Questionable tire as a spare?

[Chevy305]

So I still have 1 tire left over that was original to when I bought my truck over 12 years ago. I bought new tires 10 years ago and It's been long out of service since. It sat in the woods a few years and the last few were in the bed of my truck as a spare. Age and weather has really gotten to it and makes weary to even use it as a spare. What do you guys think?

It holds are very well but check out the dry rot:



Also check out the date code:
Does that mean 35th week of 1990?

 

[Bent77]

So I still have 1 tire left over that was original to when I bought my truck over 12 years ago. I bought new tires 10 years ago and It's been long out of service since. It sat in the woods a few years and the last few were in the bed of my truck as a spare. Age and weather has really gotten to it and makes weary to even use it as a spare. What do you guys think?

It holds are very well but check out the dry rot:

View attachment 228255

Also check out the date code:
Does that mean 35th week of 1990?

View attachment 228254

Maybe ok as a trail spare. Hate to drive that at highway speed very far.

 

[Babaganoosh]

Ya scrap it, that might be worse then the tire your swapping it for.

 

[obijuank5]

Trash

 

[76zimmer]

I would guess at 35th week of 1999, possibly 89?...two digits for the week, and one for the year for tires before 2000.
my TSL's on aluminum rims on the Maiden are similar, they hold air great, but they are never stored in the sun either.
I felt good about my old tires when Luke blew out a relatively new in comparison TSL on his truck and mine were fine in the same conditions.

 

[Chevy305]

I figured it was bad. It's not like I routinely carry a jack with me anyway... I'd still have to call a tow truck to jack me up so I could swap on the spare

 

[Leisure]

Remember, you are trusting your life and the lives of those you care about to a junk tire. Not worth it. Trail speeds might be OK but if the sidewall flexes much at all you're going to blow it on the trail as well. And some trail tire swaps are a pain. We had a tire separate at 70 miles an hour with a sidewall just like that. We came very close to rolling it but we were lucky. Don't be lucky, Be Smart.

 

[Chevy305]

Even before, I would have only used that tire to get me back home or to a tire shop, whichever is closer. Then park it until I could get the flat fixed. But now I don't think it should even be driven on at all

 

[Bent77]

Even before, I would have only used that tire to get me back home or to a tire shop, whichever is closer. Then park it until I could get the flat fixed. But now I don't think it should even be driven on at all

Sometimes you can find almost new Hi Lift jacks for sale for $40.

I splurged and bought a new one a few years back. I carry a ratchet strap to tie the suspension to the frame so the tire will come off the ground. Mine's a little stretchy

 

[diesel4me]

Dry rot is sketchy--I've driven on tires with the same cracks as yours for years and had no failures,others I bought "used" that had sat a long time and the cracking was not evident until I mounted and inflated them,only lasted only a few thousand miles of "around town" use with short distances over 55 mph on interstates before they started "shaking" the truck,and one blew on a back road after hitting a not so bad pothole..was glad I wasn't going 65 on a highway..

My truck rarely gets driven on interstates,I prefer the "other routes" in the truck.

Cracking on the sidewalls is not as bad as having cracks in the tread area or around the entire shoulder of the tire--those are the ones that let the tread separate at the plies and often fling off the entire tread without warning..sidewalls usually bubble up first,and start shaking the steering wheel before they pop,but not always..

I general higher speeds are when dry rotted tires fail suddenly..

The 4 ply typical "passenger" tires are much more prone to failing than a 6 ,8,or 10 ply truck tire is...

I have had brand new spare tires that were never used off junked vehicles at the junkyard that still looked brand new,but failed rapidly,they were never dropped out of the spare tire carrier under the vehicle for a decade or longer--but age hardened the rubber up a lot and it cracked rapidly,even though they looked perfect ..most of them developed a bubble or had tread separation..

I had better luck with half worn somewhat dry rotted tires than those!..(and the salvage yards often sell the "never used spares" for top dollar too)..

My advice is the tire "could" be fine for a spare,so long as you don't plan on driving home on the interstate at 65+ mph ,or with any weight in the truck--I'd rather have a dry rotted spare that holds air than NO spare--or having a long walk to a service station,have to get towed,etc..

The spares I have for my truck are not much better than yours,really!..but again,I avoid interstates as much as possible--I have come close to being killed changing flats on Rt.495 more than once--last time I had one in my '79 Bonanza C10, many years ago,I limped it to the next exit 4 miles away on the flat,and didn't care if I trashed the slotted mag rim either!..
I parked at a convenience store and put the spare on in their lot..

Changing a flat on my 3/4 ton 8 lugger just about kills me now--been seriously considering buying a 18V impact to keep in the truck...hoisting a 120+ lb tire & rim in & out of the bed with 18 wheelers flying by at 70 mph is not a lot of fun either..I'd rather ruin a tire and rim that get killed changing a flat in the breakdown lane..

An old car tips book I have advises to "put NEW tires on the vehicle,and USE them,don't "save" them for spares--thieves are more likely to steal a "new" spare tire that isn't stashed away or chained down,and the rubber will degrade over time,and possibly be unfit for road use by the time you do get a flat and go to use it.."..

 

[campfire]

I've blown out tires on the highway. It sucks. I will not run cracked junk tires anymore.

But I'm not sure how much I'd care about a spare. You will hardly, if ever, use it. And never for long. I'd be more concerned with holding air well than with the tread pattern. A 10 mile ride to the tire center isn't likely to kill a tire.

If this rig took trips through death valley, my advice would be more conservative.

 

[Blue85]

Something to "get you off the trail" is valid if you trailer everywhere, but if you drive your rig extended distances, the spare may be needed for several hundred miles. It also makes more sense if you run a really common size and/or your buddies all have the same. But if you run a rare size it's more important to have a legitimate extra one. Also, not all tires are equal. Some makes/models will hold air for years with scary cracks in the outer layer.

I don't know why, but I think cracks that run radially, like from the rim outward are more ominous than little cracks around the lettering.

Anybody know the insurance aspects of really old tires?

 

[Chevy305]

It's a 35x12.5R15 so not really rare but not every place really keeps a stock of them anymore.

The tread on my current tires is getting low. I'm thinking I'll get another year out of them before I need to replace them. When I do I'll end up with a whole set of good tires for spares.