The set that is currently on my rear which is what I am replacing were made in China, the date code indicates they are 9 years old, the outer tread of one tire is stating to split other than that they look great but I know the golden 5 year rule, these just got forgotten due to life issues.
The new ones are China branded.
I replaced the fronts a couple years ago with 245/70 to get a bigger foot print on the road and it helped the handling a lot.
Probably could have fit 225/70's on the rear without "kissing" and the lower profile may have been a benefit but these 8R's were too cheap to pass up and I know how they ride so I decided not to mess with known factors.