<VV> Tire shelf life

[Jim Simpson]

Tire life is a fraught subject and just like many other things, there are
about as many opinions as there are people.

The tire makers all seem to have come down to a max *servic*e life of six
years and most say that 10 years from manufacture (storage plus
on-the-road) is end of life.

The problem is that even in cool, dry storage with no sun, there's still
oxygen and some amount of ozone that will affect the tire.  And if the
humidity was high and the temperatures were cycling in the warehouse, then
the tires were aging right there on the shelf.  And there's really no way
of knowing.  Not only are they losing traction due to the hardening rubber
but the bond between rubber layers and to the tire cords is weakening.

Of course there are many stories of people driving on 10, 15 and 20 year
old tires and having no problems.  The bottom line is that it's your, your
passenger's and the surrounding driver's lives.  Want to gamble?

Jim Simpson
Group Corvair