Tyre Fitting

lostdesign

Hi Guys,

I bought two new tyres off Eire Tyres and they arrived today, I then went and got them fitted at the local tyre centre who I have never been to before.

The guy fitting the tyres was no more then 15 or 16 and seemed to not know what he was doing but I gave them the benefit of the doubt that he was being watched inside as he was learning his trade.

Before the car went in the tracking was perfect but since I got it back the car is veering to the left. I decided it might be tyre pressure so went to check them, there was no more then 13psi in each of the two tyres fitted, is this normal when they fit new tyres? I pumped the tyre to their correct pressure and drove the car again but it is still veering to the left when I let go of the steering, its not terrible but noticable.

What i am wondering is, would this be caused by the tyres not being balanced correctly? And Should i take it back to the place and get them to fix it or will they just tell me to get the tracking done?!

I was also shocked to see the amount of balancing weights they had added to my alloys, six or eight without counting them exactly, is this normal?

Any help or comments would be great.

The tyres fitted were the two front ones, 195/55/R15 if that makes any difference.

Thanks

msg11

lostdesign wrote: »

Hi Guys,

I bought two new tyres off Eire Tyres and they arrived today, I then went and got them fitted at the local tyre centre who I have never been to before.

The guy fitting the tyres was no more then 15 or 16 and seemed to not know what he was doing but I gave them the benefit of the doubt that he was being watched inside as he was learning his trade.

Before the car went in the tracking was perfect but since I got it back the car is veering to the left. I decided it might be tyre pressure so went to check them, there was no more then 13psi in each of the two tyres fitted, is this normal when they fit new tyres? I pumped the tyre to their correct pressure and drove the car again but it is still veering to the left when I let go of the steering, its not terrible but noticable.

What i am wondering is, would this be caused by the tyres not being balanced correctly? And Should i take it back to the place and get them to fix it or will they just tell me to get the tracking done?!

I was also shocked to see the amount of balancing weights they had added to my alloys, six or eight without counting them exactly, is this normal?

Any help or comments would be great.

The tyres fitted were the two front ones, 195/55/R15 if that makes any difference.

Thanks

Personally, I would bring it too another garage. Where they know what they are doing or even back to the same place and ask for someone else to have a look at them.

Then again you maybe might need your tracking done again.

Wheelnut

Why not swap them side-to-side and see what difference it makes? If the "pull" is reversed then the fault is in the tyre. It is not unknown for tyres to have a manufacturing fault which causes a "pull". Likewise, some tyres can take a lot of weights to balance them because of the manufacture. What brand are they?

Nissan doctor

What brand of tyres are they? And are they directional or not?

The tyre pressure would certainly have made a difference. In correct balancing cannot cause a pull to one side.

lostdesign

Wheelnut wrote: »

Why not swap them side-to-side and see what difference it makes? If the "pull" is reversed then the fault is in the tyre. It is not unknown for tyres to have a manufacturing fault which causes a "pull". Likewise, some tyres can take a lot of weights to balance them because of the manufacture. What brand are they?

The tyres are Vredstein Sportrac 3, so should be a good tyre but as you say there could be a manufacturing fault in them.

I can't switch the tyres as they would be rotating the wrong direction then, I am not sure what the correct terminology is for that!

lostdesign

Nissan doctor wrote: »

What brand of tyres are they? And are they directional or not?

The tyre pressure would certainly have made a difference. In correct balancing cannot cause a pull to one side.

The pull was defnitely not as bad once I upped the tyre pressure. I also read somewhere else on boards that a lot of balance weights could indicate your alloys were slightly buckled, this could also be the case as they are quite old now and have taken a few knocks.

I am going to double check the pressures and get my brother to drive it to get a second opinion, sometimes I can be be overcritical when it is my own car!

Its just annoying as there was no pull before the tyres were changed but with all these variables it could be caused by many things and not the tyre fitter at all.

Mar4ix

that young lad was under supervision ? i wouldnt let new guy do it himself. Mistakes may cost to much. is old weights still on wheel ? that would explain why so many weights now. if all correct, than would need re-do alignment.

Wheelnut

lostdesign wrote: »

I can't switch the tyres as they would be rotating the wrong direction then, I am not sure what the correct terminology is for that!

