Went to NTB today

[Mark McQuaide]

Today at lunchtime I took a ride to my local NTB with a Tire Rack quote for 4 new tires in hand. I'm at 16K and the rears are bald in the middle, fronts are bald on the inside edges but about 50% worn otherwise.

The employees seemed enthusiastic about the Marauder and more knowledgeable than my dealer. They also matched the Tire Rack pricing, plus $7 per tire shipping.

As for the uneven wear, the guy at first said overinflation in the rears, but when I informed him the tires had never been overinflated, he then said it must be "torque wear", caused by a too-heavy right foot when taking off which causes the tire to expand in the middle. I suppose this is possible, especially with the way the torque converter makes car lurch unless you have a very delicate foot on the gas (which I don't).

On the fronts he said it was an alignment issue, they will check the alignment and show me the specs vs. what it should be. That will be interesting since the dealer just aligned it. He also said some performance cars just eat tires regardless of the alignment.

Mine has also developed an annoying pulsing vibration at speeds over 70, so I'm hoping this investment ($500 including alignment) straightens things out and I get better wear on the next set.
I'll probably just run 32 PSI all around and see what happens.

[RF Overlord]

Originally posted by Mark McQuaide
As for the uneven wear, the guy at first said overinflation in the rears, but when I informed him the tires had never been overinflated, he then said it must be "torque wear", caused by a too-heavy right foot when taking off which causes the tire to expand in the middle.

Sounds like :bs: to me...I've never heard of "torque wear", but even if it exists, the amount of time spent launching from a dead stop is miniscule compared to the total time the tire is rolling...

Mark, you say your tires have never been overinflated...what pressure are you running? If it's 32 lbs like the door sticker says, then they WERE overinflated...the rear tires on this car want to see more like 29 or 30 lbs...

[Mark McQuaide]

Originally posted by RF Overlord
Mark, you say your tires have never been overinflated...what pressure are you running? If it's 32 lbs like the door sticker says, then they WERE overinflated...the rear tires on this car want to see more like 29 or 30 lbs...

I had been running them at 32-35, then down to 28 but the damage was already done at that point.

I may run the new ones below 32 and see what happens. I'm open to anything that will keep me from buying new tires every year.

[RF Overlord]

Yah, I put mine down to 28 as well, but like you, the damage is already done...I'm just trying to make them last as long as possible...not sure if I'll get the same tire again...I want good handling, but 17,000 miles is ridiculous...

FUBAR on Ford for picking these tires... :mad: :mad:

[carfixer]

The sticker on the gas door for the 04 says 35 psi, I guess Ford is still unaware of our tire wear issues. I have them set at 28 psi.

[LincMercLover]

Damn... I'm runnin' 35 rear and 38 up front... At 12,000 miles I don't see any problems with mine...

I can understand the torque wear though. Maybe not from just accelerations, but from doing burnouts...

[Mark McQuaide]

Originally posted by LincMercLover
Damn... I'm runnin' 35 rear and 38 up front... At 12,000 miles I don't see any problems with mine...


That's why I don't know what pressure to run when I put the new rubber on it. Half the board says go lower, half says go higher...some have the unusual wear, some don't. Doesn't make sense.

[mdmarauder]

The vibration you are experiencing is from the balancing on the front tires. Take the car somewhere that has a Road Force balancing machine and problem will be solved. I had the same problem with my 01 Linc LS. I have replaced all four tires and have the same problem, I'm going to get them re-balanced soon.

[Hemlock]

RAN 28 LBS. IN TOWN , 32 ON TRIPS . ORGINAL SET WENT 27K BEFORE I CHANGED . ROAD FORCE BALANCING IS THE REAL DEAL !!

[Hemlock]

FORGOT TO ADD (SENIOR MOMENT) THAT MM NOW HAS 37,800MILES .

[mtnh]

That torque wear term is the real thing.
My LS gets it badly. Not sure of the dynamics of how, but all I can say is 0-80 time trials are what is doing it. The strange part that denies to me that it is overinflation is the fact that the tires, with worn center tread areas, actually show a gap in the floor when off the car, but still inflated. That proves, to me, that it is not over-inflation.

My own theory is that the tires are under-inflated, so the sidewalls are not providing the stretch of the contact patch, side to side, that is needed to keep the tire planted at high rpms, thus allowing the tire to gain circumference in the center, the way that drag racing tires do when spinning up. though not quite as radical in difference. So my theory, if true, will prove that running the rear tires at 27-28 psi., will wear the center tread faster. There is probably more at play here as well, such as how the rim width works for or against us with respect to the relationship of the sidewalls and width of the tires.

The best way to deal with it (on my LS, there is no way I am going to change my driving style) is to have the ability for the tires to be rotated front to rear, spreading that center wear across both tires on the same side. One last thing to add: this center tread wear is not due to burnouts.

Mike

[Mark McQuaide]

I may just go with 35 PSI when the new rubber is mounted and watch it closely. I figure I'll be buying tires on a regular basis anyway, so if 35 doesn't work I can always try something else next time.

[Ross]

I've been running 34 and my tires have worn pretty evenly with 22K on them

[2003Marauder]

I've been running 32-30 psi and have nearly 20,000 miles and tires look O.K. About 1/3 highway and 2/3 about town. I plan to check tread depth and report back.

