You’re not likely to wear out the tires on your classic. The more common scenario? They age out first.
While a modern, passenger-car tire can often go some 50,000 miles, all tires will generally age out in six or so years. The compounds that allow a tire to properly function simply lose those functions, meaning less grip and, eventually, less safety.
How much less safety? We once tested some decade-old tires against fresh ones on our Porsche 911. The old tires still sported a deep, fresh-looking tread.
[Project Porsche 911: Testing the New Yokohama A-008P–And, Yes, Tires Do Stop the Car]
The new tires came to a stop from 60 mph some 30 feet sooner. As we said then, you can fit a lot of kids on bicycles into that space.
That time frame is slightly variable, however, and can depend on how a car is used and stored. If a car is housed in an air-conditioned museum where light and climate are carefully controlled, then a slightly longer time frame might be realistic. If the car is stored outside in the sun, then tire life will likely be shorter.
So, how do you know when your tires were built? Easy: The date of manufacture on any DOT-approved tire is embossed into the sidewall.
Since the year 2000, the last four digits of the tire identification number represent the year and week the tire was made. For instance, if those numbers are 4818, then the tire was manufactured the 48th week of 2018.
What if you only see a three-digit date code? Those tires were built before 2000. Do not pass Go.
We had a car with tires that were simply too old: our Edsel wagon. While cleaning up our 1959 Edsel Villager wagon, we noticed that the tires were 15 years old. While the car had been driven only about 2500 miles during that time–and had spent most of its life in air-conditioned storage–it was time for new tires.
When we first got the car, we drove it from California back to Florida on some cheap, reproduction, bias-ply tires. What a horrible experience.
When we got home, we immediately chose Coker Classic radial tires in a 205/75R15 size. These tires greatly improved the ride and handling of our wagon.
Since then, we’ve added power, improved the handling and installed better brakes. The car has become rather comfortable and confident on the highway.
So when it came to our new tires, we wanted to keep the classic ’50s looks–wide whitewalls and all–but further improve the car’s manners. Coker’s tire for our desires? Its new Star Series. The company claims that these tires retain that classic look but are significantly upgraded to perform even better: Extra Load ride capacity, reinforced sidewalls and less noise. Both wide and narrow whitewalls are offered to cover the ’50s through the ’80s.
These tires come in 28 sizes to fit wheels from 13 to 17 inches. The ones for our Edsel cost $266 each, but Coker does offer a trade-up program if you’re using older versions of its tires.
So, the moment of truth? The fresh Cokers delivered a quieter, more comfortable ride. Handling felt crisper, too, although that’s a little challenging to discern on an Edsel.
Perhaps the biggest improvement? We’re no longer driving around on tires that are old enough to enter high school.
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