Tyre Rotation - which is the correct method?

[Jacto Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Jacto]

diagonal rotation

Hey guys, thought that Fazza had some background in the tyre industry, anyway I concur with all you have said. When I picked up my Prado I had requested a 36psi inflation pressure for the tyres. Now as I have already said, I check my tyres regularly with a digital tyre gauge and on receipt of the vehicle the tyres registered 46psi. Toyota's pressure gauge was 10psi out, which I duly informed them about. At the last service I explicitly told them not to touch the tyre pressures of rotation. Guess what, when I picked the vehicle up before I drove it out of the yard I put my gauge on the tyres and they again registerd 46 psi, so firstly they ignored my request to not touch them and secondly they had not fixed the problem with their tyre gauge initially pointed out to them. This really <removed> me off.

Just on another note, was talking to my Cooper rep yesterday and I questioned a clause in their catalogue "Capital City Mileage Warranty" and was it mean't to be read as that the guaranteed mileage only came into play if the tyres were only used within city/metro areas. The answer came back as affirmative but it is really up to the individual Cooper dealers. So be careful on buying Cooper Tyres should they fail to live up to your expectations regarding mileage and confirm with the dealer before accepting the deal.

To add to what Fazza was saying about directional tyres being run in the wrong direction and sucking in water, this graphic gives an idea of what aquaplaning and lack of traction due to tread wear is all about and this is with a directional tyre running in the correct direction. This is first time I have uploaded a photo so hope it is not too large:
http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x...ning.jpg<br />

[Jacto Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Jacto]

diagonal rotation

Try again

[Pedro Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Pedro]

Just reading this thread and like PeteS before me am a bit confused.

From my reading of the expert comments on this thread it is best to rotate the tyres from back to front and not from one side to the other if they are directional tyres.


I have the Bridgstone 694's and don't know if they are directional or not .

Given that on another thread some time back it was suggested that rotation be done every 5000kms and that I will shortly have done that distance I am now interested in method to use.

Also is it necessary to have balance done at same time?

Jacto , Fazza and Castoy your comments please.

PeteS, how was the trip and which way did you go with rotation?

[Jacto Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Jacto]

Hi Pedro

My thoughts only on this and as I have said before, I am a great believer in not changing the running direction of the tyres, and therefore rotate them front to rear and if it is necessary to change from side to side, I remove from the rim and refit it so that it is still operating in the same direction of travel as previous. The owners manual does suggest differently though.

The BS 694 is not a directional tyre and it pays to keep a check on the wear pattern of the tread to determine if they need rotation every 5,000ks. I am meticulous in tyre pressure maintenance and have only rotated twice in 25,000km's, with the tyres still wearing reasonably flat and evenly across the tread.

[Pedro Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Pedro]

Thanks for the info on Bridgstone as being non directional Jacto.

There seems to be a large number who rotate the same as you, and I think I will join the crowd.

It is interesting to note that you have only rotated twice in 25000kms and confirms another line of thought about when to do rotation.

I try and keep an eye on tyre pressure and usually run at 40 all round with 45 in rear when towing van.

[Jacto Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Jacto]

Hi Pedro

I am running 36psi all round on the Grandtreks and they are performing beautifully to the unlovers :shock:

[D4D Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close D4D]

I'm up for a rotation on my BFG ATs, however I want to use the spare and not leave it brand new. Given the non crossover rules discussed here and the fact my LHF is worn the most, I was going to fit the spare to the LHF. Is this recommended? How do I add the spare into the rotation?

[LiveFreeAndRoam Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close LiveFreeAndRoam]

At my 10K service I had Toyota perform a tyre rotation and also had them introduce the spare. They swapped the spare with the LHF.

I'm not certain what direction the other 3 tyres were rotated in, but probably doesn't matter much.

Next 10K service, I'll have to be careful to have a different tyre become the spare. Tracking the spare will be a bit like playing the shell game :shock: .

