wear them out for 3-4 years I think their performance would be too far gone before the tread is worn out.

[HenryA]

Tires have an “expiration date” molded in the side wall. If the tires in question are really only 4 years from the factory they should be good.

Do a little research to find the code and opinions about this subject:

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=tire+dates+code&t=icab&ia=web

[lemondvictoire]

Tires have an “expiration date” molded in the side wall. If the tires in question are really only 4 years from the factory they should be good.

Do a little research to find the code and opinions about this subject:

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=tire+dates+code&t=icab&ia=web

Actually the tires have a 4 digit date of production. Tire manufacturers state that are safe for up to 6 years from date of production. Tire installers will generally not mount old tires also.....

[Ken Robb]

Actually the tires have a 4 digit date of production. Tire manufacturers state that are safe for up to 6 years from date of production. Tire installers will generally not mount old tires also.....

The catch is:what does "safe" mean? I'll bet it's that the tire won't disintegrate in normal use but there's no doubt in my mind that 6 year old tires won't offer nearly the same traction as they did when new. I wouldn't accept degraded braking and cornering provided by old tires that have hardened over time.

[AngryScientist]

generally, i think they would be fine. if they are new take-offs that were put into storage after taking off, 3-4 years is nothing for a set of automotive tires.

environmental impact from UV light, ozone, heat, etc are what is really going to degrade the rubber compound, assuming they were stored someplace out of sunlight, not exposed to ozone and not subject to extreme heat, i wouldnt even worry about it.

[heartattackride]

Hi Everyone. First sorry for the delay and thank for taking the time to respond.

My vehicle is '96 Land Rover LR3 with 135K+ miles and only gets driven maybe 50-100 miles a week at this point in its life. We do the occasional 700-1000 mile trips though.

Living in So Cal means people claim the look of their rims as a personal statement so I have purchased 3 different weeks old sets of LR3/4 take offs before at $3-400.00 (rims and wheels) in this vehicles lifetime.

My vibe on this was not great so I'm moving on to find another deal.

Thanks for the collective knowledge!