Only replacing one tire when others are almost new

[mclasser]

I have to replace a flat tire in my 2013 Pilot AWD. The other three factory Michelin tires have 8-9/32 in tread left since I don't drive this car much. I'm planning to only replace the flat with another Michelin Primacy MXV4 so all the tires match. I called around to some shops and they all said I should buy 2 tires.

I read around and most tire sites said the tread difference for AWD cars should be between 2-4/32 in max. What do you guys think? The new MXV4 has 10/32 in tread so I feel I should be fine with just one tire.

 

[2civics]

I'm with you. No reason to buy an extra tire when you are looking at a difference of 1-2/32nds.

Don't get

 

[HerrStig]

If these tire stores were honest they'd shave the tread for you rather than selling you TWO tires. I wonder why they'd want to do THAT? It's done all the time by folks running street tires in certain stock classes in the SCCA.

 

[jyoung8607]

Originally Posted By: HerrStig
If these tire stores were honest they'd shave the tread for you rather than selling you TWO tires.

Tire Rack offers this service for this exact sort of situation. I'm not sure how BITOG feels about direct linking to vendors but plugging "tire rack shaving service" into Google will take you right there. They'll even arrange shipping direct to a shop that will mount it for you.

 

[HerrStig]

Originally Posted By: jyoung8607
Originally Posted By: HerrStig
If these tire stores were honest they'd shave the tread for you rather than selling you TWO tires.

Tire Rack offers this service for this exact sort of situation. I'm not sure how BITOG feels about direct linking to vendors but plugging "tire rack shaving service" into Google will take you right there. They'll even arrange shipping direct to a shop that will mount it for you.
I have never been disappointed by the Rack.

 

[Kuato]

If you buy two tires then you will likely get some binding in the driveline. I know a guy that did this on an AWD.

It will be well worth it to have the new tire shaved to match the existing tires.

 

[turtlevette]

This is anal retentive garbage. Diff's are not solidly locked and the drive line between front and rear is not locked either but has a coupling that allows slippage.

I guess a lot of tires get replaced for no reason because of these scare tactics. Different psi between the tires does the same thing. I guess the drive system self destructs when you get a little leaking in a tire.

Do these fussy vehicles allow you to turn? Go around long sweeping turns?

 

[friendly_jacek]

some AWD are very sensitive to uneven tires (subaru) and some not. check the owners manual.

 

[aquariuscsm]

Originally Posted By: turtlevette
This is anal retentive garbage. Diff's are not solidly locked and the drive line between front and rear is not locked either but has a coupling that allows slippage.

I guess a lot of tires get replaced for no reason because of these scare tactics. Different psi between the tires does the same thing. I guess the drive system self destructs when you get a little leaking in a tire.

Do these fussy vehicles allow you to turn? Go around long sweeping turns?




I'm with turtlevette. Buy just one tire.

 

[Kawiguy454]

^^^^ +1 what turtlevette said

...you all do realize that unless your going in an absolute perfectstraight line all the wheels turn at a different speeds.

Put the tire on and drive away.

 

[EdwardC]

Agreed, buy one tire. I had to do this once with a 10k old set of tires. What I did was run the newest tire on the front for an extra rotation (just crossed it left to right instead of front to back).

Then I went back to the regularly scheduled rotation order and forgot about the difference.

 

[redbone3]

Who decided a differential should not be able to compensate for one wheel going a bit faster than another? I thought that was the whole idea behind having a differential (as opposed to a live axle).

 

[eljefino]

Buy one tire. There are bigger differences if you switch brands in the same published size.

 

[djb]

If the original tires are really worn that little, don't bother with shaving.

The difference in rotation rate will be less than simple geometry suggests. Tires with tread blocks move on their belts, and thus rotate on the effective belt diameter, not on the outside diameter of the rubber blocks.

As a thought experiment, imagine what happens when the tread block is several inches high. Estimate that the tire is inflated so that the contact patch is square -- as long as the tire is wide.

 

[Bandito440]

Originally Posted By: jyoung8607
Originally Posted By: HerrStig
If these tire stores were honest they'd shave the tread for you rather than selling you TWO tires.

Tire Rack offers this service for this exact sort of situation. I'm not sure how BITOG feels about direct linking to vendors but plugging "tire rack shaving service" into Google will take you right there. They'll even arrange shipping direct to a shop that will mount it for you.

Yep. Call up Tire Rack and ask them to shave the tire a bit. I don't know about the Pilot, but some Subaru systems are sensitive to a difference in tire diameters.

 

[Danh]

Subaru allows 2/32nds and Audi 4/32nds variation in tread depth for AWD applications, so you would seem to be very safe. Maybe run the new tire on the front for a couple rotations to even out wear.

 

[widman]

When I drive home from my office twice a day I take twice as many right turns as left turns. On the way here, it is balanced. Somewhere there is compensation.

I like to buy in pairs, but there are many times it is not practical.

 

[spk2000]

If I recall correctly the Pilot is really a Front Wheel drive that the rear wheel kick in when front wheels slip. If it were me I would put the new tire on the rear and run it.

 

[Eddie]

+1 spk2000. New tire on the rear. Ed

 

[Wolf359]

What about putting a few pounds less air in the new tire to compensate for the higher tread?