So I have had my 04 TL Aspec for almost two years and I have been running Yokohama Avid W4s on 18' o.z. rims with what it seems like quite a few problems. I have worn through two rear driver-side tires (on the inside wall) and more recently my car has been pulling/drifting to the right.

I have had an alignment done by a local mechanic and more recently by my Acura dealer, which they advised was in spec and had some additional troubleshooting. After troubleshooting a bit more, they had advised they put OEM tires on my car and the drifting stopped. They told me they see this problem a lot with directional tires. Could this be the case? If so, what tire would you recommend?

Let me know your thoughts, experiences, or if you need additional info. . .


Thanks in advance

 

Michelin Pilot PS2

 

i dont think the directional tires are the ones causin this issue...

cuz if thats the case then they would stop makin directional tires...

if the dealer said ur car is within specs then sumthin is wierd

r u dropped?? cambers?

 

Negative on both. I plan on putting some 16" rims with winter tires on my car in the coming week so hopefully that will give me some insight.

 

+1...i had a bad pair on my '02 maxima and they drifted like crazy...i too thought it was the alignment but the culprit was the tire itself....i bought a set for my TL not knowing any other great tire to go with but to this day, no drifting issues on the TL

 

but it sounds like to me.

OE tires (17") are generally regarded as complete and total crap; occasionally regarded as merely crap.


LOTS of users running various directional tires both 2G & 3G.

 

Any tire, directional or not, will not wear on just the inside as you have experienced. If feathered, toe is out, and a smooth inside wear would lead to incorrect camber.
Years ago some directional tires (e.g. GY Gatorbacks) would show unusual wear across the tread, not just on one side, if they weren't rotated front to back, but that is a problem that is now non-existent.

If the tires show an uneven wear pattern across the tread, alignment is out of spec.

 

I did express this to Acura when they did my allignment. After it was completed they told me the toe angle on that tire was slightly off

 

Did they give you a before & after alignment sheet?

 

FWIW, I have been running Yoko Avid W4s 235/45/17 on my '05 TL for the past
500 miles and have not noticed anything unusual in the way the car drives in city or highway. A wear problem or drifting would indicate alignment issues.
That said, they do feel different than the stock el-42's which were at least
1 1/4 inches narrower and easier to steer than the wider and more squared
shoulder of the Yoko's.

 

I just traded a Lexus LS with directional tires and it definitely pulled to the right. Lexus said that if a car was designed for directional tires, it was OK. If not, there is not much you can do other that change tires.

 

Great response from Lexus, which is certainly a lot of crap! Why would a directional tire cause a pull? Just think that if they did, wouldn't the left and right pull cancel each other and the car would track straight? Also, the car utilizes the same suspension settings.

Now if a tire has a separated belt, it will cause a pull, other than that the only reason a car pulls to one side is that the tires have different revs per mile e.g. incorrect camber, assuming air pressure the same for both.

 

Oddly enough when i got new rims this past year I got some directional tires and mine pulls to the right as well. I thought it was odd and took it back to my mechanic and have him check the alignment as well as everything else. Everything checked out fine and he also told me it was probably because of the directional tires. Now that I'm in winter mode with the stockies no more pulling. Mine are wearing evenly though. Until spring time....

 

Just by having directional tires installed, one should never notice a pull, so here's some information that is much better than I could supply:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete....jsp?techid=12

 

I agree with Turbonut.

You guys are falling hook line and sinker for this dealer BS.

I've run 2 sets of directional tires with no problems.

In the beginning I had some alignment issues and it was the third or fourth shop that finally fixed it. Keep pressing them because it is an alignment issue for sure, assuming no components are worn.

I made an appointment at a local and very respected race alignment shop. It had a 2 month waiting list but I haven't had a problem since.

These TLs seem to be extra sensitive to alignment.

 

Every single car I own, including the TL has directional tires isntalled, and none of them pull in any direction. I've used multiple different tires that were all directional. Your dealer is full of crap.

 

x 4.
We've got directional tires on our minivan, and I've had directional tires on cars other than the TL- every vehicle tracked straight and true, whether it had directional or non-directional tires, as long as the tires were properly inflated.

1) Check cold tire pressures to make sure all are at the recommended PSI (39F/36R w, A-spec wheels, IIRC). I've had a pull when one tire developed a slow leak due to running over an undetected nail.

2) A misalignment, defective tire or bent suspension part will also cause a pull- let a good mechanic or tire shop handle that.

 

weird....

 

I have also had alignment problems, I tried 3 sets of wheels/tires that I owned(all directional) and all of them made my car feel out of alignment, some more then others, but not perfect like the 07 Si I tradded in. I had Acura do their best 4 wheel alignment and they said it was just slightly off. It still drives them same, not perfect. I called Tirerack and they said directional might have a very small part in alignment. He also said Acura is putting the car to spec, that might be the problem, too straight will cause the car to go side-side, toed-in a little might help???

 

I'm goin through the same issue RIGHT NOW! put my directionals on a week ago & have a pull to the right... between 60-75mph i get a slight woble. Took it back to the shop & had my guy balance out all 4 tires & then test drove again, a little better but still there, SO... we rebalanced AGAIN... all 4 tires zeroed out perfect. WTF!

He suggested a good alignment. I told him I was gunna take it to the dealer to get an alignment redone & he stoped me. He told me I should take it to an alignment specialist that only deals with custom fitment wheels & tires. He recomended a few shops around town. So I am taking it in today & will let u guys know how it goes.

 

Best to use a Hunter Road Force balancer. I screwed around for 4 months with a shop trying to balance the wheels, but never perfect. Had them do it with the cones and then used the lug adapter, still not perfect although the balancer said they were. I found a shop, actually 5 minutes from the house, that had the Hunter machine and had them do the balancing. No more vibration.

 

I've got the same problem. Dropped my car, wore out a set of tires. Got an aligment done and went straight to the tire shop. Put on 4 new tires (BFG g-force Sport A/S) and now 2 have inner wear after 15K miles. tires were rotated every 3K miles. Debating on going back to stock springs or camber kit. I can't afford $800 sets of tires every 15K. What do you all think? I have read and re-read Mr. Heeltoe's sticky and still confused.

 

i hope this doesnt happen to me

 

Well, I decided to go hunter road force, & the shop wasn't listed...

So I found one about 5 miles away. Will try to get this done today.