TheShadrack

I have some tire wear questions that I hope someone can answer for me.

I have a 2004 Toyota Highlander with 15K miles. The front seemed to drift to the right at highway speeds. My wife then had the tires rotated for the first time although I usually never rotate my tires.

When the rears were put on the front, they rode rough. We suspected a problem with tire wear. After inspection at our dealership, I was told the tries that were on the rear were cupping on the inside, causing them to create the extra vibration that we now feel on the front.

I asked what is causing the abnormal wear. The “service manager” said it was because the tires were not rotated every 5k miles. I replied that it doesn’t make sense that if you don’t rotate your tires, they will start cupping. I said I never rotate my tires and I don’t recall ever having cupping on any car including my 2000 Tundra. I said they had to be cupping whether I rotated them or not.

He said he had seen the same problem on other Toyotas, that if the tires were not rotated, they will wear abnormally. I said I think the problem is that there is something wrong with the rear that causes them to cup, and now these tires a never going to be right. He replied that moving them to the front will help to correct the problem if caught early enough (which of course he said I didn’t). I am sure that he is in error at least on this part.

Anyway, after my insistence that there was a mechanical problem they agreed to do an alignment under warranty. The only problem they found was the RF wheel was toe +.08. They corrected the RF to +.01 and the LF to -.01. I asked why the LF was a negative value, because I thought that FWD cars needed a 0 or + toe. He said the total toe needed to be 0. I don’t know if that is true but it doesn’t sound right, just seems both tires pointing the same direction.

Also after the alignment, LR camber -1.38, RR camber -1.98. LR toe +.04, RR toe +.04.

Can someone please tell me if all this sounds normal, and if not, who do I contact at Toyota to get my car straightened out?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Flamedx4

Try another dealer. (They love to out do each other...)
AbbyNormal tire wear pattern (such as cupping) is indicative of a problem. Period.

Front tires and rear tires do wear differently, that's why you have to rotate them. You do NOT rotate them to prevent a problem from setting up a bad wear pattern on the tire. He's full of manure. Best guess is improper balance. Could also be a defective tire or a defective rim. Unlikely to be alignment, and .08 to .01 toe would not mess up a tire, and since the problem tire was apparently on the rear anyway, that can't be it.