>From: Ken Miller <kdmiller44@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: IML: Tire Expiration Dates
There is an article in the Wall Street Journal today stating that Ford
Motor Company is saying that tires have a life expectancy of 6 years and
should be replaced after that time interval.
Those of us with Imperials that don't get driven very often may need to
at least consider this point of view. The tires on my 67 Convertible
look practically new and probably have less than 5,000 miles on them,
but when I checked the sales slip I realized that I bought them in
1988! That means that these guys are about 17 years old. Other old car
collectors tell me they are changing their tires every ten years or so,
worn out or not. I'm beginning to think that there is something to this.
Any thoughts?
Replacing tires due to age instead of wear is probably an excellent
idea.
However, if you only drive the car 250 miles a year, do you really
hammer it over those 250 miles? It's hard for me to imagine someone
keeping
a car pristinely safe in a garage 99.9% of the time, and for the other .1%
punching it through S-curves at 90mph...
Under most driving conditions, if you get a flat, it's merely annoying.
Last time I had a highway blowout in an Imperial, my '62 lost a front tire
and deviated so little from it's course that I initially didn't know what
was making the noise - I immediately put it in neutral, and slowed it with
the drive-shaft brake.
If when you drive you car, it's short trips at moderate speeds on good
roads, then I wouldn't much worry until the sidewalls start cracking.
If you drive it long distances, or in other more aggressive ways, then
you might want to change them more often.
-Kle.
'69 Crown 4DHT
----------------- http://www.imperialclub.com -----------------
This message was sent to you by the Imperial Mailing List. Please
reply to mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx and your response will be
shared with everyone. Private messages (and attachments) for the
Administrators should be sent to webmaster@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
To UN-SUBSCRIBE, go to http://imperialclub.com/unsubscribe.htm
Back to the Home of the Forward Look Network