Well, after my wife totaled my beloved W126, I was able to pickup a '95 S320 with 13k on the odometer. The car was stored in a semi-heated garage and is flawless. I think it still has the factory air in the tires
My question is do you think the tires are safe? There is no apparent dry rot and they look great but I was wondering if any handling characteristics (especially wet weather traction) have been compromised just due to age?
Thanks, AJ

Tire rubber degrades over time, losing its elasticity. Degraded rubber means poor traction, and worse, possible tread separation due to increased brittleness. It's just not worth it to scrimp on this. By the way, this also goes for the spare tire.

I would suggest getting new tires!

I just bought my E320 several months ago and while the tires looked great they had dry rotted. Because the car had been stored and kept out of the weather the cracking and greying normally associated with dry rot was not particularly evident. Less than 100 miles down the highway (after buying the car) the left rear tire shredded. The only warning sign was a increasing vibration which started less than a minute or so before it shredded. Fortunately, there was only cosmetic damage to the car.

I had all 4 tires immediately replaced. The technician originally questioned my reasoning for replacing the tires (due to their apparently good condition). Once I described what had happened and he looked at the Mfg date on the tires he confirmed that they had dry rotted and stated that most tires should not be used more than 5+/- years after the Mfg date. This was confirmed later when I went to replace the spare tire at another shop and we had the EXACT same discussion.

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1994 E320 Cab (mine)
2001 Chevy Suburban (wife's)
1995 BMW M3 (son's)
1989 Volvo 740 GL (extra car--for sale)

Thanks for your thoughts guys. Replacing them seems like the right thing to do. I have no problem with that but I wanted to determine if I was just wasting money. Dialing Tire Rack.........

10 years old ..... they need to be replaced ....

phone not ringing

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Please, call me to place orders or for more info
use my name for on-line orders

Many thanks. I have a 91 300E, very low miles and don't know how old the Michelin MVX4 tires are.

DK

The manufacturer date is encoded into the tire. Do a search on the internet, there are lots of sites on how to read tires.

Ten year old tires need to be replaced, no questions asked.

I recently replaced the spare tire on SWMBOs 1993 300E. It had never touched the ground - still had the paper tags on the tread. But it was manufactured in April of 1993 - no way I wanted to ride on that thing!

- JimY

They are, after all, the only thing riding between you and the road.

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2005 Pathfinder LE
2001 E55
1998 M3
1982 320i

When I got my car one of the first things I did was replace the original 17 year old spare. It looked like it was almost never used, with only the slightist amount of wear but I could feel it was starting to get hard. $50 for a cheap new tire mounted and balanced on the wheel and I now have a safe spare.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Get new tires.....what would a blowout cost you in a turn or under an emergancy braking situation? Far more than a set of new tires is the correct answer.

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Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
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Section 609 MVAC Certified
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"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

I just got an 89 420SEL, which is in mint condition totally. The spare is the original Michelin; never on the road. However, it appears and feels like new live rubber and I am not going to replace it due to its 16 year age. Number one, a flat on the highway is rare today, if you are running good rubber and check the tires frequently for pressure and nails etc. Barring an accidental impact with something or picking up a large metal device in the tire, flats are just not a big happening, at least with me. I agree that I probably would not run that tire for thousands of miles, but wonder what Michelin would say about the safety of it? I will contact them and ask; will post their info after the discussion.

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Ben Harrison Carter
1999 Mercedes ML320 87K
1992 Mercedes 300CE 89K
1995 Corvette 29K -- Sold Dec 09
1989 Mercedes 420SEL 99K -- (Sold 4/08)
1968 Mercedes 230S (106K) (Sold 9/06))
1976 Mercedes 450SEL 130K (Just sold - 06)
1961 Mercedes 220Sb (sold years ago)

JCYUHN - SWMBO....... she who must be obeyed?

Tires rot from the inside I might maybe use that tire around the block at no faster then 30, maybe.

Why just the other day my boss was in NJ and he blew his front tire on a pot hole.

So if you are 300 miles from home and need that tire what are you going to do? Bolt it on and pray?

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

I just replaced all five tires on my old 230/8 sedan because they were 15 years old. The car doesn't get all that much use these days but I love it and will keep it forever. The spare was brand new and never on the ground but it went too. I always keep the spare the same as the four on the ground just in case I need to replace one of them. I want the same tire and tread all around. I shipped my Mustang from my old home to my new home and the shipper cut up a rear tire. My spare was brand new and the same as the cut tire. I eventually got a new same-as spare but it was a project.

I also replaced the tires on my SL a couple of weeks ago, (man have I had a tire bill this year!). All five again, because I did not know exactly how old they were. That spare was trash, hard as a brick and probably 20 years old. Carrying a spare is useless if it fails when you need it. And, some day you will need it.

You never know when you will need your spare, but it will always be at the most inconvenient time.

230/8

We don't have big potholes in Texas, like they do in the Northeast. I used to live in PA and I appreciate the difference. I did email Michelin about this question and asked them about my 16 year old "like new tire." I will publish their response when I get it. I am still not sure that all old tires disintegrate at the same rate; perhaps a Michelin is a better bet for long life?? We'll see what the consensus is from them and perhaps some other tire makers.

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Ben Harrison Carter
1999 Mercedes ML320 87K
1992 Mercedes 300CE 89K
1995 Corvette 29K -- Sold Dec 09
1989 Mercedes 420SEL 99K -- (Sold 4/08)
1968 Mercedes 230S (106K) (Sold 9/06))
1976 Mercedes 450SEL 130K (Just sold - 06)
1961 Mercedes 220Sb (sold years ago)