Dunlop SP2030 tyres - excessive wear on inside edge and cracking between treads

[Ozzie]

I have just noticed, at 22k miles that the inside edge of the front tyres is wearing quicker than the rest of the tyre. Both front tyres have the same wear pattern. the majority of the tyre has about 4mm left but the inside edges have worn down to slicks about 1" at the very inner edge. So it is about to become illegal. I am obviously going to get the tracking checked but I am thinking that as the tyre wear is equal, the tracking is not going to vary from factory settings, has anyone else noticed a similar tyre wear pattern?

[DV]

My tyres are good but you really should get checked the alignment.

I had mine checked connected to the computer based system (not like the cheap Kwik-Fit one) just for under £30. I got an A4 printout too for the before and after settings/set-ups.

[guest1521]

Ozzie, your problem sounds just like mine. This I copied and pasted from my comment in April in another forum:

Dunlop SP31 on my '59' GE Jazz. Excess wear on just the inside inch front tyres suggesting toe-out. Which I thought might contribute to annoying slight steering wander on motorway at straight-ahead, too.

Honda technician measured the tracking as 'OK' as he/they had done a few thousand miles earlier, too, when I initially expressed concern.

Nevertheless at 13,000 miles I had them realigned. And 'rotated' to rear bringing evenly worn rears to front. Otherwise those front tyres (now on the rear) would have been past worn smooth on the inside edges by now.

Now at 23,000 miles (10,000 miles later) fronts are worn PERFECTLY EVENLY with 7,000 miles life remaining - at least. All 4 Dunlops look likely to do 30,000 or more. Possibly 35,000. Steering tracks better on motorway straight ahead, too... noticed immediately after front wheels alignment job.

Of course tracking is not supported by warranty and I took it to an independent tyre fitter who quoted half Honda's price for the realignment. I closely watched the whole job and he pointed out the extent of the mis-alignment. Not great but probably enough to wear the tyres on that inside edge, he said.

When I asked additionally for rotation fronts to rear did that for no extra cost.

£26.50 inc vat.

[Ozzie]

The trouble is that as a driving instructor getting the tracking checked is a bit of a waste of money, as on the next lesson the pupil will kerb it and knock it out of alignment 

[guest1521]

Your point is well made Ozzie, haha. The abuse a driving instructor's car must suffer! Not to forget the stress for the instructor, too. 

I'm certain mine was set up at the factory wrong though, of course for understandable reasons, warranty wouldn't cover.

I noticed the beginnings of uneven wear at around 5,000 miles and I absolutely know my Jazz never hit or kerbed anything to upset its tracking. Supporting my conviction that it was set wrong from the start, I'd noticed annoying steering wander on the motorway at the straightahead from earliest days. To me that suggested 'toe-out' as exhibited by the tyre wear on the inside edges. Tracking almost totally fixed that, too.

Good luck with yours.

[Garyman]

I've also stated in another thread that my front tyres outside edge is quite worn after 10k miles.

I'm pretty sure I've seen somewhere that Honda has the Jazz front wheel at -1.2 to help with the steering??

this would explain why the outside edge wear down so quickly compared to the rest.

[Ozzie]

OK I have been giving this some thought . . . .

I reckon the wear on the inside edges is by driving the car too hard  , if the car corners to the right, the weight is transferred to the left, squeezing the left tyre. However the right tyre is now lighter, and can be dragged across the road surface on the inside edge causing wear as it fights for grip.

I know it sounds a bit dramatic but tyres slide across the road on every corner to some degree.

Ho hum, time for tyre shopping . . .

Ozzie

[guest1521]

Ozzie, nope... unfortunately that uneven wear is not caused by you or your pupils driving/cornering the car too hard. From habit over many years I corner mine EASY/SMOOTH. (How otherwise could I get 30/35000 miles out of my 'soft' OE Dunlops?)

Yet my front tyres 'scrubbed' the inside inch just as you have described. Till tracking was adjusted. Just £26 at a good independent. Might be 'northern' prices though.

[guest869]

OK I have been giving this some thought . . . .

