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Odd Tire Wear

3K views 52 replies 9 participants last post by  charlie1935 
#1 ·
Hello once again everyone. I was leaving the haircut place today (looking very pretty I might add ;) :rck: ) and noticed some odd wear on my front tires.

Here's the front driver's side tire. Notice on the inner row of tread, every other "knob" of the tread is flatter than the one next to it.


Here's the passenger side doing the same thing:


I also noticed that the two front wheels are sitting slightly tilted:



I don't get this. I know my wheels are spaced outward, but the wheel bearings are new, the tie rods are new, the upper ball joints are new, and the shop that did the ball joints said the lower were fine. All of this has been done in the past 10,000 miles or so. Nothing should be worn out yet. Also, the truck tracks straight and the steering is tight.

I bet it's a good idea if I rotate the tires so the fronts don't get any worse, but it seems the same will happen to the rears once they're moved up.

Any idears?
 
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#2 ·
I say have the alignment re-checked/done. That looks like some toe out wear.
 
#3 ·
Well, that stinks cause the 4X4's don't have a toe adjustment. Just parts to replace. Maybe the lower ball joints weren't are good as the shop said.
 
#7 ·
#4 ·
#5 ·
Running about 36 PSI. The truck calls for 44 PSI on the door sticker but max sidewall pressure on the tires is 35. I didn't want to exceed that by much.

Also, yes, the lift came with lower control arms. I don't have a pic of them right now, but can get one if you wish.

Thanks for the link! It's like chinese to me. I suck when it comes to alignment stuff and angles and all that. Gonna read it anyway. :D
 
#6 ·
chinese lol to funny:thatfunny.......your tires only call for 35psi at max load ? that seems low for a 16in tire . what size are they ?
 
#8 ·
Side of the tires says "35PSI MAX sidewall pressure." They are 33X12.50's. Brand is Maxxis Buckshot Mudder

NHRam said:
who told you that??? Every vehicle has at least a front toe adjustment.
Unless I missed something while I was in there the last time. The upper and lower ball joints mount to a solid knuckle and also to a solid front axle. No place to adjust that I saw.
 
#9 ·
Tie rods...?
 
#10 ·
35 max then i would air down to 30psi or more 2. maxload is max payload and i dont think you drive around with 1000lbs in the bed . i run 40psi in front 35 in rear but max psi is 65 . air down see how she drive's .

camber is not adjustable on are trucks only toe and caster .

did you read any of that article . basically it's saying to check the lower arm's cambolts to see if there pionting in same direction .
 
#11 ·
mine too

I had the same thing happen to mine. The alignment shop told me it was probably a suspension component but eveything was either new or in good shape. I went through everything. I never found a solution. Inflating my tires to 42psi helped a little. I believe it has to be the wider rims screwing up the steering angle or the wider rims caused the upper knuckle to bend inward slightly. You can get adjustable upper ball joints from O'Reilly's. I think Moog makes them. I'm going to give them a try when I tear it down for a major overhaul.
 
#12 ·
I will definitely check them in the morning. I know the cam bolts of which you speak.

What about how both front tires are tilted inwards slightly (can be seen in the pics). Is that camber? I thought the cam bolt adjusted caster.

Thanks for the help so far , Dodgepickup! This is why you're my hero. :D :drivingz:
 
#13 ·
not a hero just owned two 2GEN ram both 4x4 and i have had every problem at one time or another . :D

thats why i asked about lower control arms . are they adjustable ? need to be longer to swing axle back to spec . also need an adjustable trac-bar to re-center axle under the truck . they say we dont need a trac-bar for a 3in lift but we really do . stock trac-bar is made for stock height .

brb the fan on my cpu just took a dump on me . ROAD TRIP TO FRY'S :rck:
 
#14 ·
I love Fry's.

Far as I know, the only adjustment on the control arms is the cam bolts. They are aftermarket parts of the lift, but they're solid chunks.

Almighty_ed above made a good point about the wheels. They do have quite a bit of backspacing (or maybe it's quite a little...can't remember). Anyway, they stick out dern far. That, I'm sure, is very hard on the balljoints/wheelbearings.

I'll get pics of the control arms as well as the cam bolt settings and post 'em up.

Have fun at Fry's! :rck:
 
#15 · (Edited)
Ok, got some more pics. YAY PICS!!!! :rck: ;)

Just for comparison sake, here's my driver's side rear tire. This is how the fronts SHOULD look.


Here's a pics of the sidewall pressure text:


Here's the driver's side control arms (passenger side is the same...obviously ;) ):


Here's the driver's side cam bolt setting:


And the passenger side setting:


I have no idea how to read those cam bolts. Hopefully they're in spec as the 4X4 shop that did the alignment and replaced the upper ball joints should have set these.

