Tire Rotation Not Needed?

[CarnationSailor]

Took my 2015 Silverado 2500 to the Chevy dealer for a regular oil and filter change, and tire rotation. The service writer told me the tires did not need to be rotated because the tires with the most tread were already on the rear. (I have 8/32's on the rear tires and 7/32's on the front tires.) I have never heard of such an idea. Any thoughts on this?

Thanks

[JRscooby]

Cummins12V98 wrote:
My question is why are the fronts wearing faster? Under inflation?

On pickups, likely cars and SUVs, the front tires carry more weight most of time. Look at your scale ticket from when you weighed your rig. Front tires get most of the side thrust. Most drivers do not stress the friction rear tires to ground most of time..

[JRscooby]

Grit dog wrote:
OMG..
No radial tires don't "like" to remain where they were installed and "broke in". (WTH is that anyway? Tire break in?)
Tires "like" (if I can pretend they're my friends now and not just.....tires) to be worn evenly if the tires' owner likes minimizing what comes out of their wallet.
And the way to keep them smooth and even is by rotating.

This is probably confusing to those who have no idea how to read tire wear and how it relates to load or position on the vehicle.

Most of the tires I have bought where for my trucks and trailers, not my toys or pleasure vehicles. New tires, mount on wheels, heat a bent wire, and brand a arrow on the sidewall pointing the direction that tire will rotate. And for the life of that tire, (drive tires normally cap twice) that tire only spins the other way when truck is in reverse. On my last truck, steer tires looked like would last about 70,000, but when I got to 50, would need tires on the lift, move back. (I carried 22,000 plus on each of the axles) My tractor, out of town, with a company trailer, flat. Shop I was at had limited selection of used. Owner of trailer did not want to buy a pair of new, I knew if we mounted new next to the one that was there I would be in tire shop again before got home. Told the boss I would rent him my steer tires for the difference in what new would cost home/here. He asked how old my steers were. "A little over 100,000"
He goes into a rant, you are running on my authority blahblah... 5000 miles later, back the trailer in home shop, owner and son (that ran co.) meet me, "Those are pretty good tires, how do you get them to last longer than mine?" Soon as I unhook I'm to shop for a 3 axle alignment check, just like every time I put tires on it"

[dodge_guy]

It’s simple. They don’t want to rotate then because they aren’t ready to be rotated yet. Unless the fronts are feathering then I would leave them until they are ready.

[Tvov]

Cummins12V98 wrote:
My question is why are the fronts wearing faster? Under inflation?

My fronts have always seemed to wear faster, I am a little surprised at all the people saying rears wear faster. I've always assumed it was a combination of front weight and steering... with the majority of wear caused by steering.

I tow almost daily, but not "heavy" towing... landscape equipment trailers, and our camper, all of which are roughly only half of my trucks rated capacity. My rear tires last noticeably longer than my front.

Especially when I had my 1987 F350 dually dump truck - that truck had limited slip rear end, and an amazing turning radius. The front wheels almost went to 90 degrees it seemed like. Combine limited rear end with front tires almost sideways during slow maneuvers - I would actually leave skid marks on pavement from the front tires with the wheel all the way over, with all 4 rear wheels trying to push the truck straight. I would have to replace the front tires twice as often as the back. And that truck was regularly overloaded.

As to dealers not rotating tires - typical. They offer things like free rotation to get you in the shop, then turn around and claim it is not needed - while charging you for other services. Whatever a dealer says, you probably need the opposite.

Don't mean to sound too negative, but decades of dealing with dealers just confirms all the stereotypes about them.

[Grit_dog]

OMG..
No radial tires don't "like" to remain where they were installed and "broke in". (WTH is that anyway? Tire break in?)
Tires "like" (if I can pretend they're my friends now and not just.....tires) to be worn evenly if the tires' owner likes minimizing what comes out of their wallet.
And the way to keep them smooth and even is by rotating.

This is probably confusing to those who have no idea how to read tire wear and how it relates to load or position on the vehicle.

[Grit_dog]

rightlaneonly wrote:
Sounds like a lazy service dept.
I get my vehicles serviced Every 6 months and may only have 2 or 3 thousand miles, they rotate tires every time. Rotating keeps wear even and tread edges from rounding off.

