something i learned the other day while searching for scooter tires (120/90-10 and 130/90-10) here in south cotobato.
the DOT marking on brand new tires tells you when the tire was manufactured. its a 4 digit code, the first 2 is for the week (01-52) it was made and the last 2 digits is for the year. example 4206 means the tire was made on week 42 (around Oct) of 2006.
for brand new tires, never buy any tire that is more than 10 years old. experts say that the materials reliability has already change over time even if it has not been used.
i found this out when a shop here in marbel was selling me his last unit of 130/90-10 for 1.8K. i told the salesman, i wanted a new one and explained to him the DOT mark on the tire. he insisted its just a number and should not affect the performance of the tire as its a brand new tire.
i can't do much for people who does not even understand the product that they are selling. so i just walk away and told him i'll look at some other places 🙂
the DOT is there for a reason, its not just a number, its a guide for the consumer to know how long the product has been made and has not been used or bought ... think of it as a way to know the expiry date of brand new tires 🙂 ... cheers
Boo!
Good to know next time I'm in need of some tires. Thanks for sharing your knowledge Boo!
Why is it important to not buy an unused tire that's over 10 years old? Does the rubber quality deteriorate over time or something?
Why is it important to not buy an unused tire that's over 10 years old? Does the rubber quality deteriorate over time or something?
As mentioned by the original author of this thread sir, unused rubber tires that are over 10 years old has poor quality already. You can't call something "brand new" if its not fresh out of manufacturing. We have what we call "overused" tires and we have "underused tires". Just like any material that we have in our homes. Pag matagal ng hindi nagagamit, nasisira na or panget na ang quality.
