Discussion
Enquiring about a gt3 and been given some of its service history, I can see it’s had tyres fitted just over 7 years and it’s done very little mileage since and they still have around 5mm on them. It’s being sold by a well know porsche specialist, would you expect them to be offering the car with a new set of tyres due to there age or is this acceptable?
The car is priced at the high end of its market.
The car is priced at the high end of its market.
Yes the way a car is stored and its usage hugely influences tyre life. Sun damage from outside storage and winter storage e.g. kept in one position for extended periods of time without over inflation not good and this will probably result in premature deterioration. Some 'cosmetic' products such as 'tyre shine black' to the sidewalls can adversely affect the compound too.
Michelin reckon their tyres have a 10 year life if tyres are looked after optimally.
Some OPCs would replace tyres if over 5 years old even if they are within acceptabe tyre wear limits. Some don't.
If I was buying a car I would probably use tyre age as a negotiating tool but in reality age in itself may not necessitate tyre renewal up to around 7 years.
Michelin reckon their tyres have a 10 year life if tyres are looked after optimally.
Some OPCs would replace tyres if over 5 years old even if they are within acceptabe tyre wear limits. Some don't.
If I was buying a car I would probably use tyre age as a negotiating tool but in reality age in itself may not necessitate tyre renewal up to around 7 years.
When I bought my 2014 GT3 in 2020 it had the original cup 2’s on it . Car had done 8k miles so plenty of tread. They were fooking lethal unless ambient temps were mid to high teens, took an age to warm up. They were definitely past their best. Had 4-5mm of tread. Changed for PS4S N rated, so much better for road use ( I don’t track it, just use it on euro road trips).
Wow that’s shocking, clearly tyres have a life expectancy no matter how much use the have. I assume the cracked side is the outer side as that would have been affected by more sun light?
This car apparently has 5mm of tread, but like you say doesn’t mean they are still usable safely do to there age.
Either way I assume they would need to be replaced to use the car safely.
This car apparently has 5mm of tread, but like you say doesn’t mean they are still usable safely do to there age.
Either way I assume they would need to be replaced to use the car safely.
These were on a '73 2.4S and yes, the cracking was on the outer edge ... now replaced !
The higher the performance of the car the less tolerance for aged tyres, my personal opinion is that on a GT3 5 years should be good for now but 10 years definitely not ... and every tyre is different so it's a judgement call.
As mentioned previously, cracked tyres are not an MOT fail unless the cords are showing and MOT stations are not allowed to probe the cracks, so many cars could be running on tyres which are suboptimal in extremis.
And then there is the question of the spare, unused in the boot
The higher the performance of the car the less tolerance for aged tyres, my personal opinion is that on a GT3 5 years should be good for now but 10 years definitely not ... and every tyre is different so it's a judgement call.
As mentioned previously, cracked tyres are not an MOT fail unless the cords are showing and MOT stations are not allowed to probe the cracks, so many cars could be running on tyres which are suboptimal in extremis.
And then there is the question of the spare, unused in the boot
The Cup2 on my GT3 are about 3 years old and have about 4mm of tread depth left, but they definitely feel past their best.
Not lethal or unusable by any stretch, but no where near and sharp or grippy as they were when new.
Id would defiantly be factoring new tyres into the price, or asking for them to be replaced.
Not lethal or unusable by any stretch, but no where near and sharp or grippy as they were when new.
Id would defiantly be factoring new tyres into the price, or asking for them to be replaced.
What would be the view of 5 year old cup 2’s with plenty of tread - around 5mm - change or leave on? I’m looking at one this weekend which has the original cup 2’s on and thinking of getting ps4s’s all round straightaway if I buy it. Also, there is a thread from a couple of years ago about some Porsche uk dealers not fitting ps4s’s - has that now changed/been clarified?
Imasurv said:
What would be the view of 5 year old cup 2’s with plenty of tread - around 5mm - change or leave on? I’m looking at one this weekend which has the original cup 2’s on and thinking of getting ps4s’s all round straightaway if I buy it. Also, there is a thread from a couple of years ago about some Porsche uk dealers not fitting ps4s’s - has that now changed/been clarified?
I was in that exact situation, read my post above. Slight difference in that it was 6 years. You can get N spec 4S’s that meet warranty requirements.If you are gonna track it regularly go with cup2’s if not 4S, much better there for the road.
Mankers said:
Imasurv said:
What would be the view of 5 year old cup 2’s with plenty of tread - around 5mm - change or leave on? I’m looking at one this weekend which has the original cup 2’s on and thinking of getting ps4s’s all round straightaway if I buy it. Also, there is a thread from a couple of years ago about some Porsche uk dealers not fitting ps4s’s - has that now changed/been clarified?
I was in that exact situation, read my post above. Slight difference in that it was 6 years. You can get N spec 4S’s that meet warranty requirements.If you are gonna track it regularly go with cup2’s if not 4S, much better there for the road.
GT4RS said:
Enquiring about a gt3 and been given some of its service history, I can see it’s had tyres fitted just over 7 years and it’s done very little mileage since and they still have around 5mm on them. It’s being sold by a well know porsche specialist, would you expect them to be offering the car with a new set of tyres due to there age or is this acceptable?
The car is priced at the high end of its market.
Lets put the boot on the other foot. I'm pretty confident the dealer would use this scenario as leverage if you were offering this car for sale/PX. The car is priced at the high end of its market.
New tyres or sale price negotiated down to accommodate your tyre purchase.
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