chingtomas

So got the bad news regarding tire wear on my 2014 Wrangler Jk. All four P255/70R18 Bridgestones need to go..mechanic even pointed out the shocks which are going too. So at 56k first time changing the tires. I can understand balance for each! But does this require alignment? Each tire quoted at $200+ already looking at over a solid grand for this.. any tips not to get shafted by snake oil mechanics. I’d like to stay with Bridgestones and what’s a good shocksolitaire.onl/ 9apps.ooo/ bluestacks.vip/

karls10jk

If you want to stay with the stock tires then go find a set on Craigslist. It'll be less than $1000 and you'll get another 50k miles. As far as shocks- it's entirely subjective. I'm enjoying my Rancho shocks and they've got a sale running right now but if you like the stock shocks then you may be able to find a set of those on CL too.

Did your mechanic give an indication as to why you may need an alignment? Shocks don't warrant an alignment nor do new tires, unless you're replacing tires because of an alignment issue.

resharp001

Agree with Karl, if you live around a metropolitan area, you can likely find brand new take off tires on factory wheels and ready to bolt up to your jeep for well under $1k. New rubi tires/wheels combo is about $800 in my area, non-rubi even less. Might even be able to find a set brand new take off shocks for $50. If you have a stock vehicle, you are in the catbird seat in regards to replacement parts!

Mark Doiron

1. You haven't told us anything about your Jeep, plus you give us very little information in your profile. So, below assumes we're talking a 100% stock vehicle.

2. If you have an alignment problem that caused the tire wear issue, then you'll want to fix that. It isn't clear if that is what the mechanic said.

3. A stock JK's alignment consists of adjusting the steering wheel centering, and adjusting the toe. The former will not affect your tires, the latter might, but only on the front axle. Both take about 15 minutes, in your driveway, to do. No special tools needed. A typical shop will have one flat alignment rate, which charges for much more. Then, when you have a "four wheel drive" alignment, they add onto that. Except there's nothing on your Jeep that can be adjusted except the aforementioned two items. Unless you have mods.

4. The mechanic may offer to install camber bolts. We know nothing about how you use your Jeep, but if you use (or intend to use) it for real off-roading, then camber bolts are bad. They tend to loosen from the rough treatment of off-road use. Best avoided. You'll want to use other means to repair the problem which, if that's the problem you may have some bent suspension pieces that would probably best be replaced by adjustable pieces. There are other solutions, but adjustable control arms have the greatest range of solutions as compared to say, geometry correction brackets (not adjustable at all, so if you leave the bent piece in there you still have an alignment problem).

5. Regular rotation of tires--especially off-road tires--will save you money because they tend to easily wear unevenly. If you have not been rotating every 6,000 miles or so, then that may very well be your problem. You probably can't save your irregularly worn tires now, but at least be diligent with the next set.

6. Most tire and alignment shops are unfamiliar with properly adjusting four wheel drive vehicles. Since we're assuming your Jeep has no mods, that's okay. But, if you do have mods, if you do decide to go with a more complex solution, then you may want to find a 4WD specialty shop.

7. You may find this link useful (if you have a few hand tools and a buddy to help) ...

https://project-jk.com/jeep-jk-write...-end-alignment