Sounds like your service dept enjoys your business. Rotate every 2-3 thousand miles??
Really?
That's like the dude who changes his trans fluid after every road trip (real person, posted on this forum iirc).

Cripes, I'd have to take my work truck in for a rotation every couple weeks sometimes.....

[Mont_G_J]

Quote JRscooby:
I inspect my tires, and put them back where I got them. If a tire is wearing unusually I go to truck and find out why. If you just rotate, and something is causing a tire to where, it will wear all the tires. And likely you will not see the problem as soon.
When I was young, I wore rear tires faster. Now, the front wears a little faster than rear. When I need to replace tires, I buy 2 at a time. If I had 4X4 I would act different.

Tires just work differently in different positions. If your tires are wearing perfectly flat across the tread without any rotation, they must be some pretty amazing truck tires. I suppose it's possible with a rib tire or something, but it's certainly not likely.

I agree with you JRscooby, although I doubt anyone else will. Radial belted tires like to stay where they are first installed and broke in. 2nd, If a vehicle has an alignment or some other type of wear problem, fix the problem, don't just rotate the tires around thinking everything is fine.

[twodownzero]

JRscooby wrote:

twodownzero wrote:


If you want your tires feathered and riding like **** for the last few years you own them, this sounds like a wonderful way to accomplish that. Find me a person who claims their tires all wear evenly regardless of position and I'll show you a liar.

I inspect my tires, and put them back where I got them. If a tire is wearing unusually I go to truck and find out why. If you just rotate, and something is causing a tire to where, it will wear all the tires. And likely you will not see the problem as soon.
When I was young, I wore rear tires faster. Now, the front wears a little faster than rear. When I need to replace tires, I buy 2 at a time. If I had 4X4 I would act different.

Tires just work differently in different positions. If your tires are wearing perfectly flat across the tread without any rotation, they must be some pretty amazing truck tires. I suppose it's possible with a rib tire or something, but it's certainly not likely.

[JRscooby]

twodownzero wrote:


If you want your tires feathered and riding like **** for the last few years you own them, this sounds like a wonderful way to accomplish that. Find me a person who claims their tires all wear evenly regardless of position and I'll show you a liar.

I inspect my tires, and put them back where I got them. If a tire is wearing unusually I go to truck and find out why. If you just rotate, and something is causing a tire to where, it will wear all the tires. And likely you will not see the problem as soon.
When I was young, I wore rear tires faster. Now, the front wears a little faster than rear. When I need to replace tires, I buy 2 at a time. If I had 4X4 I would act different.

[97chevor]

Cummins12V98 wrote:
My question is why are the fronts wearing faster? Under inflation?

Chances are they have already been rotated. Go by seasons that hot summer heat eats rubber.

I say rotate by tread depth not mileage.

[rightlaneonly]

Silly me, I thought it might also have something to do with safety

[twodownzero]

opnspaces wrote:

But I also remember a service writer friend who calculated that paying an half labor (say $50) for a tire rotation every 5,000 miles would cost a set of new tires by 60,000 miles. $50 times 12 services = $600 So it's possibly cheaper to just never rotate the tires and save the money for the replacements.

If you want your tires feathered and riding like **** for the last few years you own them, this sounds like a wonderful way to accomplish that. Find me a person who claims their tires all wear evenly regardless of position and I'll show you a liar.

[Cummins12V98]

My question is why are the fronts wearing faster? Under inflation?

[jfkmk]

97chevor wrote:

jfkmk wrote:

97chevor wrote:
And as a tire wears down the tread depth doesn't wear as fast.

:h
Not sure what you mean by this. Tread depth is how you measure tread wear, no?

As an aside, if you were buying only two tires, you'd always put them in the rear. However, at only a 1/32" difference, I'd insist on rotsting them.

I mean for tires to last longer. The intervals between rotations should become longer as the tire looses tread depth. Because the tire doesn't not loose depth as fast as it did when new.

Ah, gotcha! Thanks, I was certainly misreading what you posted.

[FishOnOne]

jfkmk wrote:

97chevor wrote:
And as a tire wears down the tread depth doesn't wear as fast.

:h
Not sure what you mean by this. Tread depth is how you measure tread wear, no?

As an aside, if you were buying only two tires, you'd always put them in the rear. However, at only a 1/32" difference, I'd insist on rotsting them.

97chevor is saying that the wear rate isn't linear.