Problem figuring out DOT code for age
by Victor
(Tucson)
Sample DOT code
I saw on the news recently the concern that a tire older than 5 years can be dangerous due to the detrioration of the rubber. It advised people to check the DOT code on their tires to confirm the age. Well I have Goddrich tires and they don't have seeries of 12 digits after the DOT.
All it says is -
DOT UT6V CWL
COuld the date have been left off?
I am about to take a trip and this unnerves me a bit. What do you think?
Also, while I'm asking questions. Any suggestions for a tires on a LIncoln LS? I have to replace those and haven't figured out which are best.
Victor,
It would be better if we had a picture of your tire code, but from what you've reported I'm concerned about the missing part of the DOT code. If I were you I'd be visiting a BF Goodrich dealer as soon as possible to discover what is going on.
When I was being trained to adjust tire complaints, I was shown tires which had been falsified by some unscrupulous person and one of the clues to this was a missing DOT code.
I don't know if this is what happened in your case but all tires sold in the USA must have a DOT code which includes the year of manufacture ... if it's missing I'd be wanting to know why.
Something else which occurs to me is the possiblity that the tire you've mentioned is not a car tire. The coding motorcycle tires is different from automobiles but the one you reported still looks strange to me.
As for the age of the tire, just being over 5 years old doesn't necessarily make a tire unsafe. It's just that manufacturers have placed a limit on their products for warranty purposes and they won't respond for any tires older than that. I think they reached that limit because most tires which are sold have been completely worn out before they reach 5 years of age.
See my comments on 7 year old Pirelli tires for some more thoughts on this topic.
Tireguy
