Missed Initial Tire Rotation, Now at 12,000 Miles. Still do it?

[MarkFromSLO]

I went the first 12,000 miles on my dual motor Model 3 without rotating the tires (I have the standard 18" tires). I just blanked. So my question is, at this point should I still do a tire rotation and thereafter continue doing so on the proper schedule? Or would there be a reason to not do it since I waited 11,000 miles?

The tread on all four tires looks nice and even. I almost hate to upset the balance that seems to be there now.

 

[RayK]

I don't think that I've ever had my tires rotated on my 3 . 2 fronts are original at 27K miles. 2 rears have about 14K or so on them. Thread depth on a recent check was about 4/32" all around so I expect to get another 5-8K miles and then I'll probably go with a set of Bridgestone Turanza EVs. I'd say if you're getting even wear and no noticeable cupping or alignment issues (like pulling in one direction with your hands off the steering wheel), then leave it.

 

[UncleCreepy]

Chances are, your rear tires might have less tread than the front tires. I would just switch them from front to back and vice versa. I drive about 30,000 km per year and frankly, I mever worry about scheduled tire rotations. I just do that when I switch from summer to winter tires and back.

 

[MarkFromSLO]

Thanks to you both!

 

[stopcrazypp]

I went the first 12,000 miles on my dual motor Model 3 without rotating the tires (I have the standard 18" tires). I just blanked. So my question is, at this point should I still do a tire rotation and thereafter continue doing so on the proper schedule? Or would there be a reason to not do it since I waited 11,000 miles?

The tread on all four tires looks nice and even. I almost hate to upset the balance that seems to be there now.

I presume you measured the thread depth of each and inspected them to see if there are any obvious spots with uneven wear?

Tire rotation exists to even out the wear on tires, so if you are regularly examining your tires and know they are wearing evenly, there really isn't a reason to rotate them. Plus on a RWD or a rear biased AWD vehicle, there is less likelihood of excess wear on the front tires.

 

[spsheridan]

I went the first 12,000 miles on my dual motor Model 3 without rotating the tires (I have the standard 18" tires). I just blanked. So my question is, at this point should I still do a tire rotation and thereafter continue doing so on the proper schedule? Or would there be a reason to not do it since I waited 11,000 miles?

The tread on all four tires looks nice and even. I almost hate to upset the balance that seems to be there now.

Tires wear differently from front to back due to steering, so it's still worth rotating front to back. You may not see the difference now but it's likely you eventually will.

 

[vickh]

I wish the car would tell you. It does warn when it the tread depth is really different, when it's too late.

 

[rpiotro]

I'll say it again, and again. Get a depth gauge. They're cheap. I rotate mine when the wear delta exceeds 1mm. I've owned cars that never needed rotation.

 

[ewoodrick]

The answer is easy. It's yes.

There has been suggestions from Tesla that rotations aren't really needed, and they aren't even possible on staggered wheel sizes with directional rotated tires.
And to increase tire life, you should rotate them.

Head to a trusted tire dealer and see what they have to say. Make sure they know how to lift a Tesla.

 

[ColoradoMike]

The answer is easy. It's yes.

There has been suggestions from Tesla that rotations aren't really needed, and they aren't even possible on staggered wheel sizes with directional rotated tires.
And to increase tire life, you should rotate them.

Head to a trusted tire dealer and see what they have to say. Make sure they know how to lift a Tesla.

At least here, TONS of Teslas know how to lift a Tesla for a tire change or rotation.

IF you have a proper tire gauge for tire depth, then you may not even need to rotate your tires as @rpiotro mentioned. Be sure to look at where the edges are worn and if you see that something is not "right" then you should rotate. What I mean by "right" is if you find some edge wear that is different between the edges near the outer/inner sides of the tire.

For us, we run a set of dedicated winter tires/rims so rotation is not necessarily a huge issue for us but when I do a winter to summer swap (we have done it once) I still mark the tires and put rears to front and vice versa.

 

[UncleCreepy]

Be sure to look at where the edges are worn and if you see that something is not "right" then you should rotate. What I mean by "right" is if you find some edge wear that is different between the edges near the outer/inner sides of the tire.

Wouldn't that indicate an issue with the wheel alignment that should be dealt with instead? I mean sure, if you put an unevenly worn tire on a properly aligned wheel position, it probably won't get worse, but the alignment would still be off, thus causing uneven wear for the next tire at the misaligned position.

 

[Evpowerdan]

I went the first 12,000 miles on my dual motor Model 3 without rotating the tires (I have the standard 18" tires). I just blanked. So my question is, at this point should I still do a tire rotation and thereafter continue doing so on the proper schedule? Or would there be a reason to not do it since I waited 11,000 miles?

The tread on all four tires looks nice and even. I almost hate to upset the balance that seems to be there now.

Yep, turning tires up front wear the edges faster, similar to back tires wearing the meat of the tire from the electric torque to the wheels. BTW - Discount tire and Tire America do rotations for free.

 

[ColoradoMike]

Wouldn't that indicate an issue with the wheel alignment that should be dealt with instead? I mean sure, if you put an unevenly worn tire on a properly aligned wheel position, it probably won't get worse, but the alignment would still be off, thus causing uneven wear for the next tire at the misaligned position.

Correct! We haven't had an issue with ours. My suggestion is on an overall tire wear issue. Our alignment has been simply fine on our M3LR. Just a suggestion to the OP.

I track my Porsche and take a ton of car on seeing how things wear so I am familiar with alignments. If the OP hasn't seen any issues with "weird" tire issues then it is up to him/her to address that.

 

[fholbert]

In the latest update (loading now) you can set a reminder to rotate your tires.

 

[rpiotro]

I just want to add to my comment about getting a depth gauge.

I periodically check my tires. I take three measurements on each tire. Inside edge, center and outer edge. Twelve measurements that take less than five minutes. The purpose is to confirm they are wearing evenly. It can give you an early warning to possible alignment and/or suspension problems.

I also see the latest software update, 2023.20.4.1, has some kind of reminder option for service. I haven't explored it yet. OK I guess but I have never locked myself in to mileage recommendations for any kind of service. Mostly by usage and personal experience.

 

[MarkFromSLO]

I bought a depth gauge yesterday and measured this morning. The 12 measurement are all within a hair of 7/32", with the exception of the front left tire whose outside measurement of the three is closer to 6/32". Seems pretty good to me, but I'm no auto expert--far from it.

Also, I should say that about a week ago, I realized that my tires were all at 38 lbs of pressure, and so them filled them up to the indicated preference of 42 lbs.

 

[ewoodrick]

Doesn't anyone use the official depth gauge anymore? A penny to the top of Lincolns head?

 

[rpiotro]

I bought a depth gauge yesterday and measured this morning. The 12 measurement are all within a hair of 7/32", with the exception of the front left tire whose outside measurement of the three is closer to 6/32". Seems pretty good to me, but I'm no auto expert--far from it.

Also, I should say that about a week ago, I realized that my tires were all at 38 lbs of pressure, and so them filled them up to the indicated preference of 42 lbs.

Not unusual for the outside of the LF tire to wear a little more for the simple reason that right hand turns are tighter than left hand turns. At least in LH drive countries.

You may not need to rotate at this time.

 

[Aellinsar]

Doesn't anyone use the official depth gauge anymore? A penny to the top of Lincolns head?

I'm pretty cashless - I haven't seen a penny in a long time.