Tire/Tyre/Tahr Care --- Should I Care?

[Rokeby]

Yesterday I was channel surfing and came across coverage of the Amgen Tour of California cycle race.

ALL STOP, this I gotta see! I admit it, I'm seriously 'flicted with watching professional cycle racing.

From purely technical standpoint the machines used are engineering marvels meant to get the utmost from a relatively low power, low torque power plant. At the awe inspiring average MPH the cyclists sustain over long distances every little thing matters greatly.

A few years ago, during the Armstrong period of domination, during one of the Tours dee France, there was a sidebar about the tires used. Needless to say they were high-dollar to begin with. The US Postal/Discovery Channel team tire/wheel guru was interviewed in his haunt, a dim basement by appearances. He waxed poetic on the special care afforded the tires, especially the fact that the tires were aged (seasoned? cured? tempered?) for something like two years before use. He took care to point out, amongst the hundreds of tires hanging from racks like so many snakes in hibernation, Armstrong's tires which were aged even longer.

The allegation was that over time a fundamental chemical change takes place in the tread material. Not dissimilar to what happens to wines, cheeses, whiskeys, etc that are aged before consumption.

OK, thinks I, these people are seriously whacked out. On subsequent consideration, I realized that the riders depend on their tires, even for their very life. Any problem when rocketing down a twisty mountain pass at up to 60 MPH, on something like one square inch of contact between tire and road. could mean a tumble over the guard rail... free fall down into the valley... etc.

Well, yesterday, I connected those thoughts with my new Prius.

Would it make any difference to FE and/or tire longevity if I bought a set of high-zoot skins and stored them in the basement until I need replacements, hopefully in four or more years?

Could posters with racing experience, of either the cycling and/or automotive persuasion, confirm or put the lie to this idea?

Lastly, somewhere back in the foggy past I was told that applying Armor All or any of the similar tire cleaner/dressings was actually bad for tires over the long term. Something about hardening of the sidewall, or oxidation leading to cracking.

Is this an old wives tale/unban legend?

[F8L]

Tire rubber breaks down over time. From my racing experience old tires are worthless and unsafe. They lose their "stickyness" and generally just dry out. I'm not sure what they would do for milage since less sticky would mean less rolling resistance at the expense of traction for braking and cornering.

[tochatihu]

The stuff that makes your tire sidewalls shiny? It probably neither helps or hurts tire life. Ozone, direct sunlight, and high temperatures will all shorten tire life. A common recommendation is to stop using them 5 years after manufacture. The mfr date is encoded on the sidewalls, but I am far from any US tires right now

Tire care that does make sense and deserves serious consideration: At every tire rotation inspect the entire visible surface for deep cracks, bulges or other oddities.

This is convenient to do while you are making tread depth measurements, which you will need to know how adjust tire pressures for balanced (cross tread) wear and to decide which tire goes to which location to balance inter-tire tread wear. Real tire fanatics will be doing all this.

Halfway fanatics, please give 'em a close look before you spray on the shiny stuff.

[Doc Willie]

Aging bicycle tires is quite a different matter than automobile tires. Racing tires are handmade, including layers of silk, with specialized adhesives holding the layers together. Everything is very thin. Aging probably helps all these organic materials cure.

When I raced, we did try to age our tires, but it did not work very well in Denver because of the high ozone level. In about 3-6 months, rubber started getting brittle and cracking.

By comparison, car tires are big honking things with thick steel belt and humoungous treads. Doubt that aging would help them.

[Bob64]

aging car tires makes them more prone to failure. You don't wanna buy old tires.

[Rokeby]

On a different thread, patsparks said:

Originally Posted by patsparks

... If your tyre seller wants to sell you dusty old tyres he has had for a year,
grab them. The older a tyre the harder the tread and longer they will last.

In turn, I invited Pat to comment on this thread:

"What you say about 'seasoned' tires/tyres runs contrary to the comments
I have been able to elicit here:

Tire/Tyre/Tahr Care --- Should I Care?

"Would you consider dropping by and making a comment?"

Pat responded on the other thread thusly:

Originally Posted by patsparks

Well my dad tells me it makes a difference and I believe he was involved
in the research that he came to that conclusion from.

My dad was a driver, then for 10 years one of the managers for News
Limited Adelaide's (where News Limited started) distribution fleet and
garage. They constantly looked for ways of reducing the cost of running
their fleet from being the first fleet operator in Adelaide to use LP gas
conversions on petrol trucks to experimenting with tyres. They even went as
far as checking fuel consumption for each vehicle every day and logging the
data for analysis.

They found that by storing tyres for at least a year those tyres would do
more miles than tyres that were fitted fresh. My dad believed this so much
that when he bought a new car he soon bought a set of tyres which he
stored in his dry dark garden shed until they were needed at which time
they were replaced with new tyres to store in the shed. I have no number or
research documents I just know that my dad would not have had several
hundred dollars worth of tyres stacked in his shed unless there where real
gains to be had...

I find this interesting. Apparently, it may make a very big difference as to
how a tire is aged whether it improves or ruins a tire. I am aware that RV
owners frequently cover their tires with canvas covers. I suspect that it is to
reduce the UV load seen by the tires.

I am willing to accept Pat's contention that there is something to be said for
aging tires in a cool, dark place.

If there really is anything to this idea, it seems to me that should a poster
complain about early tire failure/rapid wear, it might reasonably be asked,
"When the car is not in use, is it garaged or left out in the open?"

(Pat, when you read this, I hope you don't think that I'm trying to "steal your
thunder." Should you feel I've taken what you've said out of context, or feel
addition comments are in order, please don't hesitate to post.)

[Rokeby]

Another thread has been opened that also deals with aged tires. Actually, it
deals with superannuated tires, that is, tires being sold as new, although they
have been found to be up to 12 years old. These tires seem to be susceptible
to tread de-lamination at speed.

At least in England, a tire trade group has recommended that tires be not
more than six years old when they are put in use. The safety implications of
this issue are too important not to be pointed to here.

Aged Tires: a Driving Hazard?