center only tread wear 04 taco prerunner dblcab

[joef711]

I am on my second set of tires in which the center only of the tread is wearing significantly more than the outer edges on all 4 tires (04 taco prerunner dblcab v6). I know this is usually a sign of overinflation, but bought this set of tires brand spanking new and was anal about tire pressure since purchase.

The oems wore much the same way, but since I bought the truck with 10k on the clock, assumed the previous owner spent time with tires overinflated.

The only other explanation I can think of is that they designed/set tire pressure for the truck to be driven around somewhat loaded, and I usually drive with just me.

I was wondering if anyone else has had this issue or has any suggestions. My search came up with various outer wear and feathering issues, but nothing related to center only tread wear.

Thanks

[HOGWILD]

you do not mention what air psi ya use? what tires ya use? what tire gauge ya use? a little info could help a little! overinflation sounds like you know your problem i do understand weird tire wear issues but most can be figured out? how many rotations and balances have been done and in how many miles?

[joef711]

They are Futura Dakota H/T 265/70r17s from pep boys. I actually paid more to get the ones with the 50k mile treadlife warranty. I fill to 26 psi (per the door tag) and err to the low side if anything as I was aware of this problem from my oem tires (the BF Goodrich rugged trails I believe).

Independently verified on a rotary style "accu-gage m" and a standard style campbell hausfeld.

Rotated every 6-8k or so. Never re-balanced. They've got less than 30k on them. I know I should technically have rotated them more, but they honestly didn't look like they needed it. The wear is really quite even on all 4, just more in the center.

Went to pep boys yesterday to see about invoking the warranty. At first the guy said I would have to prove they were rotated, which would be difficult since I either did it myself or had my own mechanic do it. Then he kind of loosened up a little and said just come back when they weren't as busy and he would see what he could do. I am not overwhelmed with confidence.

[HOGWILD]

any manufacturer can build a crappy tire, just depends on QC and some manufacturers have none! sound like you have been doing things properly but myself i use Sam's Club because they do rotations and balance every 6 ot 7K with balances free! they also torque per specs and i have watched them and they do it correctly! big + to me! I run Michelins LTXAT2's on both of my trucks and both sets are new, been running wranglers but not happy with goodyear mileage and compounds! Smart checking the .99 cent gauge with the 8 dollar one!! i have found a huge dicrepancy with those cheaper ones compared to the 20 dollar ones i use, but anyone can make a bad gauge, i dropped one of the 20 dollar ones now it will not read correct. had to chunk it and have seen this numerous times with aircraft tire gauges! Tire wear is reflective of the manufacturers product and it being a quality product, ya get what ya pay for in most cases. never seen wear in middle by itself have ya been using depth indicator to measure wear? what were your readings?

[joef711]

Update...PWNED!! So apparently both my gauges are off by approx the same amount??! The pep boys service manager measured all tires with his calibrated gauge and found my tires to be about 5 psi over. I had just measured this morning before I went over and gotten 26 (both gauges), he measured 31. Granted the tires were a little hotter when I got there (pep boys is about 5 miles away, 2 of them highway), but even so, it was a surprise.

He was nice enough about it, but I guess I won't be able to make any tread life warranty claims (at least not at that pep boys, lol). He says the tread wear should even out over miles of proper inflation. Guess I will inflate to 5psi low on my gauges, or pony up $20 for a good one and hope its better.

Appreciate the feedback, Hogwild. I'm not a SAMs member, but have access to BJs and Costco. I'm shocked that your SAMs torques to spec, will have to scope out my local BJs and Costco to see if they do the same (seriously doubt it) for my next purchase.

[HOGWILD]

tires only driven like 3 miles will increase up to 4 PSI in just a short drive, lotta folks talk good about costco on here, i would do Michelin and get the extra mielage. I use a Viar gauge i got from local Desert Rat 4x4 shop and it was like 5 to 6 PSI difference from .99 cent gauges! they were all reading low and all got tossed, also check them cold and weekly!! here is a good article on tire care! Dig around here and learn a but load!
Tire Tech Information - Tire & Wheel Owner's Manual