Hello everyone, I bought a 67 vette from the original owner. this man did gymkhana's with this car in the early 70's. He told me a story about beating other cars that were not equiped with radials as his car was. The car came with a set of Pirelli radials with a white stripe. there is not that much wear these tires./ the question is... How does one determine if these are safe to drive on. As I had mentioned these are in nice shape, no cracks, no dry rot and they fit the car without rubbing the fenderwells. Perfect driver tires. I just dont want to die trying... Any comments out there? Tony
-
-
Re: Safety of old tires
Tony----
If the tires are as you describe with low tread wear, no sidewall cracks, and no apparent rotting or deterioration, I don't think that you have anything to worry about. If the tires are of recent enough vintage to have a speed rating ("S", "H", "V", etc.)you shouldn't, of course, drive at speeds which exceed the rating. If they are not speed rated, I wouldn't use them at speeds greater than 90 mph, or so. They would probably be safe at greater speeds, but I just wouldn't chance it.
Otherwise, and as far as I know, there is no practical testing protocol to technically evaluate the serviceability of the tires.In Appreciation of John Hinckley -
Re: Safety of old tires
Tony----
If the tires are as you describe with low tread wear, no sidewall cracks, and no apparent rotting or deterioration, I don't think that you have anything to worry about. If the tires are of recent enough vintage to have a speed rating ("S", "H", "V", etc.)you shouldn't, of course, drive at speeds which exceed the rating. If they are not speed rated, I wouldn't use them at speeds greater than 90 mph, or so. They would probably be safe at greater speeds, but I just wouldn't chance it.
Otherwise, and as far as I know, there is no practical testing protocol to technically evaluate the serviceability of the tires.In Appreciation of John HinckleyComment
-
Re: Safety of old tires
I agree with Joe that if they are as described they should be plenty good but would just like to add that you should remember that it was usually recommended that you not reverse the rotation of older radials.
I don't know what Pirelli recommended for these particular tires but if you are not sure there is no harm in keeping them on the same side of the vehicle if you do decide to rotate them or in keeping track of where they came from if you check brakes, etc. or if you bring the car to a shop where the mechanics may not be old enough to know about older radials tending to become directional after use.
I have never been a big fan of tire rotation just to squeeze a few more miles out of a set. I know a lot of people disagree but I don't think it makes any more sense to rotate tires than it does to rotate engine bearings to even out their wear. I just buy 2 sets of fronts for each set of rears (or 3 rears for each front in the case of a C2BB) and have new tires on the steering axle more often.
JPComment
-
Re: Safety of old tires
I agree with Joe that if they are as described they should be plenty good but would just like to add that you should remember that it was usually recommended that you not reverse the rotation of older radials.
I don't know what Pirelli recommended for these particular tires but if you are not sure there is no harm in keeping them on the same side of the vehicle if you do decide to rotate them or in keeping track of where they came from if you check brakes, etc. or if you bring the car to a shop where the mechanics may not be old enough to know about older radials tending to become directional after use.
I have never been a big fan of tire rotation just to squeeze a few more miles out of a set. I know a lot of people disagree but I don't think it makes any more sense to rotate tires than it does to rotate engine bearings to even out their wear. I just buy 2 sets of fronts for each set of rears (or 3 rears for each front in the case of a C2BB) and have new tires on the steering axle more often.
JPComment
-
Re: Safety of old tires
Two years ago, I inherited a 77 Buick with 14,000 miles on it and original equipment tires with about 90% of the original tread on them. There was no question that they had started to dry rot in the hot Texas sun. Look for sidewall cracks near the bottom of the tire, where it sits on the ground. In addtion, I could actually rub the side walls hard with a dry cloth and come up with rubber deposits, not just your usual black discoloration. The unused spare, on the other hand, was still in the trunk and looks like it came out of the mold yesterday.
BTW, this was the proverbial little old lady who drove this car on Saturadays to U of Texas football games and once a week to the store.Comment
-
Re: Safety of old tires
Two years ago, I inherited a 77 Buick with 14,000 miles on it and original equipment tires with about 90% of the original tread on them. There was no question that they had started to dry rot in the hot Texas sun. Look for sidewall cracks near the bottom of the tire, where it sits on the ground. In addtion, I could actually rub the side walls hard with a dry cloth and come up with rubber deposits, not just your usual black discoloration. The unused spare, on the other hand, was still in the trunk and looks like it came out of the mold yesterday.
BTW, this was the proverbial little old lady who drove this car on Saturadays to U of Texas football games and once a week to the store.Comment
-
Re: Safety of old tires
Gary and Tony----
Yes, the sun and heat are the main "enemies" of rubber, be it tires or other rubber parts. My original spare on my '69, which has resided in the spare tire tub for most of its near 30 year life still smells new. No cracks or deterioration whatsoever. My car still has the original windshield wiper blades. They're worn, of course, but I don't need them much anymore, so I left them on the car. They're not deteriorated or falling apart, though, since the wiper door has protected them from the sun for all these years.In Appreciation of John HinckleyComment
-
Re: Safety of old tires
Gary and Tony----
Yes, the sun and heat are the main "enemies" of rubber, be it tires or other rubber parts. My original spare on my '69, which has resided in the spare tire tub for most of its near 30 year life still smells new. No cracks or deterioration whatsoever. My car still has the original windshield wiper blades. They're worn, of course, but I don't need them much anymore, so I left them on the car. They're not deteriorated or falling apart, though, since the wiper door has protected them from the sun for all these years.In Appreciation of John HinckleyComment
Comment