When and how often should I do a tire rotation?

[2soom]

My 2022 outer banks is now close to 14,000 km (8700 miles) and I still haven't done a tire rotation. I thought the dealership would notify me about the tire rotation as I have a 3 year service package, but now I am a bit skeptical.

As the title says, when should I do a tire rotation? I am thinking by now I will have to. And if I do one now, how often in the future do I need to do it?

For some extra info, I have done some off-roading with it, and in my country the roads are fairly rough that most people opt for SUVs as sedan/sport cars can get damaged easily.

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[Moto26]

I like to do a 5-tire rotation every 5,000 miles...

 

[HighVelocity]

Every other oil change used to be the commonly accepted standard. Now that oil changes go longer, every 5k miles is most common.

 

[MayhemMike]

I used to rotate my tires myself but I don’t anymore. If you have to pay for rotation,( say $25 a shot) and rotate every 5000 miles , at 50000 miles that equates $250. Basically the price of a tire. My experience has been before the tires run out their tread life , one if not more, suffer a puncture or some failure that can’t be repaired. I routinely get the expected tire life from my non rotated tires. Of course if you rotate them yourself or get it done for free then the cost of rotation is removed , but the possible failures still exist. I think it is better to purchase tire damage replacement warranty than it is to pay for rotations. But hey, that’s me. Enjoy your Bronco.

 

[GI_Jo_Nathan]

I do a 5 tire rotation every 5k miles during the oil change.

 

[Brian_B]

I've been doing mine roughly every 5k miles. Bought a nice jack to do it in the driveway, figure the money I saved not having a shop do it more than pays for the jack. And with 5 tire rotation it's pretty easy to do myself.

Also a good chance for me to look things over up under there, like bolt torque marks and CV / boot conditions, etc.

I keep saying I'm going to align it with oil changes (as the oil filter is easier to get at on the 2.3 with the front left tire off), but I seem to be in a cadence where I do one or the other every about 2,500 miles and haven't gotten it back on schedule yet.

 

[JohnnyBronco]

My 4 tires at 49,000 miles with 2 or 3 at most 4 tire rotations are all evenly worn. That is my goal - to replace 4 tires at one time instead of 2 and 2.

I never have subscribed to 5 tire rotation and never will but don't let my thoughts influence the group that just has to have one tire on the ground with ALWAYS 5k-10k less miles than the other three or two or one. No matter where the spare was before it became the spare, now that it is the spare its wear pattern is now different than the one it replaces. Sure ove time the differences become smaller nut now when it is time for new tires you absolutely have to buy 5 instead of 4.

An unused spare on the tailgate can still serve as a spare even after you have bought 2 new sets of wearable rubber, and even if you change wheel and tire sizes along the way. No reason that a Bridgestone dueller 18" cannot serve as a spare to get you home after blowing a 17" Wrangler MT.

 

[JohnnyBronco]

I've been doing mine roughly every 5k miles. Bought a nice jack to do it in the driveway, figure the money I saved not having a shop do it more than pays for the jack. And with 5 tire rotation it's pretty easy to do myself.

Also a good chance for me to look things over up under there, like bolt torque marks and CV / boot conditions, etc.

I keep saying I'm going to align it with oil changes (as the oil filter is easier to get at on the 2.3 with the front left tire off), but I seem to be in a cadence where I do one or the other every about 2,500 miles and haven't gotten it back on schedule yet.

Ah, engine difference can come into play. With a 2.7 it makes no difference if wheels are on or off the vehicle since the filter is removed from above the engine and even the lowest to the ground models with standard 18" wheels offer more than adequate room to remove skid plate to access drain plug with all 4 tires on the ground----'unless you are Sasquatch himself.

 

[Brian_B]

I never have subscribed to 5 tire rotation and never will but don't let my thoughts influence the group that just has to have one tire on the ground with ALWAYS 5k-10k less miles than the other three or two or one. No matter where the spare was before it became the spare, now that it is the spare its wear pattern is now different than the one it replaces. Sure ove time the differences become smaller nut now when it is time for new tires you absolutely have to buy 5 instead of 4.

This is all true, especially the part about one tire having different mileage. It's a personal preference thing, so not really trying to persuade you, but more to inform others that may not know.

My counter would be... you get more miles total out of the tires. Instead of, say 40,000 miles out of 4 tires (and having a 0-mile spare that's subject to sun rot over time), you get 50,000 miles out of 5 tires. Each tire still gets about 40,000 miles, give or take.

So yeah, your buying 5 tires instead of 4 - but you get the same milage out of each tire, so long as you rotate often enough to keep the difference small. That's why you see folks with 5-tire rotations doing the rotations more frequently than those that normally just do 4-tire.

Does 5-tire save you money? If you have to pay to rotate the tires, probably not. You are still buying the same amount of rubber over time - you are just in the tire shop a bit less frequently. If you take an extremely long view of it - if you have a spare get sun rotted and require replacement due to age, then they probably net out even if you are paying for tire rotations, or 5-tire comes out ahead by the price of a spare if you are rotating yourself.

I do have to admit, going spare delete and just doing 4 tires is pretty compelling. But with a rear-mounted spare that's easy to get at, if I have the spare on there, I'll do 5 tire.

 

[V1Rotate]

Ah age old 5 tire vs 4 tire vs mileage vs cost debate.. Much like the moon it comes around at very regular intervals.

That said - other than going longer between buying tires (albeit when you do its more expensive) if you do a 5-tire you can do it with a single jack and never have more than 1 wheel off the ground at any given time. If you’re doing a 4 tire and either a forward or rearward cross you’re going to have a front right and rear left lifted simultaneously etc and its a little more work.

I do a 5 tire for the reason above on top of the fact if I ever had to use it i don’t want a substantial circumference difference after 20k+ miles on the other 4 etc. I always look forward to that day every 3 or 4 months where I have to grow some chest hair and muster some grit to hoist my heavy ass 37” Toyo spare back up onto the tailgate of my relatively tall vehicle. Great day for an extra scoop of wheaties. They’re also super expensive so I do it early and often… for me every 5k-ish

 

[HighVelocity]

Keep in mind on a 4wd vehicle, all your tires should be within 3/32" of each other or you risk transfer case or axle damage. Putting an unused spare opposite a very worn one is a risk.

Ideally your rotations should be based on wear, not mileage. That's not something a lot of people are going to keep track of though.

 

[Ft. Worth Rob]

Paying to rotate tires or having to do myself is why I only buy tires at Discount Tire. They do free rotations and, in the 30 years I’ve been buying from them, I’ve never seen anyone with cheaper tires, quicker availability, and, if you do find them cheaper, they’ll price match.

 

[Ranbronc]

I rotated mine myself then got an oil change and they rotated them again, probably 2K on after I rotated , the fronts cupped and are noisy now, put them on the rear 5k plus now and might be getting less noisy or I'm used to it by now.

 

[V1Rotate]

I rotated mine myself then got an oil change and they rotated them again, probably 2K on after I rotated , the fronts cupped and are noisy now, put them on the rear 5k plus now and might be getting less noisy or I'm used to it by now.

Have you not explored why they’re cupping? Played with air pressure?

 

[Ranbronc]

Have you not explored why they’re cupping? Played with air pressure?

I figured it was too many miles with out rotating

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