Alright, I got an alignment in July just before I bought my new tires because my last set of tires wore down to the cords on just the outside. The new driver side tire is now just beginning to look like it's about to do the same thing (kinda looks like it's wearing unusually fast on the outside). I rotated and balanced the tires last oil change which was 3k miles ago and this is the first time this tire has been on the front. My question is what suspension parts could be causing this wear if it's not the alignment. My ball joints were done 3 years ago, not sure the lifespan on those, but it's just an idea of whats been done to it. I don't think it's ball joints or tie rod ends because the wheel doesn't have any up and down or side to side play in it when it's lifted off the ground. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks, Cameron.

 

your camber and/or caster could still be out of specification on your left front and cause this. a toe in/out condition should show equally on both front tires and is the most likely to have been corrected during your last alignment. (known by alignment techs as a toe and go) camber and caster is much more difficult and time consuming to adjust for the shop. Most tire shops will check your alignment for free, and you can request a printout. if you see a positive camber/caster reading on your left front compared to your right front you may want to get them to adjust it down into the mid to low end of the spec. also, ride height is important to an alignment. It isn't uncommon to request that an alignment be performed how the truck is most commonly loaded even with you in the truck, half tank of fuel (if that would be an average amount you carry) etc. and I know that some people may read this and think caster won't cause tire wear and that some extra positive caster is engineered into the alignment spec for the left front to combat road crown but the more caster on the wheel the more the camber will be effected in off center steering and it can really start scrubbing tread off in turns. also know that unfortunately once a tire begins a certain wear pattern it is likely to continue in that manner even if the alignment/condition is repaired. you could also check side to side ride height, and take a look at your shock absorbers. hope this helps..

 

Is it just on the outside edge? If so, that would be a camber issue. Which takes some work to actually adjust...... and it might require adjustable ball joints. Or, it may be, that it IS somewhat adjustable, just a major pain to do, and the shop that did the alignment didn't do it.....

If it is both edges, put a little more pressure in the tire.

 

Thanks for the replies. Unfortunately I already knew that the tire will wear like this, sucks that I've only had them for 5 months. Shocks need to go, they are stock with 251k miles on them. Yes it is just on the outside, this happened with my last set. Just looking at it, it looks like the tire is canted in slightly at the bottom but they've always looked like this and I figured when I got my alignment all was well. I won't know for sure until the tire actually begins to wear down. If I take it to another shop to have them look at it, how should I ask them to align it as it is commonly loaded?

 

Yep. And ask for a printout of the specs they set it to as well, and compare them to the 'ideal' specs printed in a bunch of places throughout the web. If camber is really bad on that side, ask them what it would take to bring it back into line.

I think you can also find someone else's "ideal" settings here on this site somewhere....... from a front end guy.... No personal experience with them myself, but, hey, its published on the interwebs, so, gotta be good, right?

 

It's a 2wd, camber is not a problem like on a 4wd.

 

i can tell you this....

my tires were wearing on the outside edge as well.....got to the point where the outside edge was gone but had over 60% tread left in the center, and inside edge.

had an alignment done, and I got a print out....everything was good except my toe-in was off......gve me a print ou after the alignment, and showed that it was adjusted....i thought good deal.

So i got my new set of tires, and noticed they are doing it again....Mind you ive replaced wheel bearings, ball joints, tie rods, u-joints, and axle seals earlier this year (yes got an alignment afterwards) Well my new tires still were wearing on outside.....

place i bought my tires said they take 40 PSI for my truck.....well i upped it to 50F/ 60 R....and its not wearing as much on the outsides.....also when i turn my wheel all the way to the left, i can see my driver front tire is only touching treads on the outside of tire when turning....goes kinda crooked....dont know what thats caused from, but i feel its my problem, and could possibly be yours...

 

Thanks Heyyou I'll look up some of the specifications today. If it's not a camber issue then what would your opinion be on this zman? The tires call for 44psi which I think is kinda low since these trucks are so heavy. The front tires look like they are aired down even at recommended pressure. Would putting more air in hurt them at all? I think I'd like to try that and see if it helps 95Ram.

