AboutBarry Smith Expertise I have over 30 years experience in the design, manufacturing, and
testing of tires. I have served as the technical advisor to the "800"
number. I have authored or co-authored many publications - usually
without credit. I can answer almost any technical question, but
please don`t ask me to compare brands. I probably have prejudices because of
my work experience.
Experience Member SAE (Society of Automotive
Engineers)
Member Tire Society (Tire Technical Organization)
SCCA Regional Competiton License holder
Authored many training manuals on tires, their care and use.
Expert: Barry Smith Date: 6/29/2008 Subject: Tire tread wear
Question hi, recently i went shopping for a used suv, i found one that fits my budget but the two front tires had some wear on the outer sidewalls. My mechanic says that its due to a problem with the steering column and that the vehicle was probably in an accident. Is this plausible?
Answer Robert,
You should be aware that steering tires tend to wear on the shoulders and drive tires tend to wear in the center.
So if the tires aren't rotated, a RWD will how this wear, and a FWD will be even because the steer tires and the drive tires are the same tires.
But wear on this only on the outer shoulders is dues to misalignment and one of the causes is an accident.
However, wear on the sidewall may indicate the tire was run flat, the tire rubbed against a curb, the alignment is quite severe (You ought to be able to see this!), or some other problem - some of which can be caused by an accident.
