Unusual Tyre Wear? Think Wheel Alignment!

The best way for a tyre to wear down is evenly across the tread. However, there are many factors that can influence this.

Pressures;

Low tyre pressure causes the outsides of the tyres to wear quicker compared to the central section. This is due to the sidewalls pressing down and lifting the central section away from the road.

In comparison, a tyre that is over inflated will have the central tread to be proud and this will be the only area in contact with the road resulting in only the central tread being worn down.

Area;

Milton Keynes is a great example of this. Typical drivers in this area will notice that the outside of the front off-side tyre (front passenger) will wear down quicker compared to the rest. But, why is this? Milton Keynes is famous for its roundabouts. Whilst driving round these, the car's weight is shifting to the passenger side of the causing the tyre it to roll onto itself and wear this edge down.

Alignment;

One of the easiest ways to see if your alignment is incorrect is to see if the wear on the tyre is feathering meaning one side of the block is wearing down quicker than the other which creates the visual effect of a feather edged board (used in fencing, see below!)

Wearing on one side of the edge of the tyre could indicate a misalignment in the Toe angle. Most vehicles nowadays come from the factory with some element of positive toe angle. This is because when the car is under acceleration the suspension naturally moves to a squarer state. This would in all circumstances give you even tyre wear across the tread area. When a misalignment occurs, this state is altered resulting in the tyres wearing incorrectly. From this, the fuel economy of the car is almost certainly impacted in a negative way and as the tyres don't have full grip on the surface, the vehicles stability at high speed can also be affected.

On our van, we have a selection of alignment gauges to cater to most vehicles! We also have access to manufacturing date to reset any vehicles back to the original correct setting.

If you're looking at getting an alignment, why not give our experts in the office a quick call on 0333 444 5454!