Hello,

Hopefully someone can point me in the right direction.

I am quite upset that i might have to dispose my tires early...

I am running similar setup as few of you on this forum.

GT500 Mounts, 1.5" Lowering Springs ( FRPP K/ SR Performance Ones spec ) and koni yellows.

Once my car was lowered I had 19" Brembo wheels on. Ford was able to get my car within spec. I was bale to rotate my tires and did not have any uneven wear pattern. However since i switched to a staggered setup 8.5" Front and 10.5" rear on 20" Rims I am noticing a uneven wear on my front tires.

The drivers side being worse. I weigh only 140LBS so It cant be my weight, I am just trying to figure out what are my options?

Did i have to re-aling the car again once i PUT 20's on? ( I DID NOT DO THIS )

I heard few of you that are running similar setup do not have this issue.

Any suggestions advice would be appreciated.

 

If the tire diameter is different then yes an alignment is typically going to help.

Staggered wheels means less ways to rotate which means more uneven wear. Gotta pay to play.

Also the Ford specs are typically very generous. If you're getting wear on the insides of the tires try and get the toe closer to zero. A good shop should have no problem getting it a bit better then what Ford "allows".

 

One of the reasons I do not run a staggered set up, front tires will always wear out first on a solid axle rear wheel drive car or truck, the whole reason to rotate them.

 

Just had my sons mustang aligned. Same issue. They need to get it really close to perfect. Some places even miss making sure the air pressure is correct.

 

BAM Thank you all for your input... Now final question, do you think I can claim these tires trough FORD? Also do you think I might have to pay to re-align?

 

Since you don't have adjustable mounts, there really is no way to adjust the camber. It is what it is, the alignment guy cannot change it. When you lower the car, you get negative camber like you have. That makes the inside of the tires wear faster. The Ford dealer will say it was because the car is lowered, which is true.

To even them out: take the car to your local road track and take a few hot laps; that will wear down the outside of the tires a bit. ;-)

 

Improper toe will wear the insides of the tires significantly quicker than camber. It takes a rather significant amount of camber to cause that much wear on the tire.

No, Ford will not pay for it, it's within spec and you modified your suspension.

 

Fair enough... What about my tires which are warranted by the company up to 30K any chances of getting them to cover for a new tires or get some price off on tires? They got about 10K on them...

Final question, are the CAMBER bolts worth it? Thanks for your help!

 

No, tire warranties are for defects, unless it specifically covers wear due to suspension changes.

Camber plates are generally more useful. If you don't have a reason to change the camber then don't spend money know them. Remember, most tire wear from suspension changes are from poor toe angles. If the wear is on the insides of your tires then I guarantee that is the cause, not camber.

 

^ Yeah I agree. My drivers toe angle is 0.12* and the passenger side is 0.09*. Whats odd is these are all within spec on the FORD alignment sheet. I can deff see that my drivers side is getting worn out a lot quicker. Whats odd is that i saw at some parts of that same tire balder spots on the inside not across the whole tire tho. ( inner wear, but some spots are balder then the other ) is this also due to toe issues? Joeywhat thanks for all your help man i deff agree with you that its my toe angle thats messing them up the way it is.

 

Yes, too much toe can cause that, it will have a sort of feathered look. A lot of Ford vehicles (maybe all?) suffer from this, Ford just seems to use lax standards for alignments. I know for a fact every single focus suffers from this, and people often complain of tire wear. It's usually from too much toe due to these specs.

When you get it aligned next ask for the toe to be closer to zero before giving them the vehicle. If they say no go to a different shop. It doesn't need to be perfect but a bit better than what ford says is OK. Any decent shop will have no issue getting it closer than the spec, within reason of course.

 

Bam! Luckly my ex boss who i used to work for has a state of the art machine, hopefully i can make him do that. If not a buddy of mine owns a shop too... Not sure why I didnt go to them in the first place

Again thank you for all your help man!

 

here is the wear form a better angle. ( driver ) side. I was going to adjust the TOE my self but i figured ah what the heck, ill call ford to see if they are willing to re-adjust it for me if not. Ill pay my buddy to knock this out.