Can tires get dry?

[dlau420]

I was driving today and hte roads were damp, some guy pulled into my lane in front of me and i applied firm pressure on my brake pedal, now i want to make it clear that i didnt slam on the breaks, i applied firm pressure, anywyas my car started to skid in a straight line and i was waiting for the tires to catch but they didnt and i continued to slide, i slid for like 40 metres (and no i'm not exagerating) then i started to pump the brake, now, i took it to a garage, they said my brakes checked out and that its that the tires are garbage, the thing is they have tread, my question is, can tires get dry when they are old and lose grip even though they have tread?
any help would be appreciated, i'm kinda thinking the guy at the garage may be talking bs and trying to sell me tires
thanks in advance

[MR1]

my 20 year old tires have tread.

you can't pay me enough for me to drive em on public roads I tell ya that.

rubber does age; with age they'll harden. so whatever compound it was when it was new, won't be the same when they have aged.

[dlau420]

age? how long is age? like 7 years?
thanks in advance

[Xenon]

Tires do get old and dry up. That's why there's a manufacture date on the tire. For example if you park you car for a long period of time, the tire will lose pressure and will take the shape it's been in (ie Flat!).

[foompla]

Do you have ABS?

[SR5 Rolla]

Yes!...my car sat for so long I now have run flat tires....lol

[Dicipleofthelie]

*dismounts old crappy tires for a living*
(ever smelt 20 year old air? )

it sucktastical work but whatever.

ive noticed that with age tires begin to harden then crack
they also deform and get flat spot.. but ive found that when i find tires with flat spot, if you let the air outa them, then refill them..they take back their original shape

[foompla]

hopefully the sidewal wasnty deformed from sitting on the ground for too long.

[EmptyMethod]

My summer tires all leak so in my closet ovr the witner they all had flat spots, it was awesome the first week od driving on them!

[hopeful]

it had to have been you dude, i know tires age and all but once u start skidding and your tires have locked up your either peeling and new rubber is seeing the ground ( i know not new, but definetly clean and grippy) or the road u were on was covered in tiny bits of dirt that wasn't visible at the time.