What Causes Tires to Wear Unevenly?

A certain amount of uneven tire tread wear is normal and inevitable; it occurs because each tire wears differently depending on its position. Additionally, front tire treads wear down more quickly in a front-wheel drive vehicle because there’s more friction in the front axle between the wheels and the road surface. Rotating your tires on a regular basis counteracts these uneven wear characteristics and extends tire life, but unusually uneven tire tread wear should be addressed by a technician. All drivers should know how to check tire tread wear just to be sure that the tires are providing enough traction for safe driving in Camp Lejeune.

Read on for an overview of what causes tires to wear unevenly, how to interpret wear patterns, and how to know when it’s time to schedule service to address tire tread wear.

Uneven Tire Tread Wear: Know the Causes

If your car’s tires aren’t inflated equally or are unevenly worn, they can’t make full contact with the road surface. This can present a safety risk when you drive on slick roads or uneven surfaces. Moreover, unusually pronounced tire tread wear can indicate mechanical issues with your vehicle that should be addressed by a technician to ensure safe driving and help your tires to last longer in Richlands.

If your tire tread wear is beyond the level of wear caused by normal driving, there may be other causes. These include:

• Misaligned Wheels: Misaligned wheels make it hard to keep your car straight, which puts more pressure on the misaligned tires.
• Inflation Pressure: Improper inflation can also result in uneven tire tread wear. A tire with low pressure makes too much contact with the road surface, while overinflation causes the center to wear down more quickly.

Five Types of Uneven Tire Wear

The pattern of your tires’ tread wear can tell you a lot about the condition of your vehicle. Here’s what Sneads Ferry drivers should look for:

1. Excess wear on the outer edges: low tire pressure
2. Excess center wear: high tire pressure
3. Feathered wear or increased wear on the outer/inner edge: improper alignment
4. Cupping wear: Bouncing wheel due to suspension issues
5. Uneven wear between the front/rear tires: normal driving

Schedule Chevrolet Tire Service in Jacksonville

Concerned about the condition of your car’s tires? The experienced technicians at Marine Chevrolet can perform a tire inspection and asses what’s causing your tires to wear unevenly. Schedule service today!