Rotating Staggered Tires/Wheels

[Nyati]

My wheels on my Mercedes are 18x8 fronts and 18x9 rears. I don't have the tire size right in front of me but the rears are about 1" wider. Do you rotate these side to side or not rotate them at all?

The tires are Michelin PS2 Sport Pilots. Do you still only rotate radials front to back and not crossover or is that old school?

 

[Quattro Pete]

Looks like you could rotate them side to side since they're not directional.

Personally, when we had a vehicle with a staggered setup, I didn't bother to rotate at all.

 

[d00df00d]

Never rotate staggered wheels/tires front-to-back.

The Pilot Sport PS2 is non-directional, so you can rotate them side-to-side (though I can't see why one would).

 

[Cardenio327]

I'm going to guess not at all.

BMW advises against tire rotations on their cars because it can alter the handling feel. Mercedes does recommend rotations, but in this case probably not. What does your owner's manual say about it?

 

[Nyati]

Originally Posted By: Cardenio327
I'm going to guess not at all.

BMW advises against tire rotations on their cars because it can alter the handling feel. Mercedes does recommend rotations, but in this case probably not. What does your owner's manual say about it?


500SL. Came with 16x8 wheels all around. Tires originally were the same size. I put AMG wheels on it, so the owners manual doesn't apply.

 

[razel]

Before more people chime in just to show-off how much they spent on their car...

My weekend ride has staggered wheels with directional tires. It's 13 years old replaced the tires only once. I cannot myself rotate side to side unless I take it to a tire shop to dismount/re-mount. Despite never rotating the tires, I did stay on top of figuring out the correct tire pressure (using the chaulk line test) and taking it in for alignment every two years (when it was time for a smog check).

As long as you stay on top of alignment and tire pressures, I'm sure you'll have no issues what-so-ever.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Originally Posted By: Cardenio327
I'm going to guess not at all.

BMW advises against tire rotations on their cars because it can alter the handling feel. Mercedes does recommend rotations, but in this case probably not. What does your owner's manual say about it?


And when owners wait too long to rotate they then complain to dealer about a vibration or noise.

 

[HTSS_TR]

I rotate(and check balance) side-to-side every 4-5k miles for my S2000 which has staggered tires(non-directional), to even the wear rate.

Since balance and rotation are free at America's Tire(I bought my tires there), why not do it ?

 

[CapriRacer]

The big reason to rotate is to balance out the difference in wear front to rear. So if you have the same tire size front to rear (and the same wheel width and offset), the front to rear movement is the important aspect, and the cross rotation is secondary.

If you don't have the same tire and wheel set up front to rear, you can't rotate, so while swapping side to side may be a good idea, its benefits are pretty small.

 

[silvercivicsi]

I've never rotated tires on a staggered setup, I say just leave them alone and replace as necessary.