New tire question for you experts

ICEMANN

Registered
When you buy new tires but dont use them right away do they go "bad". A friend of mine gave me a brand new set of tires but claimed they were starting to "blue" and they werent allowed on the track.

What is "blue" mean in relationship to safety of the tire for street use, etc? Are these no good now? Is that something to look for when buying tires to stay away from?

thanks.
JD
 
Well I'm not a expert  
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check the date code on the tire. Look on the side
for a DOT code....after where that's marked there will be a 4 digit #. The first 2 digits will
be anywhere from 01-52, the 2nd two will be the year that the tires were made
and if they 04 or 05 and they have been not used and stored inside I'd use them.

The 01-52 #'s is the week of which year they were
made...01 being the first week of January and 52 being the last week of the year. The 2nd
two are the year 03 2003, 04 2004 etc etc

After a couple of years they can start to discolor....usually
they turn a dull black color. Used tires can have a kinda rainbow
of colors from being old and having many heat cycles on them,
new ones just look old and dried out after setting around for a few years.
 
I'm not an expert either . Contact the manufacturer .

The blueing from heat is caused by the oils either natural or put into the tire when made . Thats how it was explained to me a long time ago anyway and is not a bad thing if the oil works out of the tire while stored .
Back then though tires that were " blued " heavily were junk after they fully cooled . Well maybe not junk but they did not stick very well anylonger . Even today you'll see tire warmers at the track . They do just as good a job getting more life out of a tire on a multi event day as keeping the tire warm .

These newer radials with high silica content don't blue from heat like tires from days gone by or some race radials. They can be ripped up pretty good but not blistered like the good old days .

Recently I think it was Michelin that said at their site 5 years storage on new tires .

Disclaimer: Contact the tire maker about this
 
What kind of tires are in question?

If the rubber has a cracked or dry appearance, its junk.

And check the date like BaBusa said. More than 3 yrs, I'd stay away from.



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When you buy new tires but dont use them right away do they go "bad".  A friend of mine gave me a brand new set of tires but claimed they were starting to "blue" and they werent allowed on the track.

What is "blue" mean in relationship to safety of the tire for street use, etc?  Are these no good now?  Is that something to look for when buying tires to stay away from?

thanks.
JD
If I was you I would check seriously...tires and brakes are the most critical things I don't think you want to go smart or cut corners about it...Do you wanna?
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