Do you really need to rotate your tires? Can't you just let the front ones wear out faster and then replace?

Answer 1

That's what I do! I've been a mechanic for 30+ years. The only downside: especially on front wheel drive cars with wide tires the tires will wear out on the outsides a bit faster.

On full time 4 wheel drive cars you need to replace all 4 tires at once to avoid "overworking" the transfer case which connects the front and rear drive axles.

Aside from this there is no big advantage to rotating them.

I am ASE certified in all areas of auto repair, including front end suspension and alignment. Rotating tires has nothing to do with the front end alignment or any other mechanical issue: it merely compensates for the wear on your tires by moving them around.

Tires on the rear, especially in front wheel drive, wear very little. Tires on the front wear faster: they do more of the braking and have alignment angles which wear them out a bit more.

As long as your tires have plenty of tread on them and are properly balanced and inflated they are safe and have no effect on alignmrent or safety. Rotating them will get a few more miles out of your tires, but I'm not sure it's worth the effort in most cases. Exceptions noted above.

Answer 2

Econofix is an IDIOT!!!!! It makes me sick to see people with those certs. giving such bad advice. Richard, I noticed you live in VT. Please for your own safety and the safety of others rotate your tires. I would have to go w/ Yugie29 on this one. He's given plenty good advice in the past and is well researched on most of his answers. It's not only about how fast the tires wear, but also the safety of the tires as they wear. The rear tires do cup as well as shoulder wear in the front. Even if you keep the air pressure where it should be, you lose quite a bit of good traction due to this wear. Rotate and balance packages are usually around 30-50 bucks and should be done every other oil change. Not to mention that's a lot cheaper than 2 or 4 tires twice as often! Thanks for listening to my rants and the 2 pts!

Answer 3

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
Do you really need to rotate your tires? Can't you just let the front ones wear out faster and then replace?

Answer 4

I agree with econofix except for one thing.

When you don't rotate your tires, one set (usually the driving set) will be more worn down than the other set. Fine in normal driving, but these tires will grip less and can create handling problems.

I have an old Volvo 740 with nearly bald back tires and good front tires and the back end slides out in wet conditions if I'm not careful. I won't drive it in snow until I get new rear tires.

For a front wheel drive, you can get in big trouble since the car will have more of a tendancy to understeer, especially if you give the car too much gas in slippery conditions.

Answer 5

Sure you can. It is entirely up to you. The front tires take all the abuse on a front wheel drive vehicle, accelerating and turning. The rear tires are just along for the ride. Not much weight in the rear and bouncing on road leads to cupping of tires on rear and tire noise if they are not rotated. The front tires will suffer an early death from outer shoulder wear from being on the turning axle. You can leave them up front and wear them out. Expect about 18,000 miles or less out of a front tire if not rotated, and the rear tires will still be good, but cupped so bad that you sound like a you just came from a mud bog with 44" bias ply super swampers on the rear. No load on a tire leads to tread cupping and a roaring noise. The reason you rotate is to allow the rear tires to smooth out on the pulling axles, making for a quieter ride, and moving the front to the rear makes them last longer because there is less wear on the rear tires, they carry no load. Do whatever you want but you will have a smoother ride with less noise and longer tire life if you rotate every 6,000 miles.

Answer 6

Hey there! I have important reasons why you should rotate your tires!

1. Even Out Tire Wear
2. Maintain Traction
3. Preserve Wheel Balance
4. Protect Warranties

You can go to my blog for more information: http://wholesaletireonline.com/blog/view/5-reasons-to-keep-up-on-tire-rotations

Answer 7

roatating youre tires is one of the most simple ways to save money on youre car. If you rotate youre tires every 7 to 10 thousand miles youre tires will last twice as long. Think about it, youre car could have all the safety options available but the only thing touching the road is the tires.

Answer 8

Do you really need to change both of your shoes at the same time or can you just replace the one thats worn out?
Common now. Remember your tires are like your shoes they are what keep you on the ground. They grip the road. And dont you think that if you only needed to maintain 2 tires then cars would only have 2 tires on them. My suggestion for such a question honestly is that you sell your car and start walking untill you learn the basic responsibilities of car ownership.

Answer 9

Cider sells tires for a living..........

Let your tires wear out prematurely through lack of rotation! Hit potholes! Never align your vehicle so your tires wear out unevenly and rapidly! Neglect ! Neglect! Neglect!

Cider has a family to feed.

Come see me.

Answer 10

yes you really should rotate your tires. each tire wears down differently and in different places, so by rotating them they get even wear all around instead of wearing down at a certain spot and then you would have to get new tires sooner.