Beware of over-inflating old tires!

[kingsway]

I just got a fright... It was time to replace the brake fluid in my Golf, so I whipped off one of the back wheels and saw something that really didn't make my day... The tire was badly deformed and bulging.

I've been using 40psi all round for some time, and this may not have been the only factor as both my back tires were made in 2003 - yes, I know we shouldn't use them for more than 5 years - but they looked like new and had at least 50% of the tread left after 67 000 miles.

Needless to say I went back to 20psi - at least until I can get new replacements - and the deformation became a lot less evident.

These are Michelin Energy Savers BTW size 195/65R15 - I'm ordering some new ones right now...

[Cd]

40 psi ? Seriously ?
Max sidewall pressure on a lot of tires is 44.

How often did you drive this car ?

[Cd]

I had a tire blow out the valve stem some years ago, and it turns out there was a defect in the tires .
There was a recall and I got new valve stems replaced free.

[kingsway]

My front tyres also went slightly out-of-round about a year ago - the dealer told me that Michelins are know for this (never heard it elsewhere) but I assumed it was because the car had at one time stood unused for a long while, so both front tyres had a flat-spot.

The car has been driven normally for 67 000 miles, and until recently I used 30psi all round.

Today, when I reduced the pressure from 40 to 30psi the deformation reduced quite markedly.

Whether or not the higher pressure made any difference in itself - the tyres are obviously unsafe, and I probably would not have noticed anything wrong had I been using normal pressure.

[Cd]

What is the max sidewall pressure molded into the tire ?

[cfg83]

kingsway -

My rule-of-thumb is to inflate to Max PSI on new or young tires only :

Sneaky Ecomodding

Originally Posted by cfg83

Ladogaboy -

Are they young tires or old tires? I wouldn't try it with old tires.

...

CarloSW2

[gone-ot]

P.S. - NHSTA defines "old" tires as having manufacture dates FIVE years old, so tires sitting in tire shops can BE almost too old the day you buy them if they've been "...in storage..." for any length of time!

[cfg83]

Old Tele man -

Originally Posted by Old Tele man

P.S. - NHSTA defines "old" tires as having manufacture dates FIVE years old, so tires sitting in tire shops can BE almost too old the day you buy them if they've been "...in storage..." for any length of time!

Good point. I think you can determine the time of manufacture on the tire, yes?

CarloSW2

[gone-ot]

...yes: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete....jsp?techid=11

[user removed]

Rode a bike on 40 year old tires, very slowly and with just over 20 PSI. I wanted to make sure the oil wasn't running out the tailpipe before I bought new tires. Had not run in 28 years, sat in the same garage for 40 years, under a cover.

regards
Mech