Yes, another old tire story

[Emil Wojcik]

OK, for those of you who still are driving on old tires even after the multitude of input from the list over the past year:

I just replaced my Michelins. The date code shows that they were 10 years old. They showed very minor cracking when you looked real close, but otherwise looked like they were brand new. When they were dismounting them they practically fell apart. The cracks spread and everything started to separate...not good...I was lucky...

One additional benefit I didn't count on is that the new tires feel much stickier then the old ones and I'm sure it's because the new rubber is much more supple and the old rubber had hardened over time. The improvement in handling has made what at first seemed to be just a maintenance issue more palatable. And I thought that stepping down from Michelins to these economy tires (Sumitomo 185/65, $50 each) was going to be a mistake...