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My winter car has a set of five year old Michelins that have sidewall rot. I don't drive the car a lot, but I will soon have to replace a set of relatively new, low miles tires.

Is this an issue to manufacturers? It sure is to me. How about you?

Have you checked your classic for disintegration of the sidewalls or in the sipes?

What--if anything--do you do to prolong tire life? Is there anything that can be done that realistically will help?

No surprise here. For all the positive handling attributes of radial tires, that is often the shortcoming; bias ply tend to last much longer, even decades. It is in large part caused by the fact that the sidewalls on radial designs flex and work very much more than bias ply, and the degradation is hastened by UV (sunlight) and ozone in the air, a kind of "devulcanization". Under inflation also greatly hastens the onset of the problem; car manufacturers tend to recommend somewhat low inflation pressures to give a more pleasant ride but knowledgeable folks tend to inflate to higher pressures.

I'm told some reputable radial tire makers suggest a 6-8 year life before discarding, regardless of mileage.

So.....don't drive the car, keep it a dark garage and keep the pressures up and they'll last longer.

I don't believe for a NY minute that the problem with sidewalls degrading is limited to radial tires.

I have a Goodyear Eagle ST radials on a couple of my old cars (not Packards) that are over twenty years old, and the rubber is just as pliable as new - with no cracks. Yet, because of susbsequent (other) problems with their product on daily drivers, I'm no longer a customer.

Meanwhile, we recently replaced a set of Uniroyals (after not quite six years of use) on my dad's daily driver because the tread - though not down to the wear indicators - was insufficient for getting around on snow. Good thing though, as the sidewalls were cracked throughout. I've heard similar complaints in past years from owners with Michelin tires.

I've also heard rumor that that manufacturers have, in recent years, altered the formulation of (synthetic) rubber so that tires degrade more quickly, rather than fill up landfills with mosquito breeding grounds.

Rumors are just rumors, but where there's smoke, there's fire.

By interesting contrast, I looked up the Coker Classics (H78 - 15) on my car, and saw they are warranted for the life of the tread.

Good for me, as I know they are at least ten years old and don't appear to?have been driven on, as they still have the flashing and nubs!

Michelin makes good performing tires but short lived from the standpoint of sidewall cracking. Good tires if you drive a lot, but if you keep the same tires for 5 years or more there are better brands.

What brand lasts longest I do not know but would be useful information to have.

I have been running Dunlops on my vehicles going back to the mid-70s. Have always gotten close to 70,000 per set. Have never seen a sidewall crack.

I am wondering if the problem isn't related to the increased use of tire dressing and Armor All type tire products at home and the full service car washes. I am now using the Allback linseed oil wax on my tires and the interior and exterior of my truck. Blocks UV and seals interior vinyl to stop off-gassing. Big plus is now only have to do tires once or twice a year instead of every other wash.

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As a long-time user of ArmorAll, I doubt it.

The surviving Goodyear tires that I cited have always been treated with ArmorAll after each cleaning, as was every set of tires (of various brands), on my daily drivers - including Michelin. My drivers are parked outside 24/7. year-round.

However, I had the same model/size of Uniroyals as what my dad had (later) purchased, and when I replaced those (just two years ago), due to low tread depth at the approach of winter, I seem to recall some superfical cracks just beginning to show in the sidewall. I thought nothing of it until reading more of such complaints online.