[Mark McQuaide]

Well, $500 later and fresh BFGs are on the car. I'm going to run 35 psi all around and take it easy on the launches. We'll see what happens.

[SergntMac]

Door stickers, gas cap doors and owner's manuals can be wrong, what does the side of the tire say?

[Mark McQuaide]

Max pressure 44 PSI is all it says.

[TripleTransAm]

I may be wrong, but I don't think I've ever noticed recommended operating pressures on the sides of tires, but they do indicate maximum pressures. I think they leave it up to the manufacturer to recommend a proper pressure (within safe operating ranges, of course) since it can go hand-in-hand with suspension tuning.

I've tried 35 psi for the past few weeks, and I think it has a greater tendency to spin on a hard launch than with 32 psi, but that could be my imagination (I'll try lowering back to 32 for a comparison tonight). I think this tire just has a natural tendency to squirm length-wise and be over-sensitive to pressure variations... I guess that would account for it's relative low cost, considering how much physical tire we get for the price. :(

[SergntMac]

Originally posted by TripleTransAm
I may be wrong, but I don't think I've ever noticed recommended operating pressures on the sides of tires, but they do indicate maximum pressures. I think they leave it up to the manufacturer to recommend a proper pressure (within safe operating ranges, of course) since it can go hand-in-hand with suspension tuning.

I've tried 35 psi for the past few weeks, and I think it has a greater tendency to spin on a hard launch than with 32 psi, but that could be my imagination (I'll try lowering back to 32 for a comparison tonight). I think this tire just has a natural tendency to squirm length-wise and be over-sensitive to pressure variations... I guess that would account for it's relative low cost, considering how much physical tire we get for the price. :(

I agree, a harder tire will give more spin, but it will provide stiffer sidewalls (important in highway handling), and lead to more even wear.

It seems we're right back to "wear" we started. There must be a PSI that gives us a balance between adhesion, wear, and safety, but I am sure that the moment anyone declared this PSI and broadcast that here, it would most likely be unsatisfactory to someone, simply due to their own driving habits.

I think we got another oil thread here guys, what do y'all think?

[Mark McQuaide]

I'll run at 35 and report back once I see some wear.

[CC-TX Marauder]

Hey mdmarauder!

Did the force ballancing help your problem. I have been around and around on this issue. I have bought new fronts now and still maintain the vibration problem. It starts at about 72 mph and get much worse from there. Interested to know what you found after the ballancing exercise.

Thanks,

Dru

[TAF]

Originally posted by CC-TX Marauder
Hey mdmarauder!

Did the force ballancing help your problem. I have been around and around on this issue. I have bought new fronts now and still maintain the vibration problem. It starts at about 72 mph and get much worse from there. Interested to know what you found after the ballancing exercise.

Thanks,

Dru

I had extensive Dynamic balancing performed on my car yesterday. The issue is the size of my front rotors/calipers from Baer do not allow room for weights on the inside 1/3 of the wheel. (only 1/16" clearance) We accomplished perfect balance by sticking weights on the inside of the rim as well as behind spokes. All vibration issues are gone.

[CC-TX Marauder]

Dam that's cloase tolerance! I'm not sure I'm working with the right crew down here in South Texas, which is not unusual around here. The place I have been buying my tires from has a force ballance machine, but so far they have not been able to shut down the vibration. I sure wish I could find someone with the old style dyno-ballancer. It's annoying as hell and I'm not sure what to do next. In a town full of pickups and low riders, who needs tires ballanced.

[jfclancy]

Quite interesting I had to replace my front tires at 15,200 miles and I also noticed wear in the center of my rears have been running the same size tire on all four corners. Since, 800 miles or so and running 32 on front and 28 in rear seems to be going ok now. I ordered my tires from tire rack and had them mounted at NTB. They also told me my front alignment was the cause of the
front wearing on the inside edge.

Joe Clancy

[Hemlock]

40,000 MILES NOW , AND JUST FOUND A WHEEL WITH .0028 RUN OUT. FIXED THE LITTLE TINGLE THAT WAS ALWAYS THERE . CHECK UM , IT MIGHT BE YOUR PROBLEM TOO. CHEERS!!

[Marauderman]

Originally posted by SergntMac
Door stickers, gas cap doors and owner's manuals can be wrong, what does the side of the tire say?

Now that is what I say and feel all the time--Way to Go Mac!

I have used the "feel" and "look" approach all my life--never a problem--about weekly --do a check--add as necessary or delete----look for wear --tells what is going on-- usually on a Sunday morn before going out--easier to remember that way--Oh wait a minute--must check with S/C owners--this may not work any
longer---duh! Maybe check "daily"and keep abreast of the tire sales as well--gee--that'al be different--

Anyway--Good point Mac!!

[Petrograde]

CTIF.... Central Tire Inflation System... you can control tire pressure from the cockpit. Most military vehicles have this.

I'm not sure how you could do this on our MMs without a goofy looking steel tube running across the outside of the rims. ..hmmm, ... maybe if ya chromed it?

Tom

[RCSignals]

I'm with LML. 35 lbs sounds right. and even his 38 front may make sense.
To me 28 lbs is underinflated for modern radials.

The Oregon State Police did extensive testing f tires for PIs. They settled on a tire other than the OEM, and also inflation of 44 lbs. They claim to get the best performance and wear at that inflation.