Lotus Elan

Racing tyre age

PostPost by: Andy8421 » Tue Mar 01, 2022 9:33 am

I am putting my S3 back on the track for a track day at Goodwood. No competition, but hopefully some time on the track to see if my son is interested in pursuing the hobby.

I have 10 or so NOS Yokohama Advan A032r tyres mounted on wheels that are unused, left over from my 'racing' days. Understanding that they will have deteriorated over time and won't perform as well as new tyres, at what age do the tyres become unsafe to use? I have checked a couple over, and there is no sign of any deterioration, cracking or aging.
68 Elan S3 HSCC Roadsports spec
71 Elan Sprint (still being restored)
32 Standard 12
Various modern stuff
Andy8421
Coveted Fifth Gear
Coveted Fifth Gear
 
Posts: 1263
Joined: 27 Mar 2011
Location: Surrey, UK

PostPost by: rgh0 » Tue Mar 01, 2022 10:01 am

If unused and stored well they should be fine. My last A032R I wore out about 3 years ago and they probably have not been made for 5 years at least bit NOS should still be OK

But i would check them after each track session :)

cheers
Rohan
User avatar
rgh0
Coveted Fifth Gear
Coveted Fifth Gear
 
Posts: 8990
Joined: 22 Sep 2003
Location: Melbourne, Australia

PostPost by: Andy8421 » Wed Mar 02, 2022 5:37 pm

Rohan,

Thank you for the reply. I will give them a try. If my posts stop at the end of March, you will know it hasn't worked out too well.....

I did have a quick look to see if anyone had any new, and Yokohama don't seem to produce them anymore. They are 175/60/R13 77H A032R. These were a good compromise between a track tyre, and a tyre that was still road legal.

What tyres do you use in OZ?

Thanks,

Andy.

Edit: I just re-read your post, and I believe you mentioned they aren't made anymore. There is still a 10" version available in the UK for Minis, but not 13".
68 Elan S3 HSCC Roadsports spec
71 Elan Sprint (still being restored)
32 Standard 12
Various modern stuff
Andy8421
Coveted Fifth Gear
Coveted Fifth Gear
 
Posts: 1263
Joined: 27 Mar 2011
Location: Surrey, UK

PostPost by: rgh0 » Wed Mar 02, 2022 7:34 pm

They were superseded by the A048R and more recently by the A050R

cheers
Rohan
User avatar
rgh0
Coveted Fifth Gear
Coveted Fifth Gear
 
Posts: 8990
Joined: 22 Sep 2003
Location: Melbourne, Australia

PostPost by: 661 » Thu Mar 03, 2022 11:05 am

Andy, they will have production date marks on them. ( week number of the year followed by the year).
I try to get rid of tyres after 6 years, ideally, but have been known to break my own rules!.
Graeme
S4 SE
S2 GTS
Caterham 420R
Sold - Peterson JPS Exige
User avatar
661
Coveted Fifth Gear
Coveted Fifth Gear
 
Posts: 1316
Joined: 29 Mar 2012
Location: East Sussex

Total Online:

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 1 guest