quick wear down on tires

[98outbackpdx]

My 98 Outback has about 10k on my tires, mostly freeway driving, and i am getting close to the wear bar also there is an even wear on all four tires.
the tires are Kumho Solus KR21's and i am running them at about 35psi, and have had them rotated every 3,500 miles.
could the psi be causing the tire to wear out more quickly, or are they just crappy tires. i want to get truck tires on it next, thinking Yokohama Geolander at/s since they come in my size and are a pretty meaty tire.
but i don't really have the money for new tires, and it is still winter, where i am we can get snow into April and sometimes May.
i still need to have at least 1 wheel bearing done, so i am not sure if that is contributing. any ideas would be great.
i do know that AWD systems chew up tires more quickly.

[hallowpoint]

well kumho's dont have the best tire life. what are those tires mileage rating? warranty? when was your last alignment?

[98outbackpdx]

from tire rack, (where i bought the tires)
Treadlife Warranty 6 Years / 85,000 Miles
Uniformity Warranty 1 Year / first 2/32" of wear
Workmanship & Materials Warranty 6 Years / Free replacement first 2/32" of wear, then prorated to final 2/32" remaining depth
Manufacturer's Road Hazard Warranty First 25% of usable tread.
Manufacturer Special Warranty 2 Years / 24 Hour Roadside
Overall Tire Warranty Rating*

when i bought the car with 185k on it the dealer had to replace the RF ball joint so i am not sure if an alignment was done or not, no records from prior owner, but the car is not pulling to one side or another, oddly i am getting some torque steer upon first accleration

[StatGSR]

its your alignment.

get your wheel bearing replaced and get an alignment before putting any miles on new tires.

[nomad666666]

98% of the time tires cause a pull not the alignment. If it was the alignment causing the pull then somthing is bent or so far out of spec you could see it.

[Huffer]

its your alignment.

get your wheel bearing replaced and get an alignment before putting any miles on new tires.


My 98 Outback has about 10k on my tires, mostly freeway driving, and i am getting close to the wear bar also there is an even wear on all four tires.

Can't be the alignment if the wear is even across the tires. If anything that proves the alignment is good.

Call up Tire Rack and see if they can honor a warranty replacement because of the advanced wear on the tires with very little mileage. You will need to supply very good pics, and use an actual tread depth gauge.

[jey]

Can't be the alignment if the wear is even across the tires.

I wouldn't throw out the alignment theory yet. I can think of many suboptimal alignment situations that can cause a ton of very even wear. Plus if you're rotating everyt 3500 miles you're evenly distributing the issue across all tires.

[Huffer]

Good point. I didn't think of that. Normally the alignments I've seen result in uneven wear, but that discounts the issue of frequent rotation. :thumbsup:

[nomad666666]

Do you have a picture of the tires or a tire

[ouch1011]

I'd bet on the toe being out. The point of tire rotation is to equalize tire wear. So, by rotating the tires so often (like you should) you are equalizing the tire wear.

Have the alignment rechecked.

[Sarra]

98% of the time tires cause a pull not the alignment. If it was the alignment causing the pull then somthing is bent or so far out of spec you could see it.

Wrong. My Legacy GT had a horrible alignment, and visually, you couldn't see anything out of shape. On the alignment machine, there was a lot of toe in the front and rear, and the front caster was very far out on the front right. Yet, you couldn't tell from looking at it... So, I disagree. I also disagree from the 10-11 alignments I did. I had a truck come in with an entire INCH of toe in in the front, and you couldn't see it.



its your alignment.

get your wheel bearing replaced and get an alignment before putting any miles on new tires.


My 98 Outback has about 10k on my tires, mostly freeway driving, and i am getting close to the wear bar also there is an even wear on all four tires.

Can't be the alignment if the wear is even across the tires. If anything that proves the alignment is good.

Call up Tire Rack and see if they can honor a warranty replacement because of the advanced wear on the tires with very little mileage. You will need to supply very good pics, and use an actual tread depth gauge.

It can be the alignment if it's wearing evenly on all 4. VERY unlikely... If you have 5 degrees toe in in the front, and 5 degrees toe in in the rear, and spec is for 0 toe front and rear, you'll wear all of your tires right quick.

I do agree though about the warranty bit. Call up TireRack and see if they'll work with you. I'd also recommend trying to get a new set of tires on the car before doing an alignment, and doing the alignment with 0 miles on those tires at the same time (IE, go to the alignment place, have them pull the shot tires off, throw on the new tires, and then do the alignment right then and there).

I'm just curious, OP, are you getting shitastic gas mileage? When I did a super anal alignment on my WRX, I went from 21 to 34 MPG, but I had some really horrible toe.

[98outbackpdx]

yeah anywhere from 18-26, depends all on my mood when i am driving. you can tell when i am in a bad mood from the fuel economy. also the car has about 196k on it so i am not expecting 30 mpg, if i wanted fuel economy i would have bought a Honda, but since the town i live in is all hills and when it snows it gets slick i got a Subaru.