I have the original spare tire on my 1994 Suburban. The tire is a firestone A/T, has never been on the ground and the Suburban has been garaged all 15 years. Can I use this tire?
I wouldn’t, 15 years is over my limit.
Also, a Suburban is one of the last vehicles I’d ever want to be in when it blows out a tire.
Tie a rope around it and make a tire swing out of it. Don’t use it on the road.
I would go ahead and replace it. Get the cheapest new tire you can find in that size.
Absolutely not. This spare tire is a blowout ready to happen. I notice it’s a Firestone so it’s useful life ended about 9 years ago.
The old tire scare people offer no proof it was age that caused the blowouts…The pictures look no different than a BRAND NEW tire looks when it blows out at 70…The actual cause of the tire failure is never properly investigated. ANY tire will fail if punctured, driven at high speed as the pressure slowly drops. Tens of thousands of vehicles are driving around on 15 year old tires with no problems.
What HAS changed is tire technology and sizing. That old Firestone will be impossible to match. But it’s still usable as an emergency use spare tire…
I keep it as a spare. Check periodically to see that it is holding air, a good policy with any spare tire. I wouldn’t mount it on the car for everyday use at this point.
You could use it as a spare, but I think I would use the best of the existing tyres as a spare the next time I bought new tyres.