As tires are used, the treads get shallower and their overall performance changes, necessitating immediate replacement.
Tires may be new but one side could seem to wear down faster than the other. This is a classic indicator of camber wear, and by using our guide, you can figure out what’s causing it and take measures to fix it.
What Is Tire Camber Wear?
Camber refers to the inward or outward tire angle when observed from the front. Negative and positive camber, or inward and outward tilt respectively, indicate incorrect alignment and will need to be corrected. Camber misalignment can be caused by worn bearings, ball joints, and other wheel-suspension components resulting in tire camber wear which we’ll delve further into in the next section.
Keep reading to familiarize yourself with what causes camber wear and how you can fix it!
Tire camber wear is a type of tread wear where the inside or outside is substantially more worn than the center.
It’s distinguished by a gentle slope from one side to the other and is easier to spot than other forms of tire wear, allowing you to get to the core of the problem and fix it sooner.
It’s risky to ignore inner tire wear, especially because on wet roads, tires with too little tread on the inside may be unable to stop as required.
On ice and snow-covered roads, worn and bald tires provide poor grip and experience greater slippage.
Tire health isn’t the only thing that suffers from inner wear, as the performance of vehicles with low tread tires is also reduced.
Because such tires lose air pressure on a regular basis, they experience a decrease in fuel efficiency and steering.
Worn-out tires pose great risks to the vehicle and its passengers. They lack the essential tread depth to allow air to flow freely between their grooves.
Such factors make them ideal for heat build-up and, as a result, blowouts.
What Causes Tire Camber Wear?
Significant wear on the inside and outer edges of the tire can be caused by factors such as improper wheel alignment and worn suspension components.
Misaligned front wheels create uneven tire wear by continually pushing to one side or the other while driving along the road.
Camber wear on tires can also be caused by worn suspension components. Worn ball joints, tie rod ends, and arm bolts are among the usual culprits.
If you find your tires are beginning to show signs of camber wear, immediately contact a local tire specialist as any of the aforementioned concerns might signal a far more serious issue.
Can Tire Camber Wear Be Fixed?
Camber wear can be fixed through actions such as getting wheels aligned, keeping tires properly inflated, regularly balancing tires, and replacing or repairing damaged suspension components.
Improper wheel alignment can affect camber angle, wear down ball joints, and harm springs if left unchecked for a long time.
Wheel alignments are performed by most major auto departments and car repair shops. This is a straightforward method for correcting uneven tire wear.
As previously stated, all three disturbances lead to inner tire wear. As a result, you should get your wheels aligned every 5,000 miles (about 8,000 km) or once a year.
Underinflated tires are more likely to develop inner tire wear due to the fact that the tire’s sidewall would no longer be able to push the tire to make contact with the road.
As a result, we recommend that you check your tire pressures on a regular basis. If you don’t always have free time to go to the tire shop, invest in a portable tire inflator.
A large majority of car owners only balance their wheels when they detect uneven tire wear, but it’s advisable that you get your tires balanced every two years.
Experts also recommend getting new tires balanced as soon as possible after they’ve been fitted onto your car so they’re protected from inner wear.
You’d have to assess the suspension if you find that only one side of a tire is wearing down unevenly. Most of the time, a twisted suspension component is usually at fault.
You can get the component fixed as long as the damage isn’t severe. If it is bent beyond repair, though, you may have no choice but to replace it.
Do You Want Positive Or Negative Camber?
With positive camber, the top of the wheel points outwards while with negative camber, the top of the wheel points inwards.
Positive camber offers stability allowing easier steering in any direction. Positive camber is best used when driving on a rough road surface as it offers increased stability.
Positive camber is most popular with agricultural and recreational vehicles.
Negative camber greatly enhances the vehicle’s handling and significantly decreases wheel vibrations.
However, negative camber has several disadvantages. One of its limitations is that straight-line acceleration will be substantially decreased.
This is because in order to attain faster speeds, the angled wheels will have to work harder.
Another limitation is that the braking distance increases so you would require a long stretch of road to bring a car to a halt.
Because of the way the wheels are slanted, you’re also more likely to wear out the tires faster.
Another disadvantage of negative camber is that it lowers traction on wet surfaces.
How Much Camber Is Too Much Camber?
Negative camber allows the car’s tire to remain perpendicular to the road as it goes down the road, giving drivers a greater grip, reducing wheel vibration, and improving vehicle handling.
A negative camber of between 1-2° is usually recommended and having more than this isn’t a good idea and may cause a slew of problems with your car and tire performance.
Having too much negative camber on your automobile wheels ensures that your tires will wear out soon.
This camber angle generates greater contact space with the road, causing the car tires to wear out faster, particularly if you’re going off-road and driving over rough terrain with your vehicle.
When driving in a straight line, the car will have to work more to create acceleration or apply the brakes (as a result of the wheel angle),
Furthermore, because of the compromised stability, the automobile will find it more difficult to maintain travel along a straight line.
Does Camber Affect Speed?
If you prefer high-speed cornering, negative camber, i.e. where the bottom of the wheel points outward, is the ideal camber for you.
Its angle allows for easy high-speed maneuvering because the bottom of the tires doesn’t make too much contact with the ground.
Tire pressure is substantially decreased due to the reduced contact with the road surface so high-speed cornering feels effortless.
In Formula 1 racing and other motorsports, negative camber is preferred for this reason.
Negative camber is also preferred by high-performance car owners.
What Camber Is Best For Drifting?
On a car meant for drifting, the rear camber should be as near to zero as possible. The finest tire wear and forward bite are generally obtained in this manner.
You may run some negative camber if you want a bit of extra side grip, but no more than 1° should be used.
To know more about tires, you can also see our posts on whether or not burnouts ruin tires, how long do Bridgestone tires last, and how long will tires last with bad alignment.
Conclusion
Inner tire wear can be caused by a variety of factors: your wheels have been misaligned for a long time, their camber angle is incorrect, ball bearings and joints are worn out, or one of the suspension components is damaged.
When you’ve figured out what’s causing your inner tires to wear down, go to work on a remedy right away. The problem will not go away if you ignore it.
Adopting a reckless attitude will not only cost you money but will also jeopardize the health of your vehicle and the safety of its occupants.
Negative camber is when the top of the wheels are angled inward while positive camber is the opposite.
Negative camber is preferred for high-speed motorsports as it allows for better cornering while positive camber is used in agricultural and recreational vehicles that aren’t intended for fast driving.