To Rotate or Not to rotate.

Last Oct I purchased a used car (30000k). Since the front tires had noticable less trend, I assumed the previous owner seldom or never rotated the tires, I rotated them. 8000 k later should I rotate them again? The tires I moved to the rear still have noticable less tread. BTY, winter is coming in northern Minnesota. Suggestions? Thanks.

Reply to
JR
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What is the vehicle (FWD or RWD?)?

Do the more worn tires have any irregular wear patterns, or do they just in general have less tread remaining, worn evenly across, no cupping? What about the front tires in that regard? How close to the wear indicators are the rear tires?

Reply to
Bill Putney

I had Costco put two new tires put on my 92 Caravan some time back. They have a notice in the tire department saying that if only two tires are replaced, they will ALWAYS put them on the rear. They also had a video playing to graphically show why they do it that way. My thought would have been to put them on the front where they would get better traction. Their reason is that better tires on the rear will provide for better (safer) stopping - if two lose traction, better the front than the rear - that way you maintain better control of the vehicle.

However, I don't know what that does when it comes time to rotate them. I asked, and they said something about just rotating them side to side. When I took it in to have them "rotated" - I got it back with them in the exact same position they were in...so who knows. Unfortunately, the transmission went out 8k miles after the tires were put on. However, I don't think the front ones were too terribly far behind in life, so they probably would have been close enough to the others to truly start rotating them.

I bought an 02 Voyager to replace it, and it has nearly new looking Michelin's on it. Which brings me to pondering just how worthwhile it is to rotate tires when you have to pay $15 a shot to do so. Obviously if you bought the tires somewhere that they rotate for free, it's a no-brainer. But...let's say the tires last 50k miles (and there's a good chance they will last longer than that). That would be rotating them about a dozen times (every 4k miles) - at a cost of $180 (12x$15). That's a good portion of the cost of a new set. Is it really worth it? Another thought for everyone to ponder in the "to rotate or not to rotate" debate...

Wesley

Reply to
Wesley

FrontWD. All four (Michelin Energy MXV4 S8) look ok with plenty of tread. However, the two that were originally on the front just have less tread. I think the previous owner didn't rotate them often (or ever).

Reply to
JR

I think that rotating tires are a thing of the past. Not necessary given the suspension and tire technology we've had for the past 10 or 20 years.

Do you own snow tires? If you live in the snow belt, then you should, and you should have a set of snow tires on their own steel rims ready to put on when the winter snow starts to come down. If you regularly switch between snow tires and regular tires, and if you really feel the urge to rotate your tires, then that's when you can rotate them.

Otherwise, I don't think it's necessary to rotate tires like it used to be 20, 30, 40 years ago.

Yea, the driving tires (usually the front) will wear more. Just like the front pads and rotors wear more.

So when necessary, replace only the front tires with new ones.

If or when the rear tires get worn, then again replace them (and only them) when necessary.

Reply to
MoPar Man

.................... Which brings me to pondering just how worthwhile it is to

Suggestions? Thanks.

Costco & Sam's Club both offer free rotation (every 12,000 miles??), free flat repair, balancing, etc.

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Reply to
Steve N.

Here's Sam's Club tire installation package that includes rotation:

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Reply to
Steve N.

Thanks for the info. Two observations-

  1. I have used the Sams Club package, but occassionaly they can be pretty "ham-fisted" in their work- broken lugnuts, etc., Good deal however in the long run.
  2. I heard the Car Talk guys (Tappet Brothers) recommend rotating only IF you can have it done free. Otherwise it is not worth it. Interesting. Thanks again.
Reply to
JR

Around here, they are meticulous about using a torque wrench on lug nuts.( Also, if you go in for tire work and they find a wheel with a missing stud, they will not touch that wheel for liability reasons).

Reply to
Steve N.

They won't replace the stud?

Reply to
Joe Pfeiffer

No......

Reply to
Steve N.

Every owners manual for Chrysler FWD cars I've owned since 2000 have told me to have the tires rotated at every oil change. I find that extreme in my case because we put less than 7,000 miles per year on these cars.

Reply to
Steve Stone

Our local Sam's has an account with a local repair shop to fix any screw-ups (broken lugs, etc.,) At one time, on their portraits of employees, one of the guys had a sledgehammer on his shoulder. However, they still have a good selection instore and online and I think the prices are good.

Reply to
JR

Rotating tires is not about whether it's worth it, it's about keeping a similar tread on all 4 tires for safety reasons and also getting maximum tire life.

The top tire company Michelin says this: >Lengthen the Life of Your Tires<

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Reply to
Josh S

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