Front tires wearing at outside edge only...

[Warren N.CA]

'89 535i. Yokohama AVS Intermediate. Since they now have 15K on them and are a very soft tire, I guess they are about ready for replacement. I'm just wondering if I should have alignment or something else checked, due to the wear on the edges. I really expected the rears to wear first, but they are doing fine.

[632 Regal]

from what i have read they tend to wear on the outside as the rears wear on the inside. I would definetly have the alignment looked at before you get new treads!

[TimGinCentralNJ]

...are your fronts wearing on the outside in a "flat" manner (meaning, does it look like you've been doing too much high-speed cornering), or are the outsides of the tire "feathering" as they wear, indicating you've got camber or toe-in condition?

I've got the latter problem myself, and I've been trying to troubleshoot it since buying my car, with the help of several specialists. I'm having my front bumper cover replaced/painted later this month by a guy who's got a pretty state-of-the-art frame machine in PA. I'm going to inquire about having him put my car on it to see if I've got any bends/alignment issues which might be causing this.

I'm also told if the rear is 'off' in any direction (e.g., rear subframe, etc), it can also be the cause of odd front end tire wear. I'd imagine that would cause your car to dog-track, which if you had someone follow your car, should be easy enough to see.

I'll keep ya' posted,
Tim G
'91 535iM
119k


'89 535i. Yokohama AVS Intermediate. Since they now have 15K on them and are a very soft tire, I guess they are about ready for replacement. I'm just wondering if I should have alignment or something else checked, due to the wear on the edges. I really expected the rears to wear first, but they are doing fine.

[AllanS]

I had the same problem- i've been told that a little more wear on the outside compared to the inside is ok, but if it's excessive, you should schedule an appointment with an alignment shop and have it adjusted.

Same goes for the rear, but you'll have more wear on the insides. I think that in my case it was caused by mounting wider wheels, without having touched the suspension.

[Warren N.CA]

outside. Actually, these tires will probably do another 10K, looking at them this morning. I think I just WANT new tires (Bad puppy!).


...are your fronts wearing on the outside in a "flat" manner (meaning, does it look like you've been doing too much high-speed cornering), or are the outsides of the tire "feathering" as they wear, indicating you've got camber or toe-in condition?

I've got the latter problem myself, and I've been trying to troubleshoot it since buying my car, with the help of several specialists. I'm having my front bumper cover replaced/painted later this month by a guy who's got a pretty state-of-the-art frame machine in PA. I'm going to inquire about having him put my car on it to see if I've got any bends/alignment issues which might be causing this.

I'm also told if the rear is 'off' in any direction (e.g., rear subframe, etc), it can also be the cause of odd front end tire wear. I'd imagine that would cause your car to dog-track, which if you had someone follow your car, should be easy enough to see.

I'll keep ya' posted,
Tim G
'91 535iM
119k

[Hector]

toe-in than usual and if you're running tires somewhat underinflated than their spec pressure then tire wear will be more pronounced. I had a similar problem on my m30 and tire wear was REDUCED after I replaced the tie-rod ends which in my case were severely worn. The car still slightly veers to the right so need to take it in for alignment.


'89 535i. Yokohama AVS Intermediate. Since they now have 15K on them and are a very soft tire, I guess they are about ready for replacement. I'm just wondering if I should have alignment or something else checked, due to the wear on the edges. I really expected the rears to wear first, but they are doing fine.

[Derek A.]

I find that lots of on-off ramp travel at high rates of speed tends to wear on the outer edges of my tires :)

[mike wong]

check the toe-in, toe out alignment.

[Warren N.CA]

check the toe-in, toe out alignment.