When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
I have found that if I need to replace one tire due to damage it is best to try and find a used one with the same amount of tread on eBay. They are much cheaper, the sellers all warranty their tires and will replace if found to be defective and then you still have all 4 with similar wear.
Just search your tire size and brand, then hunt for those of the same model. All the sellers tell how much tread is left as that is how they determine pricing, all have good photos, often showing the tread depth gauge in place. All offer free shipping. Then just go to your local gas station, independent garage or tire store for mounting and balancing. I have done this many times.
If your other 3 tires have quite a bit of life left, I would consider looking for a used tire (or buying a cheap new tire if a matched used brand can't be found) and have a shop shave it down to match the others. I think Tirecraft offers tire shaving services in your area. It's been a while since I was up in Canada.
All wheel drive......yes I would have different tire depths.
Just replace the tire that's bad.
Yes the new one will have a greater radius than the others, but, the difference so small it really doesn't matter and won't hurt anything.
If you really need to convince yourself, next time you're in a large parking lot, take a look at all the AWD vehicles that have tires inflated to slightly different pressures. The difference in radius here makes the difference between a new and old tire look trivial.
How much of a differential would there be with the worn tires versus new? Consider the tread depths of the existing tires. Below a certain point, replacing all of them probably makes more sense. If there's quite a bit of tread depth left then it may make more sense to shave a single replacement.
Ok, this keeps coming regularly.
There is MAJOR difference between AWD Lexus and 4WD say pick up truck. Or, Jeep.
AWD systems on most modern cars have viscous differential, similar to a small version of automatic transmission. Vs mechanical differential and transfer case for 4WD cars.
Basically, there is no direct mechanical connection between front end and rear end in AWD car. Just like there is no direct mechanical connection between output shaft and input shafts in automatic transmission, where it is done via torque converter and hydraulic fluid.
In 4WD vehicle, you actually do have mechanical gears doing this. But, even that is not an issue, until 4WD is engaged.
It all boils down to tire diameter, or radius, as other poster mentioned. Tires with differing diameter spin at different speeds. In AWD car, even when AWD is engaged, differential simply slips some to accommodate this difference. In 4WD car it will result in transfer case lock, as all wheels are now connected via direct mechanical connection with one wheel attempting to spin different from the other 3. That said, I learned it the hard way, when it locked down on my then Silverado, when dealer installed different diameter tires on rear end. I didn't even know till I engaged 4WD - and stalled after about 60 ft. Truck otherwise drove just fine in 2HI. Even better, I just had wheels re balanced on my RAM and now have brand new spare tire on the R front end with the rest of them being half worn. Not only is it new=larger diameter but, also, it is a different tire itself. Not a problem even with 4WD engaged, and I did kick it quite a few times already.
Back to AWD car. I would not be worried at all having 1 tire replaced. 1. you drive in 2WD 98% of time anyway, so it does not matter 2. viscous differential will accommodate tire diameter discrepancy when AWD engages anyway.
NOT TRUE AT ALL. Long time, I mean Looooong time ago people believe this to be true!!!
IF you put the good tires on the front (no matter FWD, AWD, OR RWD), then potentially when you make a sharp fast turn, your rear end will swing around and REALLY SURPRISE YOU!!!
Best thing to do is to make sure ALL FOUR tires got the same type, tread depth, and etc. Tires are way too important to go cheap on.
Originally Posted by tus
You put the better tires on the drive wheels, which for an AWD RX is primarily the front.
NOT TRUE AT ALL. Long time, I mean Looooong time ago people believe this to be true!!!
IF you put the good tires on the front (no matter FWD, AWD, OR RWD), then potentially when you make a sharp fast turn, your rear end will swing around and REALLY SURPRISE YOU!!!
And if you don't have enough traction on the front tires, your attempt to make a sharp fast turn will result in the car plowing forward and you crash into whatever you were turning sharp and fast to avoid
In the snow belt you put them on the drive wheels since they are what is actually moving the car so if you can't get traction you're not moving.
There is the additional problem of, if you do spin the wheels on ice or snow and the thing starts sliding sideways, even if you get off the gas, slam on the brakes, and lock the wheels (which is something that does happen even with traction control and ABS) the car will often continue to slide in the direction it started moving in.
Originally Posted by lexusrus
Best thing to do is to make sure ALL FOUR tires got the same type, tread depth, and etc. Tires are way too important to go cheap on.
"However, if the front tires have significantly more tread depth than the rear tires, the rear tires will begin to hydroplane and lose traction on wet roads before the fronts. This will cause the vehicle to oversteer (the vehicle will want to spin). Oversteer is far more difficult to control and in addition to the initial distress felt when the rear of the car starts sliding, quickly releasing the gas pedal in an attempt to slow down may actually make it more difficult for the driver to regain control, possibly causing a complete spinout."
ALSO IN THE ARTICLE:
"It didn't take long for this hands-on experience to confirm that the "proving grounds" name for the facility was correct. The ability to sense and control predictable understeer with the new tires on the rear and the helplessness in trying to control the surprising oversteer with the new tires on the front was emphatically proven."
"While insufficient tire rotation intervals and/or out-of-adjustment wheel alignment angles often caused the differences in front-to-rear and side-to-side tire wear rates in the first place, the need to keep deeper treaded tires on the rear axle to resist oversteer conditions caused by wet road hydroplaning is important. Unfortunately this precludes the future possibility of ever rotating tires."