I also had a wheel-alignment done. When I mentioned tyre-rotation, (which btw he did not recommend), he proceeded to upsell a wheel-alignment. I asked how-much and balked at the price - more of a reflex that occurs whenever someone asks me to buy something extra . I think he initially said $60. When I groaned some, he quickly reduced the wheel-alignment to $30. Left me wondering if he made up the difference somewhere else in the bill. I know... I'm a skeptic.

Cheers,
LFaR.

[plucker Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close plucker]

I got Toyota to do my rotation on the 20K service and insisted on the spare getting involved too.
Well they did the rotation and balance according to the bill but 2 weeks later when I drove it on the highway, I thought I was on a Bullride hanging on to the steering wheel.

I came home and checked the tyre pressure and the front were set at 28 and 29, and the back were 31 and 33. :shock: Yep 4 tyres and 4 different pressures. WTF.......

They rotated the tyres and must have guessed the pressure. I check these at least weekly and have the stockos set at 28.

Long story short, I had driven 600 odd KM around town before I realised their mistake and will have to look somewhere for a wheel alignment. I did put all pressures back to 28 and the ride improved somewhat.

[bgreeni Member Find all posts View Profile Close bgreeni]

Re: Tyre Rotation - which is the correct method?

I had the 10,000 km service done yesterday, and requested a tyre rotation. When I got the vehicle home I find they did not include the spare in the rotation. Is this an issue and should I insist that they take the car back and include the spare?

[winniliss Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close winniliss]

Re: diagonal rotation

On the subject of Toyota and Dunlop, yes they do collaborate extensively and there is a consideration that they are the experts, but remember that they also recommend a tyre pressure of 190kpa (27psi) for the Prado and we know that this pressure is a load of rubbish and if adhered to then we can expect poor life out of the Grantreks.

G'day Jacto,
I'm going to exploit your experience. You say you run your tyres at 36psi. Is this regardless of load and or speed (130km/hr in NT)
One more thing, what is your recommendation for on/off road tyre. I am looking at BF Goodridge AT's...

[winniliss Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close winniliss]

Re: diagonal rotation

Just on another note, was talking to my Cooper rep yesterday and I questioned a clause in their catalogue "Capital City Mileage Warranty" and was it mean't to be read as that the guaranteed mileage only came into play if the tyres were only used within city/metro areas. The answer came back as affirmative but it is really up to the individual Cooper dealers. So be careful on buying Cooper Tyres should they fail to live up to your expectations regarding mileage and confirm with the dealer before accepting the deal.

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A friend in Darwin had a Coopers tyre blow apart and it was only a few months old. Coopers said they would not cover it under warranty because it's too hot in the NT.Not good for their tyres.

[LiveFreeAndRoam Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close LiveFreeAndRoam]

Re: Tyre Rotation - which is the correct method?

I had the 10,000 km service done yesterday, and requested a tyre rotation. When I got the vehicle home I find they did not include the spare in the rotation. Is this an issue and should I insist that they take the car back and include the spare?

It's common for Toyota not to put the spare into the rotation pattern. When I put mine in for each service, I insist they use the spare. They reply that it is not recommended. I ask why. They have no answer, other than saying that's the recommendation :?.

Personally, I prefer to see all my tyres in service. It just makes sense from an investment point of view.

I still own a vehicle where a 6 y.o. spare has never touched the road. According to the experts, any rubber that is around 6 y.o. needs to be replaced. So effectively, I've lost my investment on that tyre. Oh well.

Cheers,
LFaR.

[plucker Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close plucker]

Re: Tyre Rotation - which is the correct method?

I think you might find that a wheel balance and rotation charged by Toyota is charged at a rate which really puts the mechanic under pressure to perform in the allocated time. Adding the spare to the rotation adds time to the job.

[bgreeni Member Find all posts View Profile Close bgreeni]

Re: Tyre Rotation - which is the correct method?

Had a phone call yesterday as a follow up to see if I was happy with the service given. I said that I had expected the rotation to include spare. About half an hour later i had a phone call from the service manager saying that if i liked to take the car in they would do a rotation including the spare at no charge. I was impressed with this service. This was Scarborough Toyota.