You can do it temporarily just to test them. It is totally safe on a dry road.

Moanin

I always get my car tracked when replacing tyres which is normally annually for me.
The number of weights applied depends on the weight of the weights being applied. Myabe he was low on high weight weights and had to use alot of low weight weights?

Nissan doctor

lostdesign wrote: »

The pull was defnitely not as bad once I upped the tyre pressure. I also read somewhere else on boards that a lot of balance weights could indicate your alloys were slightly buckled, this could also be the case as they are quite old now and have taken a few knocks.

I am going to double check the pressures and get my brother to drive it to get a second opinion, sometimes I can be be overcritical when it is my own car!

Its just annoying as there was no pull before the tyres were changed but with all these variables it could be caused by many things and not the tyre fitter at all.

Well balancing or weight amounts still can't cause a pull on the steering. so the cause has to be the tyres themselves or pressures.

Its possible, though, that new different thread tyres can act differently with the other tyres on the car or can exaggerate any pre-existing alignment issue that the old tyres would have 'bedded' into.

I would suggest swapping them right to left(as said, will be fine for a short while on a dry road just to see if there is a difference) or swap then new tyres to the rear and see how it feels then.

lostdesign

Sorry for only replying now but have been busy in work, the car is still pulling left, it is only really noticable above 80klm/hr so dual carriage/motorway driving.

If i have time today I am going to swap the tyres to see if it makes a difference. I only have one jack so it could take a while! I havent driven the car much as I dont want to wear the towers if the aligment is out.

I am happy the wheel balancing was done correctly, the is no shake in the steering and the car drives perfectly bar the pull to the left.

I might just go and get the alignment done but was wondring what adjustments are possible on my car. From other boards posts Nissan Doctor seems to know alot about this so I am wondering if you know about my car. It is a 1998 Mazda 323f - 1.5model.

I have seen a few recomendations for Dave Mc Cann or Discoutn tyres in Blanch, I might try them. Any other recommendations in west Dublin?

If the problem is the rear tyres are bedded into this aligment am I wasting my time getting the alignment done?

Once again thanks for your advice.

Moanin

lostdesign wrote: »

Hi Guys,

I bought two new tyres off Eire Tyres and they arrived today, I then went and got them fitted at the local tyre centre who I have never been to before.

The guy fitting the tyres was no more then 15 or 16 and seemed to not know what he was doing but I gave them the benefit of the doubt that he was being watched inside as he was learning his trade.

Before the car went in the tracking was perfect but since I got it back the car is veering to the left. I decided it might be tyre pressure so went to check them, there was no more then 13psi in each of the two tyres fitted, is this normal when they fit new tyres? I pumped the tyre to their correct pressure and drove the car again but it is still veering to the left when I let go of the steering, its not terrible but noticable.

What i am wondering is, would this be caused by the tyres not being balanced correctly? And Should i take it back to the place and get them to fix it or will they just tell me to get the tracking done?!

I was also shocked to see the amount of balancing weights they had added to my alloys, six or eight without counting them exactly, is this normal?

Any help or comments would be great.

The tyres fitted were the two front ones, 195/55/R15 if that makes any difference.

Thanks

I'm always very particular when it comes to getting tracking done. Alot of these guys have the machinery but alot of the time they cannot operate them! If the tyre pressure was not correct at the time when the car was been tracked then maybe it threw out the correct alignment? Did you get a printout after the tracking was done to show what the alignment was prior to it been corrected, what it should be per the spec of your car and what it is now? Do you have any worn suspension bushes that may be throwing out the alignment?

lostdesign

Moanin wrote: »

I'm always very particular when it comes to getting tracking done. Alot of these guys have the machinery but alot of the time they cannot operate them! If the tyre pressure was not correct at the time when the car was been tracked then maybe it threw out the correct alignment? Did you get a printout after the tracking was done to show what the alignment was prior to it been corrected, what it should be per the spec of your car and what it is now? Do you have any worn suspension bushes that may be throwing out the alignment?

I havent had the alignment done yet, just got 2 new tyres fitted and balanced and th car is now pulling to the left.

