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Brought it to a local shop and they said I needed the following:
-upper ball joints (labor $418)
-lower control arm bushings (labor $665)
-shocks (labor $76)
-struts (labor $171)
-they would not do an alignment because he said the ball joints and control arm bushing were too worn out.
I bought it from a guy in December 2018 who had all this work done in 2014 and 2015 with receipts to back it up (around 200k miles). He also upgraded the stock to an old man emu kit and added a leveling kit in the front. Total lift is 2". He put new tires on in 2016 (215k miles) and I noticed no uneven tire wear when I bought it in December 2018.
My questions are:
-Could previous owner have used poor quality parts causing them to wear premature?
-What could I have done in the past 4 months to cause that kind of wear?
-Do the labor costs seem reasonable? I can do some of that myself but time is always an issue for me.
-Any other advice on what could be causing this issue?
How are your driving the truck? As your picture indicated; outer edge wear is indicative of hard fast cornering.
Youre driving a 22 year old truck. That old girl is going to like smooth and gentle.
You said you didn’t notice this tire wear in December when you bought the truck at 235k miles, and all the work and tires were done 2+ years ago and 20k+ miles ago. That leads me to believe it’s operator error.
I agree based on the information provided you would think it was how I was driving the truck. However, I accelerate under 2500 rpm, don't drive fast, corner slow, and brake long before lights/stop signs. It could be operator error (in fact I would hope it is that so I wouldn't have to drop $2k on parts/labor) but it's just not how I drive the truck daily.
What pressures are you running?
If you're driving it easy not sure would cause the rear tires to wear that way.
Are you sure you just didn't notice the wear before?
The truck recommends 32 psi all the way around so that's what I'm running. If it were a pressure issue you'd think I would see wear on both the inside and outside of the tire not just the outside.
I definitely checked the tires when I bought it but you never know, I could have missed something.
Rear tire outer wear on a solid axle seems odd, sounds like you might have missed it during a rotation. What type of tires, I had a problem with cupping/feathering of the outer tread of tires on another vehicle in the past, alignment showed no issues tech suggested poor tire quality or belt failure, and last year on the front of a Taco 2012 4x4 with BFG TA KO's, had Toyota inspect the front end, no issues, air pressure filled according to specs on the door, conclusion was poor tire quality, or issue with tire, also suggested installation could have contributed to it, I'm not a tire tech but suspect it was a issue with the tire.
Agreed that rear outer tire wear makes no sense on a solid axle. They are Michelin Defenders, 265/70/16. They're still under warranty with Discount and I did just get them rotated.
I don't know the history on tire rotation for 2 years prior to me owning it. I'm not sure if Discount keeps records of rotation or not based on VIN. It's totally possible the rears could have been on the front at one point.
@Marc could you explain or link to what you mean by putting a straight edge on them?
Should I replace any of the components in my original post? Maybe get another shop to look at it and confirm this is actually an issue? I don't want to throw parts at it when it's just an issue with the tires.
The straight edge will tell you if they are cupped, concave or flat across.
If the worn outer part is even with the rest of the tire then maybe it was higher when made?
I'm just guessing as it's not normal tire wear.
Can you post a picture of your tires showing the wear?
Do you have a tread depth gauge? Or can you measure with the old penny/Lincoln’s Head trick?
measure each tire along the outer edge, middle, and inner edge. If you’re using an actual gauge, your measurements will be in 1/32 of an inch. If you’re using a penny with Lincoln’s head pointed down, does the tread touch his hair, cover his ears, etc.
the picture you posted, while showing a worn tire for only 20k miles on it, looked to be even treadwear.
Lincoln's head is covered up to the eye on the inner, above the hair on the middle, and below the hair on the outer.
Upon closer inspection, the upper ball joints are definitely shot. I think the may be causing the tires to camber inwards and cause that wear on the outside. Thoughts?
An alignment would provide you with a complete front end inspection, these trucks have a lower ball joint issue that is catastrophic if left to long, also only use OEM lower Ball joints, upper ball joints worn out will cause alignment issues aswell. Those tires are we'll suited for the truck and tend to be well made and last along time.
Perhaps I should have been more clear, if you go to the dealer for an alignment(or most alignment shops), they will give you a free front end inspection before they attempt to align it, and then you can go home with the list and replace accordingly and return for the alignment. Upper ball joints have very little stress on them and usually only fail due to water intrusion and lack of grease, any aftermarket upper ball joint will due IMO. A good alignment shop will inspect every joint and pivot point and inform the owner what needs to be replaced to align it.
Thanks for the reply. I did take it to an alignment shop and they told me to replace the parts listed in my original post.
The upper ball joints make sense. I see they look shot. However, the previous owner replaced the control arm bushing with MOOG parts less than 5 years ago. I don't see how those could have worn out this fast. Same with the suspension, replaced less than 5 years ago.
Not all Parts are equal, I have found the rubber on the Moog links is crap, they are small and do not have the shape of the OEM isolating the link from the anti-swaybar, if you can clean them up they probably just need the rubber replaced, use the Prothane bushings on the link and bar, but 5 years on links is OK, shocks have more than just the shock tube and coil that can wear out, and I would use Bilstein 5100, they last years., the consumer grade KYB's and Rancheros will not hold up. Make sure you no how old the lower ball joints are, they should be changed every 200,000-250,000 Kilometers, just like the radiator, they can fail without any warning.
Are you saying the Moog control arm bushings are crap? Should I replace them with OEM parts?
Are the Prothane bushings for the swaybar itself and the swaybar links? I didn't think the swaybar would effect alignment or uneven tire wear, am I incorrect?
Anything in the rear I should take a look at that may be worn out?
I do not see any maintenance history on the lower or upper ball joints so I will be replacing those.
Any anti-sway bar link is OK usually, it is the Bushings that isolates the link from the Bar that are Crap, (and sometimes the rubber retainers/wahers), if the link isn't broken they are ok typically(the joint can wear out but uncommon), the rubber bushings that all aftermarket links come with are CRAP, they have no shape, just a cylinder of rubber, the OEM bushings or Prothane bushings have a shape that separates the link shaft from the anti-sway bar which is critical for a long service life, Prothane will never crack and fail, rubber will crack and fail after 5 years.
You can get Prothane for the anti-sway bar and the links yes, is it technically necessary for a alignment no, but for safety and legal reasons it is necessary, and would be consider unfit for an alignment without them in proper working order.
The anti-sway bar and links should not effect alignment, but it will effect suspension performance, ride control and handling, all of which are directly related to alignment under real life conditions, and if you rally raced or offroad it could cause unnecessary wear and stress on other components if these items are not functioning as intended.
Any pivot point in the rear should be inspected, but typically the rear is ok unless you see bushings spitting out of any of the 4 links ends, there is also an anti-sway bar in the rear, typically they last a long time and again will not effect alignment.
The Lower Ball Joints are a MAJOR concern, OEM only, they are worth it, any aftermarket Lower Ball joint will only last 2-3 years. And like I said, if its an Automatic transmission the Radiator is also a Major Concern although not related, look up "3rd Gen 4Runner strawberry Milkshake"
I hope this clears things up, if an alignment shop tells you to change or fix something, it is a safety concern and needs to be repaired.
04-01-2019, 08:15 AM
Uneven Tire Wear
