Thanks to a nail in the sidewall of my OEM Goodyear runflat, I now have one new one. I'm wondering if I need to get another new one for balance/handling/safety sake. The car has 16,800 miles thereabouts and the tire that was damaged had 60% tread left - it had just been rotated from front to back and had been left up front a bit long so its twin has about the same amount and the fronts are probably 70% as a total guess. So, is it ok to leave one new one paired with one with 60% tread? Should I rotate one of the fronts with more tread to pair with it? BTW the replacement is the same tire as the originals.

 

thought tirerack can shave tires to match your others? (only while brand new).

i would put that one tire on the driver side front because in the US, that
tire wears the most out of the 4.

 

Actually, the right front (passenger side) tire will wear the most, especially on a front wheel drive car. This is due to the surface curvature of our roads. The tire with the most tread should be mounted on the right front.

 

Sorry, but I don't buy this. What does the "surface curvature" have to do with anything?

 

it will be fine

 

It's a definite factor in tire wear. Roads are constructed with the center higher than the outside to shed water more effectively. This tips your car a little to the right resulting in more tire wear on the right side. Any tire dealer will verify this.

 

Probably will end up on the Right front anyway because it's on the right side and too much work to get two tires remounted for this.

 

I still say it's bull. Yes, roads are constructed with crowns or slopes for drainage, but those angles are so varied and random that there can be no consistency to affect weight transfer. A car would have to travel 100% straight on crowned roads 100% of the time for there to be any appreciable difference in tire wear on the right side, and even then I seriously doubt that it would occur. There is too much variety of straight, left turns, right turns and lane changing to both sides during everyday driving for crowned roads to make any difference. I mean, if it were true, then I could argue that in this country (and others) the left side tires would wear out faster due to the extra weight of the driver.

 

Call it bull in your corner if you like, that's your privilege. In my world it's a fact, verified by every tire dealer I have talked to. This wear pattern has shown up, in varying degrees, on every vehicle I have owned or driven over the last 45 years. Where do you suppose the "X" pattern for rotation came from?

 

the reason why i posted the front left (driver side) tire is because:

1) on US roads, we make more right hand turns. (enter entrance ramps and
exit ramps on mostly right side).

2) actual experience.



so your driver side front will wear more than the passenger side if
driven on street.