i am trying to figure out what is making my front tires scallop.

even with rotation, they start to get scalloped after a 1,000 miles - then it continues to get worse.

i have balanced them and done an alignment.

i have checked all the torque settings on the from suspension.

shocks are good.

i do however have a loose tie rod on both sides. it seems to rotate forward and back easily.

is the tie rod supposed to move or not?

any help would be appreciated.....

 

It is fint that the tie rod moves as long as it is only rotational movement. It is bad is the joints move up, down, or side to side. As for cupping, it is typically a toe problem. I would double check that it is in spec

 

yes it only moves rotationally -

wouldn't the toe in have been adjusted in the alignment I had done 2 weeks ago?

 

cupping and scalloping are almost always caused by shocks that are going bad. but, if you say they are fine, i'll take your word for it and will tell you that bad TRE's and/or bad ball joints can effect tread wear as well. in fact, toe misalignment caused by worn out TRE's is one of the most common causes of rapid tread wear. of course, a bent tie rod can cause toe misalignment too. as a rule, the TRE's should show no visible vertical or horizontal play when rocking the steering back and forth with the full weight of the vehicle on its wheels. granted, this shouldn't cause cupping or scalloping but, maybe you're is the exception.

 

I see your running 35's...What shocks are you running.?

The reason I ask is that normal or stock shocks are not valved to handle the heavier and larger wheel and tire package. If you are running a good aftermarket shock..Then nevermind..

It sounds like you have had the alignment checked so you should be good in that department..You had the tires balanced so your good there..That only leaves air pressures, shocks that are not keeping the tire planted on the road, loose or worn front end parts.

looks like our moderator beat me to it. I'm glad we had the same ideas..

 

well, i just had posts about this couple days ago, my shock is fine and only one tire doing this.

 

I had cupping on my passanger side tire with 3000 miles on it. Took it to the dealer and the first thing he tells me is that I'm "not rotating my tires". I tell him "your right, but I only have 3,000 miles on it?"

They checked the alignment and the toe was off. They took care of it under warranty.

 

My money is on toe or ball joints. Is the cupping visible, or only felt by rubbing your hand over it?

 

thanks, eddie -

i think i need to take it in and have the ball joints looked at -

last year i broke my track bar mount and had it towed. but the tow truck driver did not use a flat bed -

so when he was towing it, my jeep started to wobble and then almost flipped while it was being towed - i was in the tow truck and thought we were all going over -

the force on my front end was massive -

i am thinking that is what has done some damage - so ball joints makes sense -

what does TRE stand for?

 

Shocks are aftermarket Fabtech