 

my tires say 80 psi max though, they are 10 plys....if you have 6 ply, and have the 44 max psi, i wouldnt go over that

 

Damn. Ok I found this on dodgeram.org about alignments but it says for 4wd's. Would these specifications matter if they were set on a 2wd?

1994-and-up Dodge 1500 4X4 pickups have a tendency to drift to the right. Aftermarket offset joints are available for this application that provide 1/2 to 2 degrees of caster/camber correction.
From On the 1994-and-newer Dodge Ram two-wheel drive trucks (except the 3500 Cab Chassis), camber/caster corrections are made using the slotted pivot bar on the upper control arms. On the 4WD trucks, camber is preset at the factory. On the Dana 60 axle, the ball joints have a zero degree steel bushing, but on the Dana 44 axles there is no bushing. Though Dodge says no camber adjustment is available on either the Dana 44 or Dana 60 front axles, there are aftermarket offset bushings for the Dana 60 axle and offset ball joints for the Dana 44 axle. Caster adjustments are provided, though, by a cam at the front of the lower suspension arm.
From Brent - ASE Certified, Gold Certified Chrysler tech.
(This tidbit has been posted to numerous mail lists and message boards)

Specifications (my personal settings for every Ram I align):
Setting Left Wheel Right Wheel
Caster 3.2° 3.5°
Camber -0.10° -0.10°
Cross Caster -0.3°
Cross Camber 0.0°
Toe Standard specs, (maybe a little out if you tow a lot, they will pull in as the front end lifts up).
Discussion:

In a previous posting, people were complaining about a shimmy in their Ram 4x4 after striking bumps in the road. I suggested that the front end alignment has either too little or too much caster, thus causing a caster shimmy. He did not like my response and changed his concern from a "shimmy" to a "bounce" (big difference), and insisted it was the shocks. Maybe it is, I haven't driven it. He also said the alignment "checked out". Here's the problem: Alignment programs (and service manuals I believe), give a wide acceptable range for front caster on the 4x4 Rams. I believe the range is 2 degrees to 5 degrees (if that's not correct, it's pretty close). The problem occurs when the alignment tech (independent or dealer) tells you that the measurements "checked out fine", just because they were in this broad range of acceptance.

Caster readings that fall on either end of the scale are subject to caster shimmy, even though they are "acceptable". I had to align some 30 trucks and attend a 9 hour "Dodge Ram Chassis Dynamics Diagnostics" training session (fancy name, ehh?), before finding out that 3 degrees to 4 degrees is the optimal caster setting for 4x4 Rams that eliminates caster shimmy.

Above are the specifications I set Ram trucks to. First I want to give a little more info on correct Ram alignments so you can see if you had a job well done, The eccentrics on the lower control arms ARE NOT for individual wheel caster adjustments (even though our alignment machine says they are). The eccentric sleeves in the upper ball joints are for adjusting individual camber and total cross caster (difference in caster between two front wheels). This is why replacement eccentrics are positionable in eight different ways.

Once camber and cross caster are attained with the eccentrics, the lower control arm eccentrics are then used to swing the caster readings into specifications. The two eccentrics must be swung in the SAME direction in EQUAL amounts. If they are not, it will create a setback condition (one front wheel further forward than the other). FYI - Comparing between the two front wheels, caster will cause a pull to the smaller value and camber will cause a pull to the larger value. A truck set up with caster pulling in one direction and camber pulling in the other direction, can lead to a wandering truck; even though it is "in specifications"!!!!!!

If the eccentrics on the lower control arms of your truck are not pointing the same direction, the alignment was done incorrectly and the axle was "twisted" or "forced" into position to attain the acceptable values (seen them from the factory this way, go figure). A correct alignment will set the truck up with a slight negative cross caster (truck has slight pull to left) to compensate for right hand road crown. Camber will be equal side to side slightly on the negative side. This will help maintain acceptable camber when hauling heavy loads, as the truck tends to lift in the front when towing. Camber will then fall slightly positive when towing.

Just because the alignment shop says "it's in specifications", that does not mean it is set up for proper performance and handling!!!!!!!!!