I reckon the wear on the inside edges is by driving the car too hard  , if the car corners to the right, the weight is transferred to the left, squeezing the left tyre. However the right tyre is now lighter, and can be dragged across the road surface on the inside edge causing wear as it fights for grip.

I know it sounds a bit dramatic but tyres slide across the road on every corner to some degree.

Ho hum, time for tyre shopping . . .

Ozzie

Correct to a certain degree depending on the ackerman. However the wear on the outer edge of the loaded tyre (left in your example) will be much greater than any wear on th inside edge of the unloaded tyre. In some instances the unloaded tyre will leave the ground.

Yes tyres do slide across the road and it is known as slip angle. Every tyre has a slip angle where the coefficient of friction is highest (approx 8 degree)

[guest3331]

The rear tyres on my 2010 Insight are also Dunlop SP2030 185/55 R16 with cracks. The fronts are dated 2010 and are fine. Once again, Honda not interested. Dunlop would issue a rebate based on tread but at 4-5 mm tread left it hardly seems worth the bother.

[guest3250]

I have (sadly) taken an almost unhealthy interest in the tyres I have had on various cars
but as stated before - they are all you have between you and the road!
The Dunlops seem reasonable as they are not as expensive as some and generally seem to grip OK
I would imagin they are a little better than some on Mud or snow with the slightly 'Blocky' tread.
They are known to wear a lot quicker than most of the competition and develop alarming cracks in the grooves
I doubt, therfore, I will buy them again when I replace them.
So - what do thers favour from the limited choice for the EX with 16" wheels??
The Continental Premium Contact 2 is a safe choice - slightly less economical on the road than some
and not the softest ride - possibly even slightly bumpier than the Dunlops. Also the one place the PC2's
fall short is in the snow (and on Mud of course) due to the straight grooves design - but great in the wet or dry.
Has anyone tried the cheaper Falken 912 tyres? Or the Yokohama C-Drive?
These both look fairly promising alternatives.
Just looking for some feedback from other EX drivers

[Garyman]

So I was talking to one of the senior mechanics at my local dealer and mentioned about the tyre wear on the front.

He said they have noticed this (not just on mine but other customers as well) and had submitted claims to Honda but Honda replied that its nothing they can do 

He went on to say that it could be just the make and composition of the tyre but you can start to see the wear on  my aftermarket wheels with Toyo PX4 so its definitely something to do with the tracking/ alignment imho.

I'm getting some camber bolts soon so I will be able to adjust the toe and camber which should dramtically reduce the wear.

Be interesting to see if any members are able to get a result from Honda

[Ozzie]

OK, I had a gap between lessons today and took my Jazz to have a wheel alignment check. There was minimal adjustment required, both front wheels were 1mm out, so a tiny adjustment on each. The guy that adjusted the wheels said that he thought the tyre wear pattern was probably due to having the wheels on full lock for the manoeuvres.

[Rory]

Ozzie, nope... unfortunately that uneven wear is not caused by you or your pupils driving/cornering the car too hard. From habit over many years I corner mine EASY/SMOOTH. (How otherwise could I get 30/35000 miles out of my 'soft' OE Dunlops?)

I would say you must be a very gentle driver - our Jazz is mainly used for rural and some town work and the 16" Dunlop SP2030's are wearing pretty evenly but I reckon will struggle to get to 20K miles, even with rotating front to back.

[guest1521]

'Gentle' hopefully... There's a world of difference between driving 'hard' and driving 'fast.' Alain Prost's 'boring' Formula 1 style famously exemplified 'fast' but not 'hard.' 

So Rory... 'gentle' on the mechanicals for sure. Smooooth... with maximum anticipation. For corners, I aim always to avoid passenger discomfort and any hint of lurching. Always smooth is the trick... learnt from many miles of driving considerably faster than most on slippery gravel roads abroad in my formative motoring years and beyond.

Observation followed by anticipation... that way you minimise braking, too. Less brake wear, higher mpg.

Some of my Dunlops' life advantage may be due to a larger proportion of motorway miles than you, Rory. More than half my mileage is motorway.

With respect to Ozzie's alignment, mine was only slightly misaligned, too - but it has made all the difference to my Dunlops' wear. I hope you have similar success, Ozzie.