old yellow 78
Well-Known Member
The Uniroyal Tiger Paw GTS tires that came already mounted on my Road Wheels had some small cracks in them when I got them, but they seemed quite serviceable and they had a lot of tread left. Well, I should have kept a much closer check on them, or better yet just replaced them with new. I had not checked the date of manufacture either which was also a mistake.
Recently, within just a couple WEEKS, the tires completely deteriorated to this condition seen below! The small cracks between the treads split wide open and the steel belts began to bulge out. The belts on one back tire broke and warped the sides of the that tire too. This happened just about the same time that I put the new KYB shocks on, so I thought the ride was rough and choppy because of the shocks being too stiff. I did notice that the cracks had become somewhat worse when I put the shocks on, but I really didn't pay much attention. Big mistake. They got much worse FAST, and I am really lucky that they didn't blow out on me. I have learned a good lesson: No more cracked tires! The old rubber that is cracked is brittle and can split with no real warning other than a rough ride! So as a warning to anyone tempted to drive on cracked tires, I am posting this separately although the discussion had started in my previous post:
OHMs at the coil pickup in the distributor
When I finally looked at the date of manufacture, it said "04" meaning 2004 which is WAY too old! So, now I have put the old steel wheels with blackwalls and pie plate hubcaps back on OY for the time being until I can get the Road Wheels painted and put on a set of NEW tires! OY rides great now using the original tires I had on it, and I found out the choppy ride wasn't due to the new shocks at all, but to rotten tires that were ready to blow out at the next pothole! Whew!
All those little cracks between the treads suddenly split wide open:
The warped profile of the one rear tire shows the broken belts inside! YIKES! :
Recently, within just a couple WEEKS, the tires completely deteriorated to this condition seen below! The small cracks between the treads split wide open and the steel belts began to bulge out. The belts on one back tire broke and warped the sides of the that tire too. This happened just about the same time that I put the new KYB shocks on, so I thought the ride was rough and choppy because of the shocks being too stiff. I did notice that the cracks had become somewhat worse when I put the shocks on, but I really didn't pay much attention. Big mistake. They got much worse FAST, and I am really lucky that they didn't blow out on me. I have learned a good lesson: No more cracked tires! The old rubber that is cracked is brittle and can split with no real warning other than a rough ride! So as a warning to anyone tempted to drive on cracked tires, I am posting this separately although the discussion had started in my previous post:
OHMs at the coil pickup in the distributor
When I finally looked at the date of manufacture, it said "04" meaning 2004 which is WAY too old! So, now I have put the old steel wheels with blackwalls and pie plate hubcaps back on OY for the time being until I can get the Road Wheels painted and put on a set of NEW tires! OY rides great now using the original tires I had on it, and I found out the choppy ride wasn't due to the new shocks at all, but to rotten tires that were ready to blow out at the next pothole! Whew!
All those little cracks between the treads suddenly split wide open:
The warped profile of the one rear tire shows the broken belts inside! YIKES! :