The difficulty with evaluating the effects of aging in tires is that there is little convincing test information on the actual effects of aging under various conditions of storage and use.

The video makes much of "tread separations," but the fairly scant published information suggests that this almost always is the result of "defective assembly," before the tire went on the shelf; usually aggravated by overloading (or underinflation for the load which amounts to the same thing).

Tire manufacturers (and the NHTSC) in the US do pick up separated treads off the highways for analysis to attempt to determine the causes of tire failures, and find that nearly all "shed treads" (called "alligators" by frequent highway drivers) come from virgin tires with little or no correlation with carcass age. The cause of the separation is almost always an original manufacturing defect OR underinflation for the load at the time of the failure. High speeds contribute.

The main danger from "aged rubber" is probably from sidewall ruptures, and under ordinary usage conditions some "checking" and/or "flaking" of the sidewalls nearly always is visible well before the aging penetrates to/through the cord reinforcements. The tire often will show "seepage losses" well before there is much danger of "in-use catastrophic failure," if one bothers to look for it. (Seepage loss of air in transit might produce the "underinflation" that may actually cause the kind of tread loss claimed in the video, on a longer than usual trip. You may need enroute checks along with the check before hitting the road.)

The main factors that produce "aging effects" in tire materials, and in other "polymer" materials, are heat and ozone/chemical exposure. Exposure to UV radiation (sunlight) also may accelerate aging.

Exposure to the accelerating factors generally are minimized during warehouse storage, although careless stocking could possibly result in "unusually rapid" aging. An old rule of thumb - possibly no longer valid and NOT SUBSTANTIATED by any testing that I've heard of - is that three years in the warehouse is roughly equivalent to a year on the road, with respect to the actual chemical "aging" of the rubber.

Chemical deterioration of tire polymers is greatly accelerated by exposure to sunlight, road chemicals (including exhaust chemicals and particulates, salts, and "spillages") and by heat. Underinflation (overloading at "normal" inflation is underinflation) can cause heating, which can "age" your tires rapidly.

"Aging" of tires on the vehicle is so much more rapid than any similar effects in normal storage that the shelf-age of a "new" tire probably has little real effect on the "on-the-road" life you can expect. There might be a detectable effect from improper storage, but that should be "unusual."

Tires of several decades ago were subject to aging to greater extent than "modern" ones, as now generally available. I knew a couple of people who "hoarded" a couple of tires when "the war" (and rationing) broke out ca 1943, who got very few miles out of them when they pulled them out in 1949 (when they finally could get gas again to drive on them); but even aging of that duration - in normal storage conditions - should have little effect on more recent tire compounds and compositions.

Frequent and regular checks for proper inflation and for flaking, peeling, and/or lumps and bumps indicating internal irregularities such as ply separation etc. are still necessary, and every driver should be aware enough to sense - AND INVESTIGATE - any sudden change in "ride" that might indicate a pending tire failure.

Checking the "make date" brand on new tires might be worthwhile, especially if you're dealing with an unfamiliar seller. You could pretend to be more concerned than a three or four year old date merits, just to see if you could get the seller to knock off a few bucks; but within reason (<5 or 6 years), I wouldn't worry too much about "shelf time" on modern auto tires (for non-competitive driving).

John