Uneven tire wear.

[The motor guy]

So back in February I spent $2200 to replace the entire front end on my dodge 2500 and one front wheel bearing to get the abs light to go off. Then shortly after that I bought 4 new tires. Should have replaced the rotors too because they were warped, so anyways, it didn't take long for one of the front tires to go back to having cupped wear. For some reason one part of the tire is tread is flat compared to the rest of it so it sounds like you're driving over an expansion joint in the road. Anyways, fast forward to a couple days ago, duscount tire asked for a review so i left a crappy review on these tires because I've gotten several sets and they are always rough riding junk tires, but I keep buying them because my truck will chew through a set of $2000 michillens just as fast as a cheaper set. Anyways, discount tire called becaise they didn't like my review, but I'm like what are they going to do?

btw these morons never balanced them correctly to begin with because there was some confusion about what type of weights they were supposed to use, then the girl said oh we can put the tape on weights instead if you like. For whatever reason the message never got through and I told them to just do whatever because I was about 30 seconds from blowing a gasket over how such a simple task could be so confusing. Anyways, the bottom line is should I take the bait and go back down there to see what they can do? I suppose rebalancing the tires wouldn't hurt, but I don't think cupped tires can even be fixed. Sorry about my rant here. I'm really not in the mood to spend any money on tires right now. I supposed I could rotate them to the back, but I don't like the idea of something out of balance shaking up my rear differential

 

[eljefino]

Well they're offering to make it right, if you can get a cool enough head wander on in to see what they can do.

Cupping is from bad shocks, not bad brakes. If you did shocks and have everything else tight, too, it could legit be the tires and they might be able to warranty them or something.

 

[JohnnyG]

Well they're offering to make it right, if you can get a cool enough head wander on in to see what they can do.

Cupping is from bad shocks, not bad brakes. If you did shocks and have everything else tight, too, it could legit be the tires and they might be able to warranty them or something.

Why would bad shocks cause tire cupping? More likely alignment, but some vehicles are just prone to cupping, even when aligned correctly.

 

[Eddie]

+2 FOR SHOCKS. I experienced this myself.

 

[The motor guy]

+2 FOR SHOCKS. I experienced this myself.

Maybe it's the shocks bouncing up and down that make it feel out of balance. It's fine all the way until 60mph

 

[slo town]

Like the previous posts have said "cupping" is the fault of the suspension.

What year is your Ram? I seem to recall there being a serious suspension design problem with one of the earlier Ram trucks. It was so bad people mounted GoPro cameras inside their wheel wells to see what was happening. It was scary! Is your Ram part of that generation?

Scott

 

[The motor guy]

Like the previous posts have said "cupping" is the fault of the suspension.

What year is your Ram? I seem to recall there being a serious suspension design problem with one of the earlier Ram trucks. It was so bad people mounted GoPro cameras inside their wheel wells to see what was happening. It was scary! Is your Ram part of that generation?

Scott

It's a 3rd gen. 2007 model 2wd. I think the recall was for the newer trucks with a solid front axle. Idk, I think it was the bad rotors and interfered with the abs so the tires probably locked up a few times. I'm sure the struts are worn out too at 235,000 miles and 17 years

 

[slo town]

If you're running 17 year old, 235K mile old struts it is my strong belief that's the cause of your cupping problem. Even if the tires are properly balanced, simply hitting a pavement seam will cause undampened suspension oscillations.

Scott

 

[The motor guy]

If you're running 17 year old, 235K mile old struts it is my strong belief that's the cause of your cupping problem. Even if the tires are properly balanced, simply hitting a pavement seam will cause undampened suspension oscillations.

Scott

I wonder what that cost on a 3/4 ton truck

 

[slo town]

I wonder what that cost on a 3/4 ton truck

What new struts cost? Check around. If I am to take your use of "struts" literally, struts are more difficult to replace than "shocks".

After all those years and miles I am confident you need new struts/shocks.

Scott

EDIT: A quick look tells me your "2007 Dodge Ram 2500 RWD" has front shocks (not struts). Shocks are easy to replace and from what I saw not very expensive.

 

[eljefino]

I'm sure the struts are worn out too at 235,000 miles and 17 years

So back in February I spent $2200 to replace the entire front end on my dodge 2500

I would consider shocks/ struts to be part of "the entire front end." They are assuredly your problem, unless you have other worn parts in the front end that you don't consider part of "the entire front end."

 

[The motor guy]

I would consider shocks/ struts to be part of "the entire front end." They are assuredly your problem, unless you have other worn parts in the front end that you don't consider part of "the entire front end."

Well I just meant ball joints, tie rod ends, control arm bushings, that kind of thing

 

[supton]

"Replaced entire front end" but not shocks? the one part most likely to wear with time? I'd do those first, then see how the next set of tires wear.

 

[The motor guy]

"Replaced entire front end" but not shocks? the one part most likely to wear with time? I'd do those first, then see how the next set of tires wear.

I haven't noticed a difference in ride quality. It's a truck so it's been a stiff ride since day one. It's not like a honda civic where you put a new set on every 60k

 

[berniedd]

Like the previous posts have said "cupping" is the fault of the suspension.

What year is your Ram? I seem to recall there being a serious suspension design problem with one of the earlier Ram trucks. It was so bad people mounted GoPro cameras inside their wheel wells to see what was happening. It was scary! Is your Ram part of that generation?

Scott

I recall they called it the "death wobble," it was so bad you could get into a serious accident at high speed. Replacing old, loose suspension parts usually cured it. Some owners even installed shock absorber struts on the steering tie assembly for good measure.

 

[eljefino]

I haven't noticed a difference in ride quality. It's a truck so it's been a stiff ride since day one. It's not like a honda civic where you put a new set on every 60k

That's your issue, you have a lot of unsprung weight. So if the shocks are bad the axle and everything else beats the tire against the pavement. Shocks aren't just for your ride quality, they're there to control their tire's movement.

 

[The motor guy]

I recall they called it the "death wobble," it was so bad you could get into a serious accident at high speed. Replacing old, loose suspension parts usually cured it. Some owners even installed shock absorber struts on the steering tie assembly for good measure.

Yeah those are the 4wd trucks

 

[supton]

I haven't noticed a difference in ride quality. It's a truck so it's been a stiff ride since day one. It's not like a honda civic where you put a new set on every 60k

? Most Toyonda owners don’t touch the struts until at least 200k. Softly sprung and wallowy ride, even with new struts the ride barely changes.

Now my Jetta did seem to like new struts on a regular basis… but that was also a rather old model.

 

[The motor guy]

? Most Toyonda owners don’t touch the struts until at least 200k. Softly sprung and wallowy ride, even with new struts the ride barely changes.

Now my Jetta did seem to like new struts on a regular basis… but that was also a rather old model.

Can't you do the old stand on the bumper trick and see how quick it cokes back up?

 

[supton]

Can't you do the old stand on the bumper trick and see how quick it cokes back up?

Nope.