When Should I Rotate the Tires?

If you look at the soles of your shoes, you may notice that one area of the sole is more worn compared to the others. As you put on more weight on certain areas of your feet, this creates a wear pattern on your shoes. The same thing happens to your car’s tires.

Think of your tires as the soles of your shoes. The act of driving may leave a distinctive erosion pattern on the tires. It is important to rotate your tires in order to prevent the inevitable uneven wearing.

What causes wear?

Tire wear becomes uneven for a variety of reasons. Your car’s weight dispersion is one factor. This is especially true if you have a front-wheel drive vehicle. Not only do the tires have to endure the breaking and steering, they also have to carry the entire weight of the front axle and the engine.

Uneven alignment and incorrect tire pressure may also result in tire wear. Since the weight distribution is uneven, the front tires may wear out more quickly compared to that of the rear ones.

Your tires will give you a hint that the tread is uneven. While driving on a smooth road, listen for a humming sound coming from them. This is an indication that you have to rotate the tires.

Car manufacturers recommend that tire rotation be done every 6,000 to 8,000 miles. You can conveniently time the service every other oil change. If you have a four-wheel drive vehicle or you drive your car pretty hard, you might want to consider rotating the tires a bit more often than that. In this case, rotating the tires at 5,000 miles is a reasonable timeframe.

Why should you do it?

You might be wondering why you have to spend too much time in tire rotation. Having balder tires in front puts you at risk of losing control over the steering wheel and getting you into an accident.

With all the tires wearing down at the same rate, it makes the buying process less frequent. Plus, evenly worn tires usually translate to a smoother ride with better gas mileage and increased traction.