Moanin

Sorry UI misread your post. I woul dhead to Keith in alloy-wheels.ie in Blanch.He's a top class lad and knows what hes at

Unit 2
rosemount business park
blanchardstown
Dublin 11

Nissan doctor

lostdesign wrote: »

Sorry for only replying now but have been busy in work, the car is still pulling left, it is only really noticable above 80klm/hr so dual carriage/motorway driving.

If i have time today I am going to swap the tyres to see if it makes a difference. I only have one jack so it could take a while! I havent driven the car much as I dont want to wear the towers if the aligment is out.

I am happy the wheel balancing was done correctly, the is no shake in the steering and the car drives perfectly bar the pull to the left.

I might just go and get the alignment done but was wondring what adjustments are possible on my car. From other boards posts Nissan Doctor seems to know alot about this so I am wondering if you know about my car. It is a 1998 Mazda 323f - 1.5model.

I have seen a few recomendations for Dave Mc Cann or Discoutn tyres in Blanch, I might try them. Any other recommendations in west Dublin?

If the problem is the rear tyres are bedded into this aligment am I wasting my time getting the alignment done?

Once again thanks for your advice.

Your car has front and rear toe adjustment so would need 4 wheel alignment.

Ideally the operator should check all alignment measurments, regardless of if they can be adjusted or not as they can still be off.

Wheelnut

The tracking was not done so the only thing that has changed is the tyres. I have seen tyres which look perfect but have a manufacturing fault that causes a "pull". That is why I suggest that you swap the tyres left-to-right to test them. I would strongly advise you to do that before you get the tracking done because resetting the tracking would bring two variables into the problem (if it still exists). Furthermore, if you have a faulty tyre it would be a bad idea to try to correct the effect by tweaking the tracking.

I don't need to tell you that if the tyre is faulty, your problem is with Eiretyres and not the local tyre fitter. I don't know how you will deal with them for an unusual problem like this. That's the risk you take when you don't buy locally. That is not a criticism of you because I have bought online myself and it was successful.

lostdesign

Wheelnut wrote: »

The tracking was not done so the only thing that has changed is the tyres. I have seen tyres which look perfect but have a manufacturing fault that causes a "pull". That is why I suggest that you swap the tyres left-to-right to test them. I would strongly advise you to do that before you get the tracking done because resetting the tracking would bring two variables into the problem (if it still exists). Furthermore, if you have a faulty tyre it would be a bad idea to try to correct the effect by tweaking the tracking.

I don't need to tell you that if the tyre is faulty, your problem is with Eiretyres and not the local tyre fitter. I don't know how you will deal with them for an unusual problem like this. That's the risk you take when you don't buy locally. That is not a criticism of you because I have bought online myself and it was successful.

So I did what you suggested, swapped the two front tyres left to right and took it for a spin. The car still pulled to the left above 80 - 90klm so I am presuming it isnt a fault with the new tyres. I pulled into a garage and switched them back to drive home and it seems to pull a little worse with the tyres rotating the correct way but then its very hard to judge that but they both definitely pulled left. I'm thinking ill go get it alligned and see how I get on.

I do take on board your comments re buying tyres online and it would make you think twice about doing it beacuse i know its a lot of hassle to have to post tyres back and prove they are faulty. I wonder what the percentage of manufacturing faults are in tyres!

Thanks for your advice.

Moanin

How do you know the tyres are at fault? It's all speculation. As a matter of interest when was the last time you had your wheels aligned? Even though your car was not 'pulling' before you replaced the tyres does not mean your wheels were aligned properly.
If it were me I would go somewhere and get them aligned.......

Wheelnut

lostdesign wrote: »

So I did what you suggested, swapped the two front tyres left to right and took it for a spin. The car still pulled to the left ...

That seems to eliminate a tyre fault but it was worth a try. I have had exactly the same problem as you after fitting new tyres and it turned out to be a faulty tyre. (...and it was a good brand!)

Moanin wrote: »

How do you know the tyres are at fault?

We didn't know the tyre was at fault, that was the purpose of the swapping test. If the steering had pulled to the right after swapping it would have indicated a faulty tyre.

Nissan doctor

As some have said, I'd recommend getting the alignment checked as new tyres can show up any alignment issues that the old tyres had bedded into.

Any decent place should check the alignment and show you what's off or not without charge.