Don’t want to die... But damn...

Just went through the glove compartment of knowledge for the service records and realized the tires on the Tacoma are 14 years old. Look great but damn.... Gonna replace and repaint the wheels OEM. Suggestions on a tire size for a stock rig that I may put a baby lift on. If I lift it, I’m only 2.5 inches max. Fiscal conservative. I want something to look nice with or without a lift.
Current size is 235 75 15.

 

Any idea what gears are in it? I'm looking at going to a skinny 31 or a 32 inch tire, but its got factory 4.30's. If it were something lower like 4.10 or less, I'd be looking at like a skinny 31.

 

Tires have date codes; always something one should look at when buying a used vehicle.

A correctly installed tire will have the date code on the outside, even if the tire is non-directional.

 

I have the same size as you on my Tacoma. Its what was on there from the previous owner. According to the original window sticker, stock size was 265/75/15, or 31x10.5x15.
I picked up some 16" Tacoma wheels and stock height for that wheel is 245/75/16 or 265/70/16. I am also looking to lift since the leaf springs are worn out and the front shocks are 21 years old. Putting on some 265/75/16 tires along with a 2-3" lift.

 

I have tires that are 20 plus years old .

It all comes down to how they are stored and how much Sun they see.

I worry more about ball joint failure.

 

They’re stamped on both sides.
https://www.discounttire.com/learn/dot-tire-id

 

Nice.

Tire I looked at must've been so old, they didn't stamp it on both sides?

It was from '97

 

I worked for DTC from 2001 to 2010 and remember having to crawl under trucks and cars when we’d forget to grab customer’s DOT numbers on some brands. The gov must have changed requirements so that the DOT numbers were available to the customer on either side.

 

Yeah, I'm not fluent on the legalities of all that but makes sense as to why.

The '97 dated tire I'm referring to was my own original spare. It still had the vent spews, and when the tire was removed, displayed the bright enamel black paint found inside the wheel.

 

Most of our salesmen would refuse to let us mount/service tires older than 8 years due to liability issues but I think it’s still up to the manufacturer’s recommendations. I’ve seen six year old untouched spare’s beads rip when we would dismount them from dry rot.

Trailer tires were the worst. They’d get mounted brand new, used a few times and then sit for months/years. Then a “brand new” tire with lots of tread would blow because they got beaten by the sun. I don’t really trust old tires.

 

I was told by my tire dealer of 40 years just another thing for manufactures to sell more tires.

Brand new tire to old needs to be replaced yet it has never been mounted.

 

Can’t blame the seller. He was an Alzheimer’s patient and the cost was great (free as it was my dad). I’m embarrassed I don’t know the gear ratio. It’s a 2.7 bone stock automatic and the door sticker says OEM size is 225 75 15.

 

There's a code on the door sticker. Something like A03B... Then decode it here:

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/oem-gear-ratio-chart.365138/

 

My guess is that your gear ratio is probably a 4.10. I put 265/75/16's on my truck with a 2.5" lift - looks pretty good to me and I didn't notice too much power loss. Granted I do have a V6 with 4.10's though.

As stated above though - check the door VIN tag and then compare the axle code!

 

B03A!!! Jbrandt! My main man! Example being “Him? That’s jbrandt. Don’t mess with him. He’s my main man jbrandt!”.

looks like I’m a 4:10 cruiser.

 

Oh man, it's bad enough he strokes his own ego....

How do you think he broke both his arms

 

This age thing on tires reminds me of the local mattress guy who came up with replacing a mattress after x number of years. I know people who have replaced practically new mattresses because Larry on TV said so.

Condition determines when things need to be replaced, not arbitrary time frames.

 

I'm in this school of thought. If your vehicle is stored out of direct sunlight (not hard in Vancouver as it rains 10 months of the year), properly inflated, and replaced before they wear out, You're very unlikely to have safety issues.
Think about how long your seat belts have been exposed to sunlight/UV and heat cycles, and that when they are needed, their failure will have catastrophic results.
This is the whole reason behind replacing child car seats every 6-10 years, or rock climbing harnesses, so why should it be any different for adult seat belts?
You have 4 tires. Yes, a blow out will be undesireable, but FAR more likely to happen from an underinflated tire running at high speed and overheating.
Of course, do whatever makes you feel safe.
I will agree that rubber gets harder as it ages, so I am far more cognizant of tire age with my motorcycle tires, as they do not grip as well when they age, and a blowout would be far more dangerous. If anything, GM should have a replacement timeframe on their steel brakelines, I've heard of WAY more of them failing than a tire that is 5 years out of date.