I have had my vRS for a month now (1000 miles or so), and my other half works for a major japanese tyre distributor (supplies Kwik Fit, Dealers, STS Tyre Pro etc)...  The thing is, she has a new job on the horizon.

 

As part of her existing job, she can purchase two sets of tyres a year at "Cost+10%", giving me an option to buy a set of 18" tyres (once I've confirmed the sizes, blonde moment lol) and stash them in the garage.

 

Do Tyres have a long or short shelf life? (I imagine changing them in say, 9mths?), and is it worth it?

 

Thanks!

I believe the recommendation is 6 years. Though the legal limit for commercial vehicle tyres I think is 10. No limit for passenger vehicles and it is never checked, so there are people running 20 year old tyres.

 

Or to look at it another way, would you be worried about your spare being out of date in 9 months?

that'll be fine! obviously with rubber you should store them inside and out of sun light, but they wouldn't perish over 9 months bud.

I can't see 9 months being a problem - more so is the way they're stored as you don't want flat spots forming if they are left sitting on the same patch of tread for 9 months. I've got winters that are now 4 3 years old and have been stored (without rims) in between uses and they're fine.

I use the 6 year-old spare within my wife's Renault whenever she hits a kerb and pops a tyre. It works just as well as the other much newer ones, but always gets put back in the boot after a few days use due to it living on a full-sized steel rim. I see no reason why tyres should not last a decade or longer if kept away from the elements (not continually rained, snowed or shone on).

Edited 8 January, 201412 yr by Orville

I have just bought winter tyres that need to be changed if the tread is less than 4mm or the tyre is four years old.

 

I would store them out of sun and on their sides.

Pro cycling teams have in the past 'cured' or 'matured' tyres in dark storage, theory being that it makes them resistant to punctures and slightly hardens them.

 

No idea if it works.

I have winter tyres on steel rims for my vRS. I store them in the garage on a tyre tree then not needed.