arpunk

I was very excited about how much tread was left on these tires until I noticed the dry rot in-between the treads. Sidewalls are fine. Then I noticed that number on the side of the tire. These tires are from 2009. I assume the overwhelming consensus will be to replace them?

Dry rot between treads.

By my math, that’s 10/15/2009.

TrailerTrash

Only way I'd drive with those tires would be about 25mph with the hazards on to a tire shop. And that's only if I absolutely had to. Overwise I'd take the wheels off and take them to a tire shop for new tires.

arpunk

Well then… I suppose the drive from Maryland to NYC was not the smartest move in the world…

TrailerTrash

no it was not

doublechaz

If you don't replace them before driving again, please call me and coordinate so I can be off the road. Thanks.

Red1992XJ

I would not use them on road at all. They would probably be ok if they were on a lot truck that was used for low speed plowing, or something like that. But why take the chance?

Personally, I have seen worse on tires that are only a few years old.

Roler

Don't be so panicky about all this- this tyre is not going to explode anywhere soon. I've driven on tyres 10x worse on roads 100x worse because I had no choice.

Now that you have seen this, you book yourself a tyre change in town to where you drive your jeep as you would always do.

RocketMouse

X's about 8 so far. lol... mine were not quite that bad when I recently replaced them. but they were forming the cracks between the treads.

Randy Bobani

That is just cracking in the voids of the tread. Totally normal and they look like they should last another 10K Mi. The tread is not responsible for sealing the tire and it is made from a totally different material than the inner layers. Underneath the tread layer are two layers of steel belts, two body plies and an inner liner which is the last line of defense.

arpunk

Well… they’re also 13 years old…

Randy Bobani

That's why I mentioned that it's totally normal (for a 13 year old tire). I'm pretty sure all tire manufacturers recommend replacing tires if they are older than 6 years.

Jeepwalker

Tires age at different rates depending on a lot of factors (different compounds/indoor storage, etc). I've had tires which went even longer than yours which didn't show much cracking. If one reads the manufacturer's own websites, they indicate that minor cracking is normal, even on the sidewall and between the treads. There are a few sites which show what sort of cracking is more and less safe. In your pictures, I'd say your tires are going toward the excessive side. There's some actual splitting or tread separating beginning ...which to me, go beyond surface cracks. If you just drive locally (periodically) on rural roads, you can probably go another year or so. But if this is your main transportation and/or you drive a lot at highway speeds, esp with kids (or anyone), I'd invest in some safer tires. That's the safe thing to do.

Meaningless [related] story: I had a set of tires cracked like yours, or maybe just a touch worse I was using on my snow plow Jeep Cherokee XJ. It's for my personal properties, so I don't plow commercially, and don't do a lot of highway driving. Lightweight plow too so weight isn't an issue. I had 6 identical Goodyear Wrangler SRA's (5 plus one I bought off Craigslist years ago, ~same age). Great summer/winter and snow tire! I used them for years. But within a pretty narrow window of time when they reached ~10-11 yrs old, three of the six cracked in the middle of the sidewalls. Two were on the rear and one was on the front at the time it cracked. I might have even had another Goodyear tire in that bunch, I don't remember. But the point is, all cracked while plowing (and I plow somewhat gingerly), not on the tread itself, which seemed like it was the obvious place mine would fail, due to the tread cracking. And the sidewalls actually tore, about a 2" tear right in the middle of the sidewall -- you could put 2, maybe 3 fingers through the tear! All the tires failed the same way. And get this, they were all on the inside of the tire, which wasn't in direct UV. That astonished me. It was showing me the compound had reached it's age limit overall and they were failing at the weakest point, which is the thin sidewall, not the thicker tread area. That was kind of an eye opener. I'm just glad I didn't have a problem on the highway. But still, it sucked having to get pulled out of snow and change the tire in the cold! lol. Since then I take heavier tire-cracking more seriously than I used to. My boss had a rear tire blow out on his Chevelle which the tire/s looked good, but blew at the sidewall too. He nearly put it in the ditch and it screwed up the quarter panel (which he had repaired).

Conclusion: I'd replace the tires, because safety is way more important. The wider cracks are a symptom and the real weak point might be the thinner sidewall, which could be more dangerous. Look at the positive side: now you can shop for and get new *meats* you REALLY want.

I replaced my XJ Cherokee plow jeep tires with these (below) from Walmart.com. 235/75R15. Multi-mile Wild Country 4SX. Really good snow (esp for plowing) tread. Good in the summer, dirt/off-road. Not noisy on the road, and, the OWL's dress the ole Jeep up a tad. I didn't buy on price (although they were competitively priced), I wanted a tire that had 1) a little larger gap between the tread for better snow plowing (and good sipes), and dirt traction, 2) OWL's. And 3) Tread blocks which go all the way down to the tire carcass (not like some tread which *seem* worn-out when there's still 40% tread left). The meet all those criteria.






Multi-Mile tires is HQ'd in Florida btw. They're part of a larger international holdings company. Their tires are made at various factories around the world and USA (like most tire companies). These above I believe were made in Vietnam (??). But by all observation and use for the last couple years, I'm real happy with them. Just throwing it out there. Best of luck!!

EEVEE

Well there is many factors at play. The short? Replace them, They are very aged and while that may be the only cracking they are still dry rotted and bad. Alot depends on climate and being you already drove on the highway assuming, you got quite lucky. Old tires are a ticking timebomb they can explode and or be ok. I had my share of f#%$ around and find out moments with old tires. My lexus spare tire that was used was the original michelin tire from brand new and was bald from 2005 lasted (done by previous owner and not myself). but my jeep that had old tires from 2011 in 2019 absolutely exploded on me on the highway. The biggest thing that will put any old tire at risk is hot areas and being im in florida. the heat will rip those old dry rotted tires to shreds in my experiences and the cars that came into the shop. So it MAY be ok for now... but its just a matter of HOW long will it be ok for now is how im viewing it. not to scare ya, just im past the stage of putting faith in old tires now and just purchase new and or good used tires at a steep discount. If you can afford it id slap some new tires on it, even some basic goodyear wrangler radials or walmarts discount hankook highway tires lol. Also if you ARE a walmart employee... little life hack, your discount can be applied to closeout tire sales and you can literally pick up some new tires for 95 dollars for all 4 lol.

arpunk

@EEVEE @Jeepwalker
I am currently filming in Florida (with Doc Gooden and Wade Boggs!) so I only had the Jeep two days before I had to fly out (I live in NYC). I get back on the 14th and first thing on the 15th I’m going to a local shop to have Cooper AT3 4S tires mounted and an alignment.

So far I’ve only done an oil change and changed the headlights. I have NGK V-Power copper plugs coming in the mail, upgraded headlight harness, and #74 bulbs for the climate control.

Tires are my top priority. The shop already ordered them and they have them now.

IJM

The other factor to consider is the tread compound on 13-year-old tires is going to be pretty hard, so your grip in dry, wet, and snow will all suffer significantly.