Tim2179

iTrader: (2)

Does it matter which direction the tread pattern is on this tire?

I had 2 of them mounted on my front wheels last week and I noticed that the tire tech guys mounted the tires so tread direction on the passenger side tire is rotating the "opposite" way as the driver's side. Is this normal??

Clay@tirerack

It is not a directional tire so it can roll either way. Sounds like they mounted it properly.

Slow EJ8

If it was a rotational tire then it should say so on the side of it. If it doesnt then you have nothing to worry about.

nsxtasy

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Tim2179 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Does it matter which direction the tread pattern is on this tire?</TD></TR></TABLE>

Actually, it DOES matter which way these tires are mounted.

There are two different ways in which the direction can matter. One is if tires are "directional" (also called "rotational"), meaning, the tire is supposed to roll in one direction, not the other. Directional tires have an arrow on the sidewall saying "DIRECTION OF ROTATION" showing which way the tires should turn when the car is moving forward, if the tires are mounted properly. As Clay noted, the Kumho Ecsta ASX is not rotational, so the direction of rotation doesn't matter. However...

Some tires are "asymmetric", meaning that the construction of the tire is different for the outside half of the tread (the part towards the outside of the car) than it is for the inside half (the part towards the inside of the car). This means that one side of the tire should face the outside, and in fact, asymmetric tires have a marking on the sidewall saying "SIDE FACING OUTWARDS" (and, sometimes, the other side says "SIDE FACING INWARDS"). The Kumho Ecsta ASX is asymmetric. Make sure that all the tires have the proper side facing outwards. (And yes, even when the proper side is facing outwards, it may appear that the passenger side tires "rotate the opposite way"; as long as the proper side faces outwards, you're okay.)

Hope this makes sense.

erikiksaz1

So, if you have camber wear problems, assymetrical tires are not the way to go?

I always thought that wiith directional tires, you could always just swap the tire from the left rim to the right rim, and the worn side of the tire would be exposed on the opposite end.

But how would you go about doing this with the ASX's? Either way, it'll be riding on the inside of the tire.

nsxtasy

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by erikiksaz1 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">So, if you have camber wear problems, assymetrical tires are not the way to go?</TD></TR></TABLE>

If you insist on flipping your tires on the rims to even out the wear, then yes, you would be better off using a symmetric tire, not an asymmetric one.

Or, you can get your alignment fixed and not have to worry about flipping your tires at all.