New - Old tires

Looking at tires for my MR2, Tire Rack has 2014 production year new tires for sale. Is that too old to buy? Seems odd they have them still almost.

This car does not see much driving, so it kind of seems like I should buy newer tires. They are already 4 years old..... Occasional AutoX, maybe a track day if I get a cage, mostly a fun summer DD.

Yeah, why risk it in a vehicle known to sometimes leave the road backwards?

In reply to wheelsmithy :

They are cheap..... Is sitting in a warehouse all that bad? 

I replace tires that are more than 6 years old regardless of remaining tread, but most tires are relatively cheap.

I would buy 2014 tires if I could burn through them in a year or two but not for a low use hobby car.

In reply to bludroptop :

Thanks, I  figured 8 to 10 was replacement age. It would probably take me more than 2 years to burn through them, but at the same time they are pretty cheap.  under 400 bucks shipped

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DD yes! Track, no way!

If the OP is referring to the V720 (I tripped across the same deal while window shopping for 17"s) I'd get fresh ones.

I'm pretty familiar with this tire and I have a higher opinion of them than a lot of people but they definitely fall off with age.  I suspect the same is true of most of the UHP  200ish TW options.

In reply to bludroptop :

Yep that's the one. I guess I will have to pass. Too bad as the price was right! 

As to track use, I will need a cage/roll hoop before that could happen.

I just replaced a set of 2014 Pirellis with 12k miles on them because they were splitting between the treads.

So my next best budget option seems to be the Conti Extreme Contact Sport, 340AA, $90+shipping.

I'd run them for a fun cruiser. But I tend to kill tires faster then alot of people. The current fronts on my wagon are 5 years old and were used. Couldn't bring myself to buy new not knowing what would clear.

In reply to java230 :

I just got a set of firestone firehawk 500s for about that price on amazon.

In reply to java230 :

My vintage race car  tires were seldom less then 2-3 years old by the time I got them.  My policy was that I raced on them until they slowed down more than 2 seconds a. Lap. Usually 6-8 years. Sometimes 10. 

 Old tires get hard. They don’t blow up or explode.  Sure that’s possible if not properly stored. Or exposed to a lot of sun. But then you can see the  weather checks.  

I got some Firestone Indy 500's for my Speed3. It's a good tire for the money, but it's not like the 200 TW Bridgestones I had before. By the time I burn them up 20K about a year and a half, there will be new 200 TW to try out.

Those don't appear to be available in a 205/50r15.

Conti ECS is probably one of the better tires for your usage regardless of price, so if they are cheapest too then I'd definitely go for it. 

I got a set of maxxis vr-1s pretty cheap, and I've been happy with them. They're currently $113 directly from maxxis, with free shipping. They are significantly wider than the Dunlop direzza z2s that they replaced. 

In reply to GroupSects :

One of the cheaper options! 90 ish each plus shipping. 

OK opinions!

Conti Extreme contact, 340AA

OR 

Yokohama S Drive, 300AA

$66 less for the S Drive.