If y'all need anymore pics, I'd be happy to snap whatever y'all need....except my beautiful wife....thos pics stay with me. ;)

EDIT: after I made the last post, I got out the ol' hydraulic jack and lifted the front end. I checked the front wheels for play up/down and side/side. The wheels are tight. Especially up/down. Can't move 'em, at least with my own strength (which ain't sayin much...I'm pretty sure a girlscout could move the wheels more than me. ;) ). I also aired down the front tires to 32PSI. Gonna see what happens now.
 
#16 ·
AUDIO.......air down them tires . you should never air up past the max psi . remember the air pressure will raise when the tires get warmer . i would try 30psi in front and 25 in rear .

i think you posted two pics of the drivers side . drivers arm should be running off pic to the right and the pass side should be running off the left . and the strategic placement of the pine needles .

your no funnnnn . hot bikini pics was gonna be my first request (next to the truck of course):rck:
 
#17 ·
I aired the fronts down to 32.

OH SNAP! I did post two pics of the driver's side. Hold on....

<---doofus

Here's the passenger side:
 
#18 ·
I fixed my first post. *embarrassed*

It's also funny that you mention the bikini pics cause she really wants to pose next to my truck in her leather bikini. ***HOT!***
 
#19 ·
knuckle head .....just as i thought all shops do this cause they dont aline dodge 4x4's . your cam bolts are pointing in opposite direction . this puts an off -set in the axle (one tire further in front of the other) . so your just like mine was the drivers side is sitting further back .

on mine i just loosened the drivers cambolt and moved it forward to match up with the otherside . you should try the same and look at the tilt of the tire see if it inproves . NOW WHEN YOU MOVE THE BOLT your toe (tires pointing straight )will be off .

I GOT DIBS ON THE FIRST HOTTTTTTTT LEATHER BIKINI PICS :rck:
 
#20 ·
Can I do this with the truck sitting on the ground? Or do i need to get it in the air?

The shop that did the alignment was 4 Wheels Parts! They're a 4X4 shop! They should have gotten this right. :mad:

And I'll keep you in mind for the bikini pic. ;)

Here's a teaser though:
 
#21 ·
WOWOWOWOW HOTTTTTT WIF,,,I MEAN BIKE

YES on the ground . even 4wheel dont see many dodge 4x4's mostly chebbies and furds .
 
#23 ·
WOWOWOWOW HOTTTTTT WIF,,,I MEAN BIKE
:thatfunny

That's my old bike. Sold it about a year ago. I ride a high performance cruiser now (and yes, there is such a thing). And thanks! :D

Should I crank the driver's side, or passenger side? Or should I crank them both to meet in the middle? What will this do to the front drive shaft?
 
#22 ·
copy and print the alingment specs from the link i gave you and take it back to them with your cancern about the tire wear . talk with them . they didnt give you a read-out after it was alined? good shops always do . 4wheel good prices but they have young kids wrenching on our trucks that think they know what there doing but they dont. and they lift more 2wd's then 4wd's .
 
#24 · (Edited)
Shoot, this was a while ago (months). If I do have it, I have no idea where it is.

I went back and re-read that article you posted....it's not in chinese anymore...now it's in Greek! I see the degree stuff, but have no idea how to apply it. :( I understand what the article says, but the translate that to the cam bolts is another thing. I know they should be equal, but where should they both be set?

Also, I do experience the "wandering truck" sydrome the article talks about, but only on "rounded roads" (like really old 2 lane asphalt roads).
 
#26 ·
Gonna go do that right now....
 
#27 ·
SON OF A BISCUIT! The inner cam bolt head thing wants to ride up on top of the guides on the axle! Is there an easier way to crank this thing? I can't get it all the way round to match the passenger side. It's too tight and I'm too weak. :(

The outter cam bolt thing also must be stripped out in the center cause it doesn't really turn with the flattened bolt.
 
#28 ·
when you turn the inside bolt forward it will tighten the outside nut so you'll have to loosen it more . if that dont work use a cheater bar on the end of ratchet . the movement you did get does she still look tilted in ?
 
#29 ·
brb road trip to a friend house
 
#30 ·
Yea, it still looks tilted in, but then again, the cam bolt is way outta whack even from where it was. I'll try the cheater bar if there's room under there. I'll also try tightening the nut to the point where the cam bolt rides inside the guides but not on top and then turn the cam bolt the other direction so the nut doesn't tighten. The cam lobe on the cam bolt is pretty much pointing straight down at the ground so I can go either way with it. The passenger side inner cam bolt is pointed towards the front of the truck. I'll probably have to crank it the "long way around."
 
#31 · (Edited)
audio.... sorry for splitting like that had to chase some cash down . so what have you figured out . my cambolt was hard to get to piont forward but it did go . did it get any better , worse .
 
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