While tire wear isn’t typically thought of as one of the top safety concerns among consumers, it is estimated that over 6,000 accidents each year are caused by tire problems. To help keep you and your family safe, we have compiled the most common causes of abnormal tire wear and ways to ensure you get the most out of your current tires.

Normal tire wear is when the tread wears evenly across the entire surface of the tire. However, if your vehicle is equipped with front wheel drive, your front tires will wear quicker than the rear, and on rear wheel vehicles the rear tires will wear quicker than the front. Also, heavy shoulder wear will occur on vehicles that are driven hard around corners. The best way to keep the wear patterns even, and to get the most life out of your tires, is to rotate them every 3,000 miles.

Camber wear – when the inside or outside edge or shoulder show extreme wear, and the rest of the tire shows little wear. Abnormal wear is caused when the tire leans in or out, rather than straight up and down. Suspension misalignment, a bent strut, a mislocated strut tower, a weak or broken spring, a bent spindle, or collapsed or damaged control arm bushings could be the culprit.

Toe wear – when the tread develops a feathered or directional wear pattern. The easiest way to detect this is to run your hand across the tread, if one direction feels smooth while the opposite direction feels rough, you have a toe wear problem. Toe misalignment, worn tie rod ends, worn idler arms, bent steering linkage or bent steering arms may cause this to occur.

Cupped wear – occurs when the wheel bounces up and down as it rolls down the highway. A wheel or tire that is out of balance, or weak shock absorbers or struts could be the culprit. Balancing the wheel, or replacing the worn shocks or struts will cure this problem.

Over Inflation – when too much air is inserted into your tires, it causes them to bulge out in the center and wear unevenly down the middle more than the shoulder of the tire. To determine the correct pressure for your tires, check your owner’s manual or the tire inflation decal in the glove box or door jam.

Under Inflation – when too little air is inserted into your tires, it shifts the weight carried to the edges of the tread, resulting in heavy shoulder wear. As with over inflation, check your owners manual, glove box or door jam for the correct tire pressure for your tires.

No matter what wear pattern your tires exhibit, Toyota of Tampa Bay’s Service Center can determine the cause and make the appropriate adjustments to keep you and your family safe on the road.