Really fast tire wear

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Really fast tire wear; Tire wear
Topic Started: Jun 7 2012, 12:50 PM (391 Views)
Bchev	Jun 7 2012, 12:50 PM Post #1
Fresh Fish Posts: 2 Group: Members Member #7,843 Joined: Dec 26, 2011 Location Taos, nm Year/Make/Model 97 geo metro	I bought a 2000 metro about two weeks ago and put new tires on it. In the last 500 miles both front tires have worn down a LOT. Front right to about 20% tread and front left to about 50%. Everything seams tight under there. Tie rods, ball joints, axles. I'm not sure what it could be. Maybe bearings? It looks like either the car is moving faster then the tires or the tires are moving faster then the car. Any ideas would help a lot Thanks



snowfish	Jun 7 2012, 02:12 PM Post #2
Basic GearHead Posts: 2,866 Group: Tech Certified Member #506 Joined: Feb 23, 2009 Location Brainerd Minnesota Year/Make/Model Two 1991's & one 1993	First off, Welcome to the Party! Second, did you have an alignment done, when you got the new tires? Bearings will cause wear too. But you can hear them "growling" giving you a clue that they're getting ready to go. Or you may have frame horns that are either bent or rusting through throwing the front end out of whack. Edited by snowfish, Jun 7 2012, 02:14 PM.



Bad Bent	Jun 7 2012, 10:26 PM Post #3
Facetious Educated Donkey Posts: 12,605 Group: Moderator Member #334 Joined: Dec 26, 2008 Location Native of SoCal, in Moscow, Idaho Year/Make/Model 1991 and 1996 Geo Metros



BigRobRN	Jun 17 2012, 09:04 AM Post #4
Advanced Member Posts: 134 Group: Members Member #1,982 Joined: Mar 12, 2010 Location Baton Rouge Year/Make/Model 1996 Metro LSi	4 wheel alignment at a specialty shop that only does alignments. Unless you went with a really crappy tire



HelterSkelter	Jun 17 2012, 10:14 PM Post #5
#1 Pizza Driver Posts: 3,939 Group: Valued Members Member #6,942 Joined: Sep 24, 2011 Location Houston Texas Year/Make/Model 94 Geo Metro Base 1.0L 5 speed	Bchev Jun 7 2012, 12:50 PM I bought a 2000 metro about two weeks ago and put new tires on it. In the last 500 miles both front tires have worn down a LOT. Front right to about 20% tread and front left to about 50%. Everything seams tight under there. Tie rods, ball joints, axles. I'm not sure what it could be. Maybe bearings? It looks like either the car is moving faster then the tires or the tires are moving faster then the car. Any ideas would help a lot Thanks the car and the tires move at the same speed, i'm not sure what you mean o.O. go to an alignment shop and see what your toe in is. i bet it's all screwed up like both tires way negative or way positive.



Jittney	Jun 17 2012, 11:19 PM Post #6
Anchorage 92 XFi Posts: 3,019 Group: Tech Certified Member #1,658 Joined: Jan 9, 2010	Welcome to the forum, Bchev Has the car been in an accident?



hobsickle	Jun 18 2012, 02:55 AM Post #7
HS Science teacher Posts: 84 Group: Members Member #6,606 Joined: Aug 20, 2011 Location Dansville, MI Year/Make/Model blue 1994 Geo Metro XFi, white1994 XFi, 1993 XFi, 1992 XFi, 1993 Metro, 1989 4 dr LSi, 1992 convert	Here's a good hint that the toe is off (in or out): when you hit bumps (or wet patches) the car briefly pulls to one direction or the other (or one direction, then the other). It is also possible to get a crude measurement of the toe with a tape measure, comparing the spread of the tires on their front side and the spread of the tires on their back side. (You can even adjust the tie rods to get a better--but by no means perfect--toe adjustment using the tape measure.)



Jittney	Jun 18 2012, 11:46 PM Post #8
Anchorage 92 XFi Posts: 3,019 Group: Tech Certified Member #1,658 Joined: Jan 9, 2010	A friend had what Hobsickle describes. He installed a Turbine Tech frame brace and it was much, much better. http://www.turbotuningturbinetech.com/en/products/swift.html



hobsickle	Jun 19 2012, 05:16 AM Post #9
HS Science teacher Posts: 84 Group: Members Member #6,606 Joined: Aug 20, 2011 Location Dansville, MI Year/Make/Model blue 1994 Geo Metro XFi, white1994 XFi, 1993 XFi, 1992 XFi, 1993 Metro, 1989 4 dr LSi, 1992 convert	Jittney Jun 18 2012, 11:46 PM A friend had what Hobsickle describes. In my own case, the front wheels were 1/4 inch wider at their front than at their back. When both wheels were firmly in contact with the road their pulls cancelled each other (and they just wore the tires), but when you hit a bump the one with the better road contact would pull until the other wheel regained road contact. I adjusted the tie rods until the tape gave equal measurements front and back and the pulling on bumps (and excessive tire wear) went away. As an added bonus, the fuel economy also instantly jumped from consistantly 36 MPG to consistantly 40 MPG (it's a 4-door automatic). Edited by hobsickle, Jun 19 2012, 05:16 AM.



Jittney	Jun 20 2012, 01:16 AM Post #10
Anchorage 92 XFi Posts: 3,019 Group: Tech Certified Member #1,658 Joined: Jan 9, 2010	Nice fix! Congratulations on the increased mpgs



Bad Bent	Jun 20 2012, 10:47 AM Post #11
Facetious Educated Donkey Posts: 12,605 Group: Moderator Member #334 Joined: Dec 26, 2008 Location Native of SoCal, in Moscow, Idaho Year/Make/Model 1991 and 1996 Geo Metros	hobsickle Jun 19 2012, 05:16 AM Jittney Jun 18 2012, 11:46 PM A friend had what Hobsickle describes. I adjusted the tie rods until the tape gave equal measurements front and back and the pulling on bumps (and excessive tire wear) went away. As an added bonus, the fuel economy also instantly jumped from consistantly 36 MPG to consistantly 40 MPG (it's a 4-door automatic). Might take a look at DIY alignment: http://www.lightweightmiata.com/geo/alignment/



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