I have 20k miles on these Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric All-Season tires. Front only. The rear tires are in fine shape.

Any ideas what caused this wear? They have been properly inflated. Someone at Goodyear said front end alignment was the issue, but I don't see how alignment would account for the tread being worn on both the inside and outside of both front tires.

Driving a 2013 Clubman.

Thanks.

 

Underinflation will make the sides of the tread wear more quickly than the center.
Excessive toe will make tires wear more quickly in general.

 

Cristo, Yes, but my tires have not been under inflated.

 

I'd still get the alignment checked including toe and camber for sure. How often do you rotate you tires? Lots of guys do that at 5K intervals mainly to allow for the negative camber on the rear tires which normally shows uneven wear on the inside of the tread.

 

Over the 20k miles, I did not rotate. i'm not sure it would be to my benefit to rotate, because it might have left me with 4 worn tires instead of two. (the rear tires are like new).

The front end was found to be only slightly out of alignment (toe only).

I wonder if this is a common problem with the Mini? And maybe due to my driving style which is "spirited" around curves

 

When you get everything copacetic tire wise, get in the habit of the 5K rotation routine. It will lengthen the life of your tires.
MINIs were built for 'spirited' driving but not all tires are. The ones that are usually have a life span of only 20 to 30K for the most part. Better mileage all seasons will only do the best they can on a challenging turn. It's like a lot of things in life, to gain one thing, something else has to be given up.

 

Are your front control arm bushings in good shape? If not, then the toe can wander
quite a bit as the arm moves around in the bushing.
What tire pressures do you run in psi? What do you fill them to and what are they
usually when you check and have to add a few pounds?
Do you have the alignment figures to post?


It is common for the fronts to wear out about twice as fast as the rears, and for the
rears to wear more on the inside edge of the tread, and the fronts to wear more on
the outside edge, especially if you corner aggressively.

 

Bushings in good shape. 32-34 psi consistently. No leaks.

I don't have numbers on alignment. I was just told that the toe was very slightly off.

My fronts are worn on inside and outside. Does aggressive cornering account for that? It makes sense to me, now that I think about it that, for instance, cornering to the right might wear the outside of the left front tire and the inside of the right front.

 

Rotate, rotate, rotate....mini's eat front tires....
I find I like about 2 psi more than the door says....maybe I'm just a bigger guy, or maybe I have too much junk in the trunk...lol...either way, rotate them at oil changes. Watch the psi, and they will wear out evenly...
Only set that did not in 10 years was my OEM runflats.... Did not rotate them.could not wait to trash them either.....

 

A couple more pounds might result in more even wear across the tread next time around,
but it sounds like they wore out due to driving it like a MINI ought to be driven for 20K.

 

Your front tire wear is characteristic of under inflation (relative to your load).

First, check your tire pressure gauge. If it read a little low then 32 psi is not really that number and will cause your problem.

Tires that are under more load (more people or cargo) will wear differently than under less load. Do you drive with four people? If so, then increase pressure.

Do you check tire pressures first thing in the morning? Cooler temps make for lower pressure readings. If you check in the afternoon then your 32 psi will be low in the morning.

Misaligned toe does not give wear on both tread shoulders, you can get irregular wear or feathering of the tread blocks.

How do you drive in corners, do you take them fast? If so, then you can get some increased wear on the outer shoulder treads but due to the minimal front camber you don't usually see the inner tread blocks worn so much.

36-38 psi (cold) is not too high for a MINI used for street driving. The ride quality will feel a bit firmer.

 

I have a 2009 Mini Clubman S and my front tires have worn fairly evenly. I run 38 PSI in all 4 tires. I run Continental ExtremeContact DW and Continental ContiProContact SSR. I like to canyon carve occasionally but don't take corners super fast in the city.

Your tire gauge may be off. Maybe your tire gauge shows 32 PSI when the actual pressure is 30 PSI? Like others said, you should check tire pressure first thing in the morning when the air temperature is coldest and the car has not been driven. 10 degrees air temperature changes the tire pressure by 1 PSI, so if you measure 32 PSI at 70 degrees then the actual pressure at 50 degrees is 30 PSI.

Definitely taking the corners fast will wear the edges of the tires, especially if you have worn suspension components. How many miles are on your odometer? You may want to consider PowerFlex polyurethane front control arm bushings. I installed them in my Clubman around 60,000 miles and there was a noticeable difference in steering. Steering feels more direct and connected especially while cornering.

So I think it's a combination of not enough air pressure and worn suspension components primarily, and secondarily a lot of fast cornering and the type of tire you're running.

 

Always ask for a before and after print-out of the alignment. PS: Firestone offers a lifetime alignment for around $200. Kind of expensive buy you can have the alignment done every 5,000 miles. It pays for itself after about 3 alignments. I also agree that tires should be rotated, but in your case I wouldn't do it until I determine the cause of excessive tire wear.