Cars - Replacing front tires

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Replacing front tires

Hi.
I have an '89 Olds car with 4 Goodyear Aquatred tires on it.
I need to replace the front pair of tires as the car will not pass
state inspection because of tread depth. I want to just replace the
front tires as the rear tires are still in good shape, tread-wise.
Question I have is that the tread toward the inside of the tire on both
the front tires is worn down more than the outside part of the tread.
What does this signify and what do I need to have adjusted when I bring
the car in to replace the tires?
Also, I do not want to spend the extra $ on new Aquatreds so what is a
decent tire/brand that I can put on the front axle given the rear axle
still has Aquatreds?

Thanks.
Walter

Replacing front tires

In article .com>, Wally wrote:
> Hi.
> I have an '89 Olds car with 4 Goodyear Aquatred tires on it.
> I need to replace the front pair of tires as the car will not pass
> state inspection because of tread depth. I want to just replace the
> front tires as the rear tires are still in good shape, tread-wise.
> Question I have is that the tread toward the inside of the tire on both
> the front tires is worn down more than the outside part of the tread.
> What does this signify and what do I need to have adjusted when I bring
> the car in to replace the tires?

It depends on how much it's uneven. If the whole tire is worn out and
the inside is just a little further along, then it's probably normal. If
the inside is worn down and the rest of the tire is like new, big problem.

Replacing front tires

Wally wrote: <brevity snip>

> Question I have is that the tread toward the inside of the tire on both
> the front tires is worn down more than the outside part of the tread.
> What does this signify and what do I need to have adjusted when I bring
> the car in to replace the tires?

This is a FWD vehicle, I assume...

It probably signifies you need an alignment, at least, and new steering
and/or suspension parts, at worst. Check out this page on alignment
http://www.ozebiz.com.au/racetech/theory/align.html

If you don't know what all that means, or what needs adjusting, you're
best off having a reputable facility tell you.

> Also, I do not want to spend the extra $ on new Aquatreds so what is a
> decent tire/brand that I can put on the front axle given the rear axle
> still has Aquatreds?

Probably any same size/compound (mileage rated) tire will work fine.
Go to the local GY dealer and ask them, is what I would do.
-----

- gpsman

Replacing front tires

Just rotate the tires to the rear, and take it back for reinspection.
They can only inspect the tire condition in the wheel positions that
failed...i.e. LF, RF...can't fail it if the bad ones are now on the
rear...that's a different rejection...

I used to do vehicle inspections. That's a technicality that few are
aware of. Used to **** me off when someone figured that out. I asked
the State Patrol trooper who oversaw the inspections in our area...he
said there's nothing you can do, you gotta pass it....

Even though the above is true, I don't reccommend you do that...and you
can run any comparable radials with the Aquatreds, even on the same
axle...there's nothing special about them, especially once worn...

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Replacing front tires

Wally wrote:
> Hi.
> I have an '89 Olds car with 4 Goodyear Aquatred tires on it.
> I need to replace the front pair of tires as the car will not pass
> state inspection because of tread depth. I want to just replace the
> front tires as the rear tires are still in good shape, tread-wise.
> Question I have is that the tread toward the inside of the tire on both
> the front tires is worn down more than the outside part of the tread.
> What does this signify and what do I need to have adjusted when I bring
> the car in to replace the tires?
> Also, I do not want to spend the extra $ on new Aquatreds so what is a
> decent tire/brand that I can put on the front axle given the rear axle
> still has Aquatreds?
>
> Thanks.
> Walter
>

First of all, you need an alignment at a minimum, and the alignment tech
may very well find some other issues with the front end that need to be
rectified (tie rods, strut bearings, ball joints, etc.) to make the car
safe. But if they didn't appear on your inspection report, make sure
you really need them.

Secondly, if you get new tires, you should rotate the tires so that the
newest ones are on the rear of the car, to keep the vehicle stable in
bad weather conditions.

good luck,

nate

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replace "fly" with "com" to reply.
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Replacing front tires

Most likely you need to have an alignment done.
It is probably the toe that needs to be adjusted.
It's possible your tie rod ends are worn out and need to be replaced
(extra $$).
It is also possible that the camber isn't set right.
These things can be off just a little bit and cause quite a lot of tire
wear over many thousands of miles.

You don't say what kind of Oldsmobile it is, but I have a 90 Ciera and
I got new tires at Sears for about $45 a tire last fall. They were on
sale. You might check there for what they have on sale.

