Reid,
I had cracked Michelin X tires on my 1971 MGB when I got it in 1992. I drove
that car with these cracked tires for 6 years without any problems. I sold
that car with the aged tires. I have no idea how old they were.
I then bought a 59 MGA with similar condition Michelin X tires on it in
1998. It took me a year to get the car running properly. I puttered around
town without incident. The previous owner assumed the car had not been
driven much since the 80's. I assume that is when the tires were purchased.
On my first "real" run in the MGA I had a serious problem. I was driving on
an open stretch and pushed the throttle to the floor. Once I hit approx 60
MPH (first time) the car started vibrating horribly and suddenly BAM! WHAM,
WHAM, WHAM.... Dust was in my eyes and particals of tire were flying. I
pulled over, got out and to my horror the driver side rear fender was badly
damaged.
The tread came off the tire, wrapped around the axl and it beat the fender
to hell putting dents high on the fender not far from my neck and shoulders.
The beautiful curve behind the rear tire was gone. The splash guard was
gone. The fender was folded up twiice with dents and scratches all along the
side of the panel.
The first thing I did when I got the Healey was but new tires.
Cheers,
Scott
Mashed BN7
>From: "Reid Trummel" <editor_reid@hotmail.com>
>Reply-To: "Reid Trummel" <editor_reid@hotmail.com>
>To: healeys@autox.team.net
>Subject: Tire Age & Related Problems Date: Wed, 16 Nov 2005 17:24:54 +0000
>
>Hi Team,
>
>Just looking for some "anecdotal evidence" and thought maybe you could
>help...
>
>Over the decades I've read articles warning about the dangers of old tires,
>and yet I can't recall hearing of any actual problems with them. Some say
>you should not drive on tires more than 10 years old, or more than six
>years old, and tire sellers and quite happy to sell you a new set every
>year -- for safety's sake, of course!).
>
>I do not doubt that for high-performance applications, such as for racing,
>it is always better to have the best and newest of everything, but for the
>occasional joy ride -- the way that most of us typically use our Healeys --
>it seems like overkill, at least based on my experience and the lack of
>evidence to the contrary that I have seen or heard.
>
>So my request is this: Please tell me if you have had any problems with
>tires that are attributable to the age of the tire(s). If you got a flat
>tire by running over a nail, the age of the tire isn't NOT the proximate
>cause of the flat -- I'm looking for stories of problems that were caused
>by, or the direct result of, the tires being old. No old wives's tales or
>"I heard of a guy who..." stories, please. YOUR personal, first-hand
>experiences, please.
>
>Anyone? Thanks.
>
>Reid
>Fearlessly driving on 15-year-old Pirelli radials
>
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