I am looking at some old Goodyear Eagle VR50 tires with 50% wear. But they are 25 years old. Are they still safe to use for my 91 RS ?

 

No.

 

My understanding after five years, tires should be replaced. That could also be a way to sell more tires. But rubber does degrade over time. 25 years is too long.

 

average life expectancy regardless of miles is 6-10 years. those 25yr old tires may have tread but the compound has broken down and shouldnt be driven on the road

 

yep... I'd go up to about 10 years if they look ok and have plenty of tread.

 

Check and see, I saw recently that they were remaking some Goodyear tires from the 80's, not sure if that model or the "gatorback" ones, but they are new...

Rafael

 

Tire Rack is still selling new tires produced in 2003. But they say 4 years is about the limit for properly-stored tires that will be used for competition or aggressive driving.

 

No go on those tires. I usually give 5 years on my tires. Not worth risking those 25 year old tires, they are bound to let go at any time

 

in many countries in Europe its illegal to sell tires more than 6 years old , for what its worth . 25 yrs. , no way . I hear younger people (I also did the same when I was younger) asking about used tires . used tires are like used condoms , you have no idea where they have been & what abuse they have had . is it worth your life trying to save a few bucks ? not me , good luck .

 

Heres how to know exactly how old your tires are =
DOT Code
The DOT code is used by the Department of Transportation (DOT) to track tire production for recall purposes. If a tire proves to be defective, this number helps keep track of where these tires ended up so that buyers can be notified of the problem. At the end of the DOT code you'll find a four-digit number. This is the manufacturing date of the tire. The first two digits stand for the week; the other two are the year. For example, if your tire had "1610" listed, it was manufactured on the 16th week of 2010.

 

Thank you all for the replies on this... I am just trying to get a little more life out of 3 235/55 16 Goodyear Eagle GA tires currently on my RS vert with only 5000 miles on them. 1 RF tire went bad due to some alignment issue. So I am trying to find 1 replacement or (2) 255/50 16 Goodyear Eagles to keep it somewhat matching until I switch to BF Goodrich and possibly some z06 wheels. So thank you again for all of the info...

 

The GA was a quiet tire. It wasn't that great for traction.

Get two new tires you actually want and skip the matching B.S. If you did get two new ones and one of those old ones blew, you'd have wasted the effort. Look ahead, not back.

(BTDT when it came to getting matching Goodyears. And a set of very lightly used Eagle GAs.)