Rotating uneven tires?

Because of my utter negligence in getting an alignment, my front tires have started to wear pretty uneven. The inside tread on the front is maybe 1/8" more worn than the outside.

I had already planned on getting new tires this summer, but I was wondering if it might be beneficial to rotate the front tires to the back, to spread out the uneven wear. I'll be getting the much needed alignment in a couple weeks, and new tires in a couple months. This would be a temporary thing.

Would that cause potential safety problems or am I okay doing this?

 

[hasben]

Most shops strongly suggest waiting and doing alignment with the new wheel package, if present tires are pretty much shot, I'd forego the alignment until new tires and also double, triple check those wonderful ball joints that seem to go so very quickly in our explorers throwing off any alignment.

 

[TheEnforcer98]

When you get an alignment (if done with uneven tires) the tires will still try their best to sit unevenly, essentially throwing off your alignment. And if you rotate them now, all they will do is continue to wear the same way they currently are.

 

[hasben]

agreed

 

[stopandstare]

shucks. Thanks for the input guys.

 

[Anime]

I'd say if they are only slightly worn on the inside, you should do a camber check (look at the angle of the tires as viewed from the front near the ground at a pretty good distance) and a toe-in check (use a tape measure and measure the distance between two points on the tires, using a grease marker or tape, and rolling the vehicle back and forth to get the same exact points in front and in back on the tires).

With this info, and some basic tools, you can adjust the alignment yourself a small bit. If you can keep up with it, you can keep making small adjustments until you notice the abnormal wear is either gone, or you've gone too far in the adjustments and now the outside shoulder of the tires is wearing more.

Yeah, it's less high-tech than computerized alignments with lasers and all that, but believe it or not, it's MORE accurate, and can account for your particular driving style that a "standard" alignment will not. It took awhile, but I finally managed to tweak the alignment on mine, and it's better than it EVER was than any vehicle I've ever been in with a rack alignment.

It can be tough to get a vehicle with badly worn tires to align and counter the wear, but if it's not that bad yet, it's worth a shot. You can also swap the wheels/tires front to rear to check your work in the long run, or at least give the tires more life once the inside shoulder on the front tires is so worn you would otherwise need to replace them.
Be sure to check the tire pressure as well, as keeping them properly inflated, or adding a few more psi to the factory spec (the 26 psi spec a lot of Explorers came with is rather low and has been changed by Ford) can shift some of the wear to the middle of the tread.

 

[stopandstare]

Cool info Anime, I'll look into doing that. I just need a little more life out of my tires until my "tire fund" is full. The gf wants to spend the 4th in her hometown, and I'd love to be able to take my truck for the 1000 mile drive.

 

[nitro71]

Check into Firestones lifetime alignment. I paid $130 and can take mine in any time. Do ball joints. Take it in. Do RA bushings. Take it in. You get the idea.

 

[Anime]

Even with bad front end alignment, you have plenty of tires to go through.

Keep in mind you can not only swap the front and rear to balance the wear between them, but you could also just have the tires re-mounted and either turned around or swapped side to side, (making what was the worn inside shoulder now the outside, and vice versa). Probably not worth it unless you know someone who will do it for you free or for just a few bucks, but still an option when new tires aren't.


The lifetime alignment is a good idea if you can use it, AND if the Local Firestone does a good job.