I bought a used bike and it has the original tires on it. it is 18 years old and the tread on the tires is really good. it‘s barely been used. the mechanic i took it too said that since the tires are so old, once i start riding it a lot the rubber around the seems will start to crack. i don‘t know much about tires or fixing things for that matter, does this sound logical? or is this guy just trying to get an extra 300 bucks?
He may be trying to get money out of you.However, your talking about rubber that is 18 years old, and you may not know how these tires were kept. They could have dry rotted. Plus, you are talking about a motorcycle. They can be extremely dangerous if one thing goes wrong on them. Your tires are really important. A flat on a car is much different then a flat on a bike. I would say try riding the bike on those tires at slow speeds around your neighborhood, or through a parking lot for a while and see what happens to the tires. I would err on the side of caution, and buy new tires.
You din't say what type of bike it is so it is hard to say if $300 if fair or not. The people who answered DRY ROT are on the money. Your tires will be dried out after 18 years and may haveeven developed a flat spot from sitting so long. Your tires are the only thing keeping your bike in contact with the road so they are probably one of the most important safety items on it. Buy a good set of tires and replace them immediately for your safety. Try looking online for some replacement tires and then just have a shop mount them. Most of th $300 might be labor as to put the rear one on you have to take the chain off then retighten it.
The 18 year old tires are not safe they are probable dry rotted and may blow out at long highway speeds. No he is not trying to get your money he is trying to save your life. Buy new tires.
