Hi all,

My 2003 G coupe has some serious tire/alignment problems. My current set of tires were installed on 4/09, roughly two years ago, and have since accumulated 30k miles of use. My car has 115k miles on it. When I went in for a new battery today, they checked my tire tread, and all four tires had a different amount of tire left!

Right Rear - 1/32" (I think the denominator is 32nds.. they said the legal limit is 2 so I am below that)
Left Rear - 3/32 - so still a little bit left
Left Front - 5/32
and I forgot what the right front was. Anyways, all the tires had uneven wear, especially the rears which were worn on the insides, the outsides had a lot more tread.

This is not the first time this has happened. My last set of tires blew out on the freeway after 30k miles because the insides were bald. Since that happened I got a lifetime alignment at firestone and got the alignment done twice since I put on this new set of tires, although neither alignment was within the past year.

Anyways, what do i do? I was thinking I would get 50k mi out of these tires. They are goodyear eagle GTs

 

Is your car lowered?? If it is, you probably need a camber kit. What's the off set on the tires?

 

Gonna take a wild stab here... but, buy new tires....

You have 115k on the car. Just becuz you get alignments doesnt mean they are gonna last. Bushings could be rotted created slop in the suspension, creating uneven wear and premature wear.

If they are wearing on the inside bad your toe is way out of alignment causing the tires to scrub, chewing them up at an accelerated rate.

Dont konw about you but many guys never even make it to 30k on a set of tires. I know I dont get much more out a set than that.

 

I bought the car used - I am not sure if it is lowered or not. But if I had to guess I would say no, I think the car is bone stock

The thing about getting more than 30k miles is that I drive like a grandmother. Literally. I never race, never floor it, I drive very conservatively. The shop today checked out my undercarriage and suspension and said everything is alright.

I guess I'll just get another alignment ASAP and get a little more use out of these tires

 

From what i've read, faster than normal tire wear is a common issue with these cars. 30k miles on a set seems about right. I dont have any personal experience yet because I havent put more than 5k miles on a set of tires yet..on my car.

Do you have a spec sheet from your last alignment? How was your TOE and Camber?

 

Last alignment I zero'd everything out, except the front toes I believe, which I did at -2 degrees

 

30k on the tires. Buy new tires

 

I had the exact same issue literally up to now. Just installed a camber kit. Remember to take into consideration if you have large rims and if the car is dropped. I have 20" rims and lowered with eibach racing springs. Bought it used as well. My car ate through 3 tire sets in the 1.1 years of owning the car. I purchase the godspeed camber kit and they came with busching replacements. So you might want to check the buschings as well... Once that is done have the car aligned and you should be fine. The tires should generally last you around 1 to 1.5 years or a bit more under normal conditions. It really depends on the driving style, how much you are driving the car and how well you maintain the car.

 

i have a stock X and tires barely last me a year, especially the rears.

 

I know people who's tires have over a year and still going. It depends on how you drive the car. It can generally last around 8 - 10 months under regular and spirited driving. It really depends on your driving

 

Here is a scan from my alignment today. They said they couldnt get the camber any better than that without camber kits. They recommended I get F&R camber kits. They also think my car has been dropped by the previous owner.

I am due for some new tires soon, I want to get 50-60k miles out of them, and I think with my driving style that it is completely possible. So along with these tires, should I
A) return to stock height
B) buy rear camber kit
C) buy front and rear camber kit

Any suggestions appreciated!!!

 

Look at it this way. If you raise the car it will not fix the issue for sure since The G35 and 350z are known for camber issues. Now... Dropping the car reduces the car's central point of gravity and it makes it better in handling. To drop the car usually the springs are changed which make it grip better while cornering... I bought my camber kit front and back for almost $200 and you have the ability to adjust camber to if you decide to change rims in the future or anything else... My suggestion would be to go for the camber kit.

 

What settings do you go for on camber? Just zero it out?

 

As far as my settings go I have not checked yet since I am still getting alignment done to it. As far as I know the car would be good around -0.4 camber front and Toe could be around 0 as well back. I suggest placing it on one of those alignment machines to see what the correct camber would be. It is alright to have a little negative camber on front.

 

there's your problem. you left the toes at -2 which is huge in tire wear.

You should worry about getting toe to 0 degrees and have a little camber instead its worth it.