Question:Is it still necessary to rotate the tires every
so often?
Answer:There are two schools of thought on this subject.
Rotating the tires, which is recommended by all tire manufacturers,
involves changing their position on the vehicle from one wheel
location to another. This helps to even out tire wear between
all the tires so the tires last longer and do not develop abnormal
wear patterns. This may be recommended every 8,000 to 15,000
miles.
On front-wheel drive cars and minivans, the front wheels tend
to wear at a much faster rate than those on the rear. After 50,000
or 60,000 miles of driving, the front tires may be worn out while
the ones on the back may still have half or more of their tread
life remaining. By rotating the tires front to rear and side
to side, differences in wear patterns between the wheel locations
spreads the wear out and more or less wears the tires evenly --
or so the theory goes. Consequently, tires that would have lasted
only 50,000 or 60,000 miles on the front of a front-wheel drive
car may last 70,000 or 80,000 miles. But on the other hand, the
tires on the rear that may well have gone 100,000 miles only last
70,000 or 80,000 miles.
Those who say rotating tires is a waste of time argue that
it makes more sense to replace the front tires on a front-wheel
drive car or minivan when they wear out, but to leave the back
tires alone -- especially if you're putting a lot of miles on
the vehicle or plan to keep it a long time. The back tires will
probably last as long as two sets of front tires, so in the long
run you end up buying the same number or possibly even fewer tires
by not rotating. Plus, you've saved the time and money that would
have been spent on rotating the tires.
This argument doesn't fly in the case of certain low profile
performance tires that have a tendency to develop a heel-and-toe
wear pattern if left in the same wheel position too long.
For rear-wheel drive cars and trucks, the recommended tire
rotation pattern is to rotate the front wheels to the opposite
side on the rear, and move the rear wheels to the same side on
the front.
For front-wheel drive cars and minivans, the recommended tire
rotation pattern is to rotate the rear wheels to the front on
the opposite side, and move the front wheels to the rear on the
same side.
If your vehicle has "directional" tires (small arrows
or triangles indicating the direction of travel), the wheels must
not be switched side to side. They can, however, be rotated front
to rear on the same side.
If the front and rear wheels and/or tires on your vehicle
are of different size, then rotation is out of the question.
