Okay Car Guys, Another Alignment Issue Question

[SEIndSAM]

Okay, just discovered an alignment issue on the wife's car that I know the INGO car guys can clue me in. I'll put the car in my local mechanics garage tomorrow, but I would like to understand the cause before taking it to the garage.

2008 Caddy DTS. Front wheel drive. Northstar V8.
Car has 100K miles.

We just bought this car back in August 2016 and one of the reasons I bought this car was due to it being one owner with the previous owner having all of his service and repair work done at the local dealership. Has a full car fax history and shows a couple of minor accidents being repaired at the same dealer.

This car needed new tires when I bought it, so I slapped on 4 new Cooper CSS Grand Touring tires (These were not cheap Chinese tires). Now, a mere 20K miles later, the inside treads of both the front tires are gone. I am even seeing hints of steel cord on the passenger front. What would cause the inside treads to wear completely out in only 20K miles????

Edit-The steering wheel has no pulls to the right or left. On a straight road you could take your hands off the wheel and it maintains a bee line straight ahead.

 

[halfmileharry]

Weak struts, camber/caster , toe in off.
Alignment tech will give you more knowledge after he gets "Hands On"

 

[Ballistix]

Typically if it isn't pulling, it could be camber. If it's a toe issue (most likely toe out), there will be feathering of the tread.
If it's camber, it could also be caused by the bushings at that mileage.
You didn't mention what type of accidents or the extent of the damage, so if there was frame damage, that could be a contributing factor as well.
Once it's on the rack, the alignment guy should be able to pinpoint the problem. It's hard to diagnose without seeing/driving the car.

 

[jbombelli]

Camber is most likely out. If it was toe, the tires would be feathered. If it was caster it would be drifting a bit back and forth while driving - it wouldn't go straight down the road with no hands on the wheel.

As to why the Camber is out, that's where the inspection comes in. Struts, ball joints, could be a few things.

 

[thunderchicken]

My first question would be have the tires ever been rotated in that 20k miles? Cars are designed to have a static camber setting but when the wheels are turned that camber setting changes because it allows the wheels to turn more freely and prevents the tires from scrubbing. The down side to that is it causes the front tires to wear more on the inner and outer edges.
Could be within alignment specs but may have worn suspension parts (ball joints)

 

[SEIndSAM]

Thanks for the answers....Camber/Caster were the terms I was looking for and was having a brain cramp.....I'll Google those so I will know what the mechanic is talking about.

 

[SEIndSAM]

I'll post up the diagnosis tomorrow after my mechanic looks at the car...Thanks again all....

 

[TheBoss930]

Sounds to me like a camber issue

 

[PGRChaplain]

My FIL has an 08 DTS, no tire wear issues but the Rear Main Seal in the Engine costs $4,600.00 to replace. It has no where close to 100,000 mi on it. Other than that its been a great car.

 

[Old Dog]

Was the front end checked, inspected, aligned when the new tires were installed? I would never put new tires on any vehicle without checking the alignment and front end parts.

 

[churchmouse]

Was the front end checked, inspected, aligned when the new tires were installed? I would never put new tires on any vehicle without checking the alignment and front end parts.

Especially at 100K.

Question......If your spouse is anything like mine has it been curbed, chuck holed repeatedly. The weaker sex is not always attentive of the opsticales we try and avoid. With those miles on the clock might not take much to knock it out of whack.

 

[thunderchicken]

Especially at 100K.

Question......If your spouse is anything like mine has it been curbed, chuck holed repeatedly. The weaker sex is not always attentive of the opsticales we try and avoid. With those miles on the clock might not take much to knock it out of whack.

Well said CM my wife can be the only car on the street and won't move over into the ther lane to avoid hitting a pot hole and most of the time she won't even slow down...my mom is even worse and she eventually asks me to look at it when she gets a noise that she can't drown out with the radio and then expects me to drop everything to fix it...in the driveway.

 

[Tactically Fat]

If it is the struts... RIP check book.

 

[Snapdragon]

Especially at 100K.

Question......If your spouse is anything like mine has it been curbed, chuck holed repeatedly. The weaker sex is not always attentive of the opsticales we try and avoid. With those miles on the clock might not take much to knock it out of whack.

 

[jkaetz]

IMO negative camber (Having the top of the wheel tilted in toward the car) will not wear out only the inner edge of a tire in only 20k. The only thing I have seen cause this is toe. The camber would have to be so far off that you should be able to visibly see it to wear that much that fast. My money is on toe. The OP didn't mention feathering but he didn't rule it out either. Tire Tread Wear & Causes | Bridgestone Tires will give you a good overview of the different potential problems. I also always have a car aligned when new tires are put on to check for any suspension issues that will cause the new tires to wear pre-maturely.

 

[bwframe]

Independent women are actually not half bad about taking care of their wheels. It kind of depends on how much learning while 100% accountable for their actions they have been. As stated above, if they have learned that vehicle accountability is handing the keys to hubby or dad when it's broke, then that is exactly what they know.

 

[SEIndSAM]

As of right now, my garage couldn't get tires until tomorrow morning...So, it goes on the left tomorrow.....

While the wife has been known to hit a pot hole or two, I suspect there was something out of whack with the front end when we bought it. I'll have the answers tomorrow.

 

[russc2542]

IMO negative camber (Having the top of the wheel tilted in toward the car) will not wear out only the inner edge of a tire in only 20k. The only thing I have seen cause this is toe. The camber would have to be so far off that you should be able to visibly see it to wear that much that fast. My money is on toe. The OP didn't mention feathering but he didn't rule it out either. Tire Tread Wear & Causes | Bridgestone Tires will give you a good overview of the different potential problems. I also always have a car aligned when new tires are put on to check for any suspension issues that will cause the new tires to wear pre-maturely.

This^
Camber will wear the tires at an angle across the width of the tread.
LOTS of toe will feather the tread blocks
a little toe for a long time will wear the ~.5-1.5" at the edge at a sharp angle.

Camber can lead to toe because of how the suspension articulates hence the appearance that camber leads to that form of wear.

If they don't hhave record of the struts being changed in 100k, it's definitely time.

 

[Gary119]

And when they align it ask for a printout. There is a difference between " yeah it's aligned" and "here is a printout of the alignment". the printout will tell you what was wrong before (Caster, Camber, Toe, SAI) and how it is right now.

 

[SEIndSAM]

And when they align it ask for a printout. There is a difference between " yeah it's aligned" and "here is a printout of the alignment". the printout will tell you what was wrong before (Caster, Camber, Toe, SAI) and how it is right now.

Did not think of that, but your right.....especially if it becomes an ongoing issue...Thank you Gary...