I didn't need an alignment done (which usually costs about $65 more)
and I didn't get the road hazard warranty and all that. But of course
by the time you add in new valve stems, wheel balancing, tire disposal,
and tax, you're still looking at about $170 for 2 new tires. That's
pretty good though- and it's worth the money when you consider it's for
your safety on wet or icy pavement.

The name of the tire was Goodyear Weatherhandler. This model of tire
you can only get at Sears- Goodyear makes it for Sears and does not
sell them through their own tire stores. I think treadwear was about
60,000 miles.

One good thing about getting tires for American cars is that they seem
to be a lot less expensive than getting tires for foreign cars. Why
this is I'm not sure.

Anyway, hope this helps you.

Nate Nagel wrote:
> Wally wrote:
> > Hi.
> > I have an '89 Olds car with 4 Goodyear Aquatred tires on it.
> > I need to replace the front pair of tires as the car will not pass
> > state inspection because of tread depth. I want to just replace the
> > front tires as the rear tires are still in good shape, tread-wise.
> > Question I have is that the tread toward the inside of the tire on both
> > the front tires is worn down more than the outside part of the tread.
> > What does this signify and what do I need to have adjusted when I bring
> > the car in to replace the tires?
> > Also, I do not want to spend the extra $ on new Aquatreds so what is a
> > decent tire/brand that I can put on the front axle given the rear axle
> > still has Aquatreds?
> >
> > Thanks.
> > Walter
> >
>
> First of all, you need an alignment at a minimum, and the alignment tech
> may very well find some other issues with the front end that need to be
> rectified (tie rods, strut bearings, ball joints, etc.) to make the car
> safe. But if they didn't appear on your inspection report, make sure
> you really need them.
>
> Secondly, if you get new tires, you should rotate the tires so that the
> newest ones are on the rear of the car, to keep the vehicle stable in
> bad weather conditions.
>
> good luck,
>
> nate
>
> --
> replace "fly" with "com" to reply.
> http://home.comcast.net/~njnagel

Replacing front tires

Nate Nagel Wrote:
>
> Secondly, if you get new tires, you should rotate the tires so that the
> newest ones are on the rear of the car, to keep the vehicle stable in
> bad weather conditions.
>

Could you please elaborate on this? Till now I was sure in the
opposite.
Thanks, Misha

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Replacing front tires

MishaA wrote:
> Nate Nagel Wrote:
>
>>Secondly, if you get new tires, you should rotate the tires so that the
>>newest ones are on the rear of the car, to keep the vehicle stable in
>>bad weather conditions.
>>
>
>
> Could you please elaborate on this? Till now I was sure in the
> opposite.
> Thanks, Misha
>
>

Most people think that the reason that you always used to put the good
tires on the back of a car was because they were the drive wheels. They
were traditionally the drive wheels, yes, but the *real* good reason to
do that has to do with keeping the back end from coming around on you,
especially on hard braking, or to a lesser extent, cornering. The whole
deal is that a rubber-pavement interface (like the contact patches of
your tires) has a significantly higher coefficient of static friction
than sliding friction, therefore if a wheel loses traction and locks
under braking, you want it to be the front, so that the vehicle stays
straight (the greater force from the still-rolling rear tires will keep
the vehicle stable. In the opposite situation, the car is essentially
trying to balance itself on its front tires, and any perturbation will
make the rear end try to come around to one side or the other.) Also,
if either end loses traction while cornering, for any but the most
skilled drivers, it's safer for it to be the front (understeer) rather
than the rear (oversteer.) The correct procedure for recovering from
understeer would be to quickly but smoothly lift off the gas, or even
brake slightly, to allow weight to transfer back to the front to give
the front tires more bite, which is the instinctive reaction of most
people. To recover from *oversteer,* the correct procedure would be to
actually accelerate gently to transfer more weight to the back, while
countersteering. Most people can handle the countersteering part, but
the accelerating thing is counterintuitive. So there's two situations
where for most drivers keeping the good tires on the back is of definite
benefit.

That said, on a FWD car you still want to have *good* tires on the
front, or you won't be going much of anywhere in the snow. Also,
obviously, for maximum safety you'd really want to have decent tires all
around (I don't know what your current "good" pair is like, so I can't
actually offer real advice specific to you) but in the case where a
driver is forced by circumstances to replace only two tires, generally
the new tires should *always* go on the back.

good luck,

nate

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