Correct. More on that - i have driven 10 year old tires on the race track, after...

Hi,

Unfortunately I'm not in the US and my local tyre options for my 295 40 20 amg ML are severely limited.
I've got a kumho option which are well recommended for boxsters Ive seen. But the dealer is totally upfront that they are manufactured first week 08 so I've got a great price.
It's pretty hot here in the middle east- they will have been sitting in a warehouse, wrapped, at 20 deg c in the winter, 45 degrees c in the summer. You guys reckon these would be good for a couple of years though?

Cheers,

With an AMG car your tires will wear out in two years regardless of brand, I would suspect those tires have done a lot of curing sitting in a warehouse at 45c . I guess you have to deside if you want to walk home in that heat if you pop a tire. The kuhmos seem to be well liked by the guys on the board who live in the southern states, I tried them here (Canada ) and found they flat spot really badly in the cool temps. I know it can get really cold at night in the dessert so that may be a problem. I think I would put my money toward a new set of tires that would allow you to enjoy that car without wondering if the next time you let it fly its going to blow a tire and destroy one of those very expensive 20" rims , or worse yet kill you or someone else.

... is not heat, it's UV (sunlight).
Tires are made to heat up as they turn, so heat is not an issue.
What damages rubber the most is UV light.
If they were stored properly without direct sunlight, there should be no problem using 3.5 year old tires.
It is recommended that tires be replaced every 6 years, so you still have 2.5 years of use.
I really like Kumhos. That's what I use in my own Boxster and in my wife's Lexus RX.
Happy Boxstering,
Pedro

Pedro Bonilla
1998 Boxster 986 - 311,000+ miles: [www.PedrosGarage.com]
PCA National Club Racing Scrutineer - PCA National HPDE Instructor - PCA Technical Committee (Boxster/Cayman)

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Racecar spelled backwards is Racecar

"Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting" ... Steve McQueen as Michael Delaney in "LeMans"

"If you wait, all that happens is that you get older"... Mario Andretti

"Being second is to be the first of the ones who lose" ... Ayrton Senna

Thanks for the advice. I do have an option on Continentals. I just can't get over the fact that they charge 100 PC more here than in the US( 600 us a tire), when all other brands are near parity. Ive gone through as many contis as any other brand so i fancy giving the kumhos a try. The main issue is the size limiting the choice or I wouldn't be considering this- - - no one imports this size, my only other option is roadstone!

checking them inside and out for micro-cracks and dry rot, which is made fairly clear with a black light.

The 6 year limit from the press is simply conservative so the tires sitting in Nevada sunlight, and maybe not great tires to start with, don't kill you.

As with most things - be aware of the risk, then check, test, get facts - or simply change early to avoid all that trouble.
I'm too cheap

Grant

OE

Funny how tire pressure measurement is given as an example, too.