CHECK YOUR TIRES FOR DATE OF MANUFACTURE

MY TIRE SPECIALIST SAYS YOU SHOULDN'T KEEP YOUR TIRES FOR MORE THAN 4 YEARS AS SUGGESTED BY THE MANUFACTURER....I KNOW FERRARI'S OUT THERE WITH 10 YEAR OLD TIRES! RUBBER AGES AND DRY ROT SETS IN WHICH MAKES THEM UNSAFE....CHECK THE TIRE FOR THE DOT NUMBER.....THE LAST FOUR DIGITS ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT.....THE FIRST TWO INDICATE THE WEEK IT WAS MANUFACTURED AND THE LAST TWO INDICATE THE YEAR.......HAPPY MOTORING!

Is there a reason that you are yelling? {Hint:: all caps is yelling on the internet.}

And, yes, what you say is correct, tires do age, and that at 4-6 years the tires don't have the grip they used to have.

I met one gentleman and his wife with a 96 F355B at a high performance track event. The car had only 5,000 miles on it, and had already had 2 major services and the original tires. He spun it once, she spun it twice. {$10,000 in major service expenses and yet never even through to spend another $1000 on brand new tires.}

Mitch, Thanks for the info! When buying a used Ferrari, most people don't even check the manufacture date of the tires! This could be one of those hidden cost areas that one overlooks. My 1992 Ferrari 348 Speciale uses Pirelli PZero System Asimmetrico Tires....front 215/50YR17 @ $222 each and rear 255/45YR17 @ $244 each. Add $20 each for mounting & balancing and your hidden cost is approx. $1000. The lowest price I could find for these tires is $202 for the front & $224 for the rear....they are available from the following web site:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/Compar...mp;RunFlat=All

When shopping for tires, I use Max Performance summer tires (for the Ferrari). I start at:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/survey...ay.jsp?type=MP

And then start at the top of the list and choose the highest rated tires that are available in (something close to) the factory recommended tire sizes. I have been running Bridgestone S03s fro the last 3 years, this year I will try a Michelin PS2s. I have a set of the Bridgestone 050s on my wifes camry.

I currently have the rear ride height setup for S03s in 275/40ZR18 sizing (4 tunrs down from the 265/40ZR18 sizing). Modern Ferraris as sensitive enough that changing tire sizing should be followed by a ride ehight adjustment to restore the roll couple distribution. Rear ride height determs the oversteer/understeer relationship

So, start with the given link, then click on the top tire, and then on the subsequent page, click on specs. It is fairly easy to find a 225/40ZR18 tire for the fron fo the F355B and a little difficult to find a 265/40ZR18 for the rear (DO NOT use a 265/35ZR18 on tthe rear unless you are going to reset the rear ride height. A 275/40 is a good choice but does require a slight drop in the rear ride height for best effect.