So the tyres were wearing unevenly on my A4 a few months back, and so I paid to have the wheel alignment done (back in March)...
Took the car for its 6-monthly MOT yesterday, a little concerned that the inside edge of one of the front tyres was pretty worn...
MOT pass! With just the remark that the tyres are wearing unevenly,... so I decided to get my tyre guy to balance the wheels...
... he discovered that the inside edge of one of the rears was totally shot, totally rubbed away...! Missed or unnoticed by the MOT people around the corner?!
Couldn't get a replacement tyre on a Friday arvo at 4pm, so opened the boot and to my surprise the spare is not a skinny space-saver, but a full-size alloy with a part-worn Continental tyre on it :-) (And yes, I probably should have checked out the spare before...)
On goes the spare until Tuesday. Tyre fitter then says all the tyre pressures are down? Manual says 32ppsi, but No, "everyone runs them at 38ppsi around here"?!?!?! So he's pumped them all up to 38...
Questions...
1) Should I leave them over-inflated and trust the locals (our roads are twisty and hilly around here);
2) If I'm buying 1 new tyre, should I replace the pair? (on the same axle)
3) Will the wheel balancing fix the 65mph judder on the smooth straight motorway that I don't feel when driving at 65mph on the twisties...?
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Question 3 has me wondering if you have weak or worn shockers and/or worn suspension components allowing the tyre to set up a constant bounce due to it being out of balance, exacerbating the wear you mention.
I tend to fit tyres in 4's, 2's if i have to, but hate mixing tyres on the same axle.
As to tyre pressures what does your handbook say or indeed does the car have a tyre pressure notice stuck on somewhere.
With MB's (older stuff for peasants like me) the pressure stated initally isn't quite as it appears, the stated pressure id for full loading or speeds in excess of 100mph, for normal people and driving you have to knock 4psi off the pressure mentioned...maybe Audi have a similar slightly confusing system.
38psi does sound a bit on the high side to me, thats van territory.
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> 38psi does sound a bit on the high side to me, thats van territory.
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Maybe Nick is "Well built"?
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Mrs B's sharan is running at 44 and 45 psi as per the sticker in the fuel filler.
Nick, I cant remember, but is your a quattro? If so they must be replaced as a minimum in pairs
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The back end of the LEC goes from 33 to 44 for a full load. (Yes, GB, even MBs show both these days.) It can carry an awful lot of stuff, though - like the Sharan, presumably.
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Two observations, firstly surprise that NZ insists on an MOT - let alone every 6 months, Victoria requires nothing except when you sell the car.
I used to run my A4 B7's 235/45x17s at the higher recommended 'full load' pressures in a futile attempt to get decent economy out of it, the result was that the centre portion of the tyre wore more quickly than the outside - not excessively but it was visible when the tyres were removed whilst being replaced.
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It appears some car manufacturers are a little more specific than others.
I usually run my Volvo S60 at 36psi front, 34psi rear and get even wear all around.
Volvo reckon anything between 30 and 41 for my car depending on load and speed. I had it at 41psi for the run down to Italy and back fully loaded with German tune-ups performed on the autobahn.
Italian's don't drive fast anymore and should loose the title for a brisk tune-up run.
They think four lanes fit into two and wonder why there is a roadblock at a roundabout exit.
They all mimse in the middle lane of the autostrada at 70 and believe the inside lane is for trucks only (just like driving in the UK), some of the quicker ones risk the odd burst to 90 but then back out for the frequent well signed camera gantries.
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>> ... he discovered that the inside edge of one of the rears was totally shot,
>> totally rubbed away...! Missed or unnoticed by the MOT people around the corner?!
Did you get a full wheel alignment done or just the fronts?
>> 1) Should I leave them over-inflated and trust the locals (our roads are twisty and
>> hilly around here)
If you like a bit of compliance then I would go by the manual and leave them at 32, unless you're doing high speeds with a full load. How fast are the locals driving?
>> 2) If I'm buying 1 new tyre, should I replace the pair? (on the same
>> axle)
I would always replace them as an axle set.
>> 3) Will the wheel balancing fix the 65mph judder on the smooth straight motorway that
>> I don't feel when driving at 65mph on the twisties...?
Agree with gb and would look at wishbone bushes, steering joint e.t.c if the wheel balance doesn't cure it.
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All the Audis we've owned have had a full sized alloy spare except a 2007 A3. It's been a little while since we sold our A4 cab, but I'm pretty sure the tyres weren't at 38psi - 32 or 34 maybe. It was delivered on continentals, but the fronts wore out after just 9k miles (18" wheels) and so from then on it was shod with goodyears. They would last around 13k miles on the front, and 25k miles on the back. It was by far the heaviest on tyres of any car I've ever owned, including quite a few considerably more powerful cars!!
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It's not a Quattro, but the 2.4 V6 on 17-inch wheels.
The sticker on the door jamb says 32psi all round, but 39psi for full load/speed, so perhaps 38 psi is OK. I never carry passengers or much luggage, but do get up to 80mph in patches late at night. We'll see how she feels tonight...
Probably will end up putting a new pair of tyres on the back, and saving the best 2 tyres for the front.
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Audi A4 Cabriolet - Tyre highs and lows! - -
