How to properly rotate tires on a car

How to rotate tires | Mobil™

By Wayne Scraba,www.automedia.com

Rotating tires is important (and always has been) for car maintenance. If you rotate the respective wheels and tires on a given axle, tire wear is even. The result is almost always balanced traction and handling over a period of time. Most tire warranties demand the tires be rotated on a specific mileage schedule. And many tire manufacturers recommend rotation at between 3,000 and 5,000 miles.

Tire balancing

Making each tire function in as many of the vehicle’s wheel positions as possible makes evening out tire wear feasible. Naturally, this can’t make up for tire wear caused by tired or malfunctioning mechanical components or improper inflation. When considering the mechanics of a motor vehicle, keep in mind that the front end often has a more difficult task than the rear. For example, in a front-wheel-drive car, the tires are tasked with steering, stopping, moving up and down, and, of course, pulling the vehicle forward. In a high-performance rear-wheel-drive car, you’ll likely find that the rear tires take more abuse than the front. Four-by-four vehicles and all-wheel-drive models bring their own tire wear peculiarities to the party. The bottom line: No matter what the car or truck, the wheel position can cause different rates and types of wear on a tire.

Replacing four versus two

As a tire wears, the tread depth is reduced. If all four tires wear out at more or less the same time, you can replace four tires at once. This is actually advantageous when compared to replacing tires in pairs, simply because you’ll always have equal fresh rubber on all four corners. Additionally, you have to consider that the manufacturers are constantly releasing new and improved tire configurations. The result is that your old tires could become obsolete by the time they’re worn. If replacing only two at once, there’s a good chance you’ll end up with mixed tire technology that could negatively affect how your vehicle drives.

Tire rotation pattern

So far so good, but tire rotation isn’t anything like it was a few decades ago. Way back when, most cars had identical wheels and tires on all four corners, and the spare was also a full-size job that matched the road wheels. That’s a difficult combination to find today, with space-saver spares, spare tires mounted on dedicated steel wheels (with the rest of the rolling stock on aluminum wheels), different wheel offsets and sizes front and rear, mixed tire sizes, and so on. Because of this, the rotation process differs. Here’s a look at some of the many different tire rotation pattern options.

Four same-size tires, non-directional

If the tires are non-directional and the tires and wheels are all the same size, there are three different four-tire rotation patterns most commonly used:

Front-wheel drive : Rotate the tires in a forward cross pattern. This means that the left front goes to the left rear and the right front goes to the right rear. The left rear goes to the right front and the right rear goes to the left front.
Rear-wheel drive or AWD/four-wheel drive : Left rear goes to right front. Right rear goes to the left front. The right front goes to left rear. Left front goes to the right rear.
(Alternate) Rear-wheel drive or AWD/four-wheel drive : The left rear goes to left front. The right rear goes to the right front. The left front goes to the right rear. The right front goes to left rear.

Different-size directional tires, or different offsets

What if the vehicle in question has different-size directional wheels and tires or is equipped with wheels with different offsets (wheel backspace) front and rear? In this case, the tires will definitely require dismounting, remounting and rebalancing in order to rotate the tires. Four other typical rotation patterns are as follows:

Same-size directional wheels and tires: The left front goes to left rear. The left rear goes to left front. The right front goes to the right rear. The right rear goes to the right front.
Different-size directional tires with different-size wheels: Tires must be dismounted and remounted on the appropriate wheel/direction of rotation.
Non-directional wheels and tires with different sizes front and rear: The left front goes to the right front. The right front goes to the left front. The left rear goes to the right rear. And the right rear goes to left rear.
Five-tire rotation: Yesteryear, a five-tire rotation was possible, simply because the spare was full size. That’s seldom the case today. Even many light trucks are equipped with spare wheels that do not match the drive wheel combination. If, however, the spare matches the drive wheels and tires, and all tires are the same size and are not directional, then you can perform a five-tire/wheel rotation as follows:

Front-wheel drive : The left front goes to the left rear. The left rear goes to the right front. The right rear goes to the left front. The spare goes to the right rear. The right front goes to the spare.

Rear-wheel drive or four-wheel drive: The left rear goes to the left front. The left front goes to the spare. The spare goes to the right rear. The right rear goes to the right front. The right front goes to the left rear.

The idea here is to distribute the wear over five tires throughout their life. This is particularly important on many all-wheel-drive vehicles in that all tires, including the spare, are, in theory, worn identically.

How and Why to Rotate Your Tires

Tire rotation, that is routinely repositioning your vehicle’s tires in specific patterns from front to back or side to side, is an important element of tire upkeep and safety. Additionally, rotating your tires may also be required to keep your tires covered under warranty. For a quick visual summary of tire rotation, check out our Tread Life episode about tire rotation. Read on for more information about what tire rotation is, why tire rotation patterns matter, and the correct pattern for your vehicle’s needs.

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WHAT IS TIRE ROTATION?

Tire rotation means periodically changing the position of each of the tires on your vehicle. You should rotate your tires as recommended by the vehicle manufacturer, or every 5,000 miles. For many of you, that will mean when you get your vehicle’s oil changed.

Regularly rotating your tires also gives you a good opportunity to visually inspect them for damage, check their air pressure, have them rebalanced if you’re noticing any vibration, and check their tread depth.

WHY IS TIRE ROTATION IMPORTANT?

There are several reasons why tire rotation is an important element of your standard tire care. First, by routinely rotating your tires, wear is spread evenly across all four tires, and their tread life is maximized. That’s because each specific position on your vehicle requires a different give from each tire—(for example, tires on the front of a front-wheel drive vehicle will take a larger proportion of the torque and friction that’s needed for turning, accelerating and braking)—and can lead to more, or less, wear on the tire. It is especially important to rotate new tires by 5,000 miles because deep, fresh tire tread is more susceptible to uneven wear.

Secondly, even tread wear keeps the tread depth on your tires uniform, which can help keep traction and handling consistent across all four tires. This will improve cornering and braking performance and keep your vehicle safer for driving overall.

Finally, if your vehicle has all-wheel-drive, evenly worn tires lower the stresses on the drivetrain, reducing wear on expensive drive components.