I can understand your reluctance about date code but as for me I don’t worry much. Everybody agrees that compound loses efficiency with age but do they become “really” dangerous? States or insurances don’t give any expiry date, manufacturers generally state that tyres should not last more than ten years but warranty runs from the date of sale and not from manufacturing date Periodic vehicle safety control don’t take care about it (In France at least) So as I rarely drive in a sports way, never under rain neither at the maximum speed I’ll probably won’t change mine before they really give sign of age like visible dryness or cracks... I agree it may not be the safest way! (I confess that since I have seen my mechanic test drive my other car at 110 mph with 25 years old spare tyre rated 50 Max on it I may a bit overconfident!)
Here is info from TireRack.com about aging....(No Affiliation) https://blog.tirerack.com/blog/hunters-ramblings/are-my-tires-too-old And a little more in detail.... https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=138&affiliate=TX3 Gary
Here is what happened to a 22 years old TRX while driving on the motorway at 130kph. I suddenly felt heavy vibrations, I thought I had a serious wheel problem (like a bearing for example). I stopped to look at the wheel, but did not see anything wrong from the outside (the lost piece of rubber was on the inside of the wheel). I drove very slowly to the next exit. The mechanic who changed the wheel said I was lucky the tire did not blow up completely at that speed. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Ooops! Scary... Bonsoir Jean-Michel I am glad that you made it safely! To clarify my point, I never meant that running on aged tyres was not dangerous! Your experience illustrates my thought: 22 years is really far from 10 and from what I can see on your picture your tyre/compound looks really dry and cracked. So, as manufacturers state, it depends on many factors and there is no rule or expiry date. Regularly watch your tyres and check the pressure, have them inspected by a professional and make your decision...
Hi, I use TRX GT 240x45x415. Little more modern and feels better on the car. Pattern close enough to be ok and better grip & less noise.
Unless the suspension has been adjusted, the 240x45 415 makes the chassis nearly one inch lower compared to 240x55 415. So for example the low point of the exhaust manifold is sitting around 3 inches from the ground with 240x45, which is pretty low.
My car was fitted with TRX GT when I bought it. In addition to making the car look odd (wheels look small and fenders empty), I had to avoid any speed bump or underground parking lot not to ear that awful mettalic sound of manifolds rubbing on asphalt... (Well I am not totally reassured even today with the 240x55...)
Thanks Stéphane, yes the car is already pretty low as it is with 240x55. One added change with 240x45 is that the kilometer counter and the speed counter are indicating an additional 7% too high, so for a given true speed the engine is revving higher and cooling less.
Blimey Standard 240/55 tyres https://www.longstonetyres.co.uk/michelin-classic-tyres/trx/240-55vr415-michelin-trx.html have a diameter of 679mm 240/45 tyres https://www.longstonetyres.co.uk/michelin-classic-tyres/trx/240-45vr415-michelin-trx-gt.html have a diameter of 640mm to translate that 38mm difference, is 1.5 inches difference in diameter. Just as a note. when you buy tyres for your modern car they could easily be anything up to 3 years old when you fit them. Of course the more obsolete or obscure the tyre the more difficult it is for manufacturers to keep fresher stock. The rate at which a tyre deteriorates dramatically increases after they are first driven on. The failed 22 year old TRX is actually a demonstration of the quality of Michelin. that is really old for a tyre and the fact that just a bit of tread fell off is considerably better than the carcass failing, which could well be expected when it is no longer protected by the tread. However by the looks of it you stopped pretty quick. Please don't think that the likes of top brand manufacturers such as Pirelli or Michelin do not support their products. It isn't right to say "warranty runs from the date of sale". If ever you have an issue with a tyre that comes from us. please do contact us and we will resolve the problem. (although maybe a 22 year old tyre would be pushing it)
For those who care. I have just had my first delivery of a fresh batch of TRX https://www.longstonetyres.co.uk/240-55r415-michelin-trx.html They have the date code 3819. Doesn't get much fresher than that.
Dang! I just bought four for my 400i from you guys about two weeks ago to replace the ones from 2003. Looks like I "missed it by that much"