"Once a pair of tires has been installed, the only way to escape being forced to drive on mismatched tires continually is to install a complete set of new tires (especially on front-wheel drive vehicles)."
As stated above (for most people) OVERSTEER IS WAY MORE DIFFICULT TO CONTROL IN AN EMERGENCY VS UNDERSTEER. I'm NOT talking about INTENTIONAL OVERSTEER where the driver intentionally induced it and IS EXPECTING THE OVERSTEER EFFECT.
The SAME recommendation will be found POSTED IN BIG POSTERS ON THE WALL when you walk into any major tire shop/store these days. It is THE INDUSTRY STANDARD these days. Maybe two decades ago it WAS different and actually OPPOSITE AND DANGEROUS!!! I had a personal experience with this DANGEROUS PRACTICE.
I was still operating on the OLD principle some ten years ago while driving my MB high powered (it was a rear wheel drive) sports car (since sold it) where one of the front tires had a puncture beyond repair. So I replaced two front tires with brand new MATCHING tires (matching brand and model with the rears too). But the rear ones are much more worn out vs the BEW FRONT TIRES (but definitely STILL WAY ABOVE THE MINIMUM LEGAL LIMIT OF WEAR).
EVERYTING WAS OK as long as I was on dry roads. Then there was SUDDEN HEAVY HEAVY RAIN. There were definitely at least two inches of water on the roads!!! The kind you get in the Gulf States and that was where I was. I was cruising along at 65mph. There were almost no traffic on the interstate (not even semi-trucks!!! as they were smart enough to stay off the road in HEAVY DOWN POUR!!). I was only a few minutes into this HEAVY RAIN where most of the traffic either had exited out or had pulled out to the shoulder.
Then I felt my rear start to come around on my right side, so I counter steered instinctively as I had done many time before as I had done autocross in my younger days. Piece of cake (I thought). As I counter steered I noticed the "EPS" YELLOW ECLAIMATION WARNING light flashing on my dash and activating. The whole time I did not even touch the brakes NOR LET OFF THE GAS AND I counter steered instinctively the other direction again. Now my MB is literally siding side ways with my driver's side sliding across the water in the direction I was traveling (I can hear and see AND feel the water hitting my driver's side window!!!). So I steered to my left just enough to get the car straighten out and now going straight. If it was not for the conservative nature of the MB's EPS system and luck, it would have been a bad day for me. Right after I regained controll of the car, I exited out on the next exit to the closest gas station. Another driver who was following at a distance followed me to the gas station and told me he thought for sure I was gonna end up in the ditch or hit the support concrete beams on the overpass!!
Do as you please and NOT FOLLOW INDUSTRY SAFETY STANDARDS RECOMMENDATIONS. All the recommendations were SCIENTIFICALLY TESTED AND PROVEN.
Best thing to do is to make sure ALL FOUR tires got the same type, tread depth, and etc. Tires are way too important to go cheap on.
Originally Posted by tus
And if you don't have enough traction on the front tires, your attempt to make a sharp fast turn will result in the car plowing forward and you crash into whatever you were turning sharp and fast to avoid
In the snow belt you put them on the drive wheels since they are what is actually moving the car so if you can't get traction you're not moving.
There is the additional problem of, if you do spin the wheels on ice or snow and the thing starts sliding sideways, even if you get off the gas, slam on the brakes, and lock the wheels (which is something that does happen even with traction control and ABS) the car will often continue to slide in the direction it started moving in.
So i am up in Utah my father and the RX is down in Florida he asked me about getting two tires he has a 2012 RX AWD with the 19 inch tire wheel option on itHe said when he bought the car it had 2 diffrent brand tires so it has Micheline which are still good half a bit more than half the treat left on them
and bridgestones are the other two tires and those its time to replace
he has the micheline lattitude in the 235 55 19 he used to always just go for the cheapest tires that he could buy at a tire shop for all his cars and i would laways argue with him explainging the reason why he would hardly get maybe 20k on tires before they would have to be replaced was because he was buying the crappiest tires the cheapest tires and never had allighnments done unless he was having work like struts done where the allighment would have to be done he was into if it aint broke dont fix it lol but he also never did maintant wich i would fight with him about all the time
now he is fiannly taking my advice because im telling hims pend more on tires and you will get more life out of the tire with a good tire
i have never had 19 inch tires never had a suv i always drive sedans
what im wondering if i have heard storys about how shops will refuse to replace just two tires when its a awd is this correct ? do we have to replace all 4 tires at one time even if the two good ones have like 7-8/3nd nds left on the tread ? i think new these tires came with 11/32
another option is sometimes what i do when i just need to replace one tire ill buy used tires sometimes if i am on a buget so i just looked to see from the place i order mind form usualy and two used tires with brand new tread like take off tires with 11/32nd on it i can get two for 272 used
or i can get tires with the same tread about 7/32nds used for about 105 dollars for two tires
considering that these tires brand new would be around 280 each after taxes if i can save him money i would like to safe him around 400 dollars but will a shop say that they cant put tires with 11/32nd on a awd vehicle where the two tires on it that are good now have 7/32nds ? will they say that he needs to have less tread on the replacment tires ?
04-10-18, 06:23 AM
