Tyre rotation

Iceweasel

oneye14 wrote: »

With front wheel drive and braking I thought it was the other way round.

All the tyre manufacturers websites I have seen have statements to the effect that the new tyres (i.e. the ones with most tread) go to the rear.

Same for front wheel drive, rear wheel drive, and 4x4.

So best advice would be if you are swapping tyres around you need to do it fairly frequently so as to keep the tread depth difference to 1mm or less.

fivetide

Iceweasel wrote: »

All the tyre manufacturers websites I have seen have statements to the effect that the new tyres (i.e. the ones with most tread) go to the rear.

Same for front wheel drive, rear wheel drive, and 4x4.

So best advice would be if you are swapping tyres around you need to do it fairly frequently so as to keep the tread depth difference to 1mm or less.

Same here. Feels almost counter intuitive with a FWD car but I assume the reason would be the weight (or lack of) at the rear.

Breaking traction at the back in a FWD car throws a lot of drivers off. People expect them to understeer not oversteer so if they do I catches people unawares. It is one of the reasons so many 1.9 205 GTi's went backwards through hedges when drivers lifted off the throttle mid corner.

egyptiancotton

Iceweasel wrote: »

So best advice would be if you are swapping tyres around you need to do it fairly frequently so as to keep the tread depth difference to 1mm or less.

Would it be advisable to rotate tyres frequently (say, 5000 miles) or to rotate them once according to the calculator in my first post?

Iceweasel

lloydyyy wrote: »

Would it be advisable to rotate tyres frequently (say, 5000 miles) or to rotate them once according to the calculator in my first post?

I would be doing it every 5000 miles - it also gives you an opportunity to clean the inside of alloy wheels and to properly check the tyres, remove stones etc.

Left too long alloy wheels tend to 'stick' on the hubs so clean and put a smear of copper grease on the mating surfaces.

Ultrasonic

fivetide wrote: »

Same here. Feels almost counter intuitive with a FWD car but I assume the reason would be the weight (or lack of) at the rear.

Breaking traction at the back in a FWD car throws a lot of drivers off. People expect them to understeer not oversteer so if they do I catches people unawares. It is one of the reasons so many 1.9 205 GTi's went backwards through hedges when drivers lifted off the throttle mid corner.

As I understand it the reason is that if you start to lose grip at the front you notice this through the steering wheel so that you can correct for it safely. Losing grip at the rear you notice a little later, and it is hard to correct for. It's all about not losing control of the car rather than braking distances.

Fifth gear did a good video on this but unfortunately I can't find it on youtube at the moment. Here's a different one that gives the idea:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xzQQfT5O84

Ultrasonic

This was the better video I was looking for:

http://www.etyres.co.uk/flashmovies/new-tyres-rear-etyres.htm

Looks like it was one VBH did for etyres rather than Fifth Gear.

marlot

My 4x4 likes to have the same brand/model of tyre all round, and all worn about the same amount.

I discovered that the fronts wear about twice as quickly as the rears, so my 'rotation' consists of buying a second spare wheel, and swapping the fronts for my two spares each year.

(A true rotation was too much hassle, and I ended up throwing away an unused spare last time.)

I'm glad I did, as I'd otherwise be needing two new front tyres now, and the tyre model I have fitted is no longer available.

When they all wear out, I'll have to buy six tyres, of course. But that's fine with me as at least I get decent use out of them.

Iceweasel

marlot wrote: »

My 4x4 likes to have the same brand/model of tyre all round, and all worn about the same amount.

I discovered that the fronts wear about twice as quickly as the rears, so my 'rotation' consists of buying a second spare wheel, and swapping the fronts for my two spares each year.

(A true rotation was too much hassle, and I ended up throwing away an unused spare last time.)

I'm glad I did, as I'd otherwise be needing two new front tyres now, and the tyre model I have fitted is no longer available.

When they all wear out, I'll have to buy six tyres, of course. But that's fine with me as at least I get decent use out of them.

Sounds like Michelin Synchrones on a Freelander.
One of the most sensitive vehicles to unequal tread front and rear.
The tyres with most tread MUST go to the rear or your wallet becomes damaged.