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Rotated my tires today. Anyone else only swap front to back?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by uart, Sep 16, 2012.

  1. uart

    uart Senior Member

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    I rotated my (non directional) tires today. I used to always used to do a cross pattern rotation with my previous cars (Fronts straight to rears, but rear crossed to fronts). But now where I am there's nowhere level enough to safely lift the whole car (or even a whole end due to the left to right slope) at once, so cross rotation is too painful.

    Anyway, I've found that even with a sideways slope, I can still reasonably safely jack an entire side (left or right), so a straight front to back swap is nice and easy.

    Just wondering how others here are rotating their tires?
     
    #1 uart, Sep 16, 2012
  2. ahmeow

    ahmeow Prius Lover

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    Your old way is the best. But once in a while just front and rear exchange will be OK.
    Try to find a good safe spot to do the old way.
     
    #2 ahmeow, Sep 16, 2012
  3. JimboPalmer

    JimboPalmer Tsar of all the Rushers

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    #3 JimboPalmer, Sep 16, 2012
  4. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    I will do a cross rotation on non-directional tires if I see that there is more wear on the tires on one side vs. the other. Otherwise there is nothing wrong with front to back, and that is the recommended method in the 2G owner's manual.
     
    #4 Patrick Wong, Sep 16, 2012
  5. HaroldW

    HaroldW Active Member

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    Why bother? I find that causes all four to wear out at the same time thus you purchase 4 tires rather than only two! Plus it is hard to notice uneven wear due to front or rear alignment issue's . H
     
    #5 HaroldW, Sep 16, 2012
  6. xs650

    xs650 Senior Member

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    I bother because I prefer to have a matched set of tires on my car and almost never buy the same tires that came on the car. Different brands or models of tire on opposite ends of the car can also screw up handling.
     
    #6 xs650, Sep 16, 2012
  7. HaroldW

    HaroldW Active Member

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    Good point:) ,but does it matter as long as you stay with the same tire? H
     
    #7 HaroldW, Sep 16, 2012
  8. xs650

    xs650 Senior Member

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    That should work OK, one potential problem being that sometimes tire lines get replaced by new ones.

    Something to consider is that if you don't rotate the rear tires may last long enough that age becomes an issue. When you should get rid of tires due to age is debatable. That depends on your climate and how much time your vehicle spends sitting in the Sun.

    Another compromise alternative would be to rotate your tires once at a mileage based on tread wear so that they all wear out at the same time.
     
    #8 xs650, Sep 16, 2012
  9. HaroldW

    HaroldW Active Member

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    That is probably the best way. [The later system you mentioned]I suppose I will have to do something similar to that as I have gone with All weather Nokian WR 2g tires so that I can run the same tire all year .H
     
    #9 HaroldW, Sep 16, 2012
  10. uart

    uart Senior Member

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    I know exactly what you mean Harold, and I did give serious consideration to doing just that. But in the end I decided to rotate for the very reasons that xs650 said above.

    1. Can't always find the same model tire when it comes time to place fronts.

    2. If they are available it might be a really lousy price (it's small market and less competition in Australia, so sometimes you get royally ripped off if you just need "that" particular item.)

    3. With newer better LRR tires likely to be coming on the market I might want something completely different next time. (will also depend on how my current tires last whether I decide to go with them again).

    4. You can often get "deals" when you buy a set of four tires, but basically never when you buy one or two. I know this is only a minor factor, but tire places around here often have deals like $50 off when you buy a set of four.
     
    #10 uart, Sep 16, 2012
    a priori, HaroldW and JimboPalmer like this.
  11. usnavystgc

    usnavystgc Die Hard DIYer and Ebike enthusiast.

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    I still rotate as you used to every time. I will probably always do it this way (unless using directional tires). Theoretically, this should provide you with the longest life for your tires.
     
    #11 usnavystgc, Sep 17, 2012
  12. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    I prefer to cross rotate my tyres but since I am know running Hankooks that are directional I cannot. I did wonder if being directional helps with LRR.
     
    #12 Britprius, Sep 17, 2012
  13. uart

    uart Senior Member

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    Yep I'd still prefer to cross rotate if it wasn't too awkward for me with the slope. The roads here have quite a lot of roundabouts and I feel the left front tire probably get a bit more wear than the right (remember we drive on the left here and so go clockwise at roundabouts).

    I get the feeling that with the straight rotation pattern my two left tires will probably wear out just a smidgeon before the right, but probably not enough to really bother about. Anyway I'll have to wait and see on that.

    As far as the actual process goes, straight rotation is way easier to do with only modest lifting equipment (ie two jacks) :)
     
    #13 uart, Sep 18, 2012
  14. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    Well, assuming a level working area, you can raise up all four wheels with two jackstands located near the front jacking points, and one hydraulic floor jack holding up the center rear jacking point.
     
    #14 Patrick Wong, Sep 18, 2012
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