[Craig]

Jason mentioned this before, but let me say it again. It's not normal for any car to wear front tires on the inside like this photo below. I had the customer's Gran Turismo on the lift checking other things out and notice this. The car only has 18,000 miles, but I took the car for a test drive, and I could feel it pulling before I put it on the lift. My recommendation of course was to get the car aligned. The tie rods were fine in the car, just out of spec for the alignment.

 

[mike_balt]

our first set of fronts lasted 8K (on a 2013). car was twitchy and by 8K we were at cords on the inside right where the inner tread block met the sidewall.

we had it aligned by an indy maserati shop. car is MUCH better in terms of not being twitchy. that said 4k on my winter tires and I can see that same inner tread is worn more and the edge is shiny. so it's still hitting that area pretty hard.

Amazing how hard it is to get the front right on these

 

[tuanle16]

same thing happened to me. didn't feel safe, so bought some cheap nitto tires that were in stock at discount tires.

i hear mixed solutions with alignment. should i just try a one time alignment, or get the "unlimited" package. or just change the tires every year or so. but just put some cheap ones on.

nitto n555. $150 each. not too bad in price point. run fine so far. but its only been 3 days.

 

[ttpopo]

Jason mentioned this before, but let me say it again. It's not normal for any car to wear front tires on the inside like this photo below. I had the customer's Gran Turismo on the lift checking other things out and notice this. The car only has 18,000 miles, but I took the car for a test drive, and I could feel it pulling before I put it on the lift. My recommendation of course was to get the car aligned. The tie rods were fine in the car, just out of spec for the alignment.

actually, that is precisely how this car wears its tires.

Please give Maserti of San Diego a call. I am getting 5-8k miles a set. They are NOT replacing them (I take them to discount tire). They have tried to dial it out, but have told me that the factory system does not allow that degree of setting to make it not wear this way.

Besides, the factory sets it up with the neg camber for performance reasons. Once I wrapped my head around how heavy this car is and the fact the engine is sitting right between the tires - it made perfect sense to me.

 

[Jason@ Enzo`s Atlanta]

I`m not sure I agree..There is no performance advantage of using 25% of the front tire tread. The layout of the heavy engine over the front tires is nothing new...This is off the top of my head knowing RWD cars....like -.3-.4 negative camber and .025 toe in...You shouldn`t need new tires at every oil change...Jason

 

[Craig]

actually, that is precisely how this car wears its tires.

Please give Maserti of San Diego a call. I am getting 5-8k miles a set. They are NOT replacing them (I take them to discount tire). They have tried to dial it out, but have told me that the factory system does not allow that degree of setting to make it not wear this way.

Besides, the factory sets it up with the neg camber for performance reasons. Once I wrapped my head around how heavy this car is and the fact the engine is sitting right between the tires - it made perfect sense to me.

Ummm.....I'm sorry to disagree. NO vehicle is supposed to wear tires this way. It's a serious safety issue. It would be akin to the rear tie rod recall that took place on the Quattroporte that would let go and spin the car down the highway. Blow one of those tires, or both of them at highway speed, and I think you'll see what I'm talking about.

That being stated instead of me calling them, do you think you could get them to put that in writing? It would be helpful. Just post it here when you get a chance.

 

[Craig]

I`m not sure I agree..There is no performance advantage of using 25% of the front tire tread. The layout of the heavy engine over the front tires is nothing new...This is off the top of my head knowing RWD cars....like -.3-.4 negative camber and .025 toe in...You shouldn`t need new tires at every oil change...Jason

I have the TSB from 12 Dec. 2007 Bulletin #MNA-83 Subject: Wheel Alignment Data. I haven't checked for any updates but it might be helpful. Town Fair Tire and places like this aren't going to have the TSBs but it's obvious they tried to address this situation.

J, or @sc00b, do you have any updates to this below?

 

[ttpopo]

I have the TSB from 12 Dec. 2007 Bulletin #MNA-83 Subject: Wheel Alignment Data. I haven't checked for any updates but it might be helpful. Town Fair Tire and places like this aren't going to have the TSBs but it's obvious they tried to address this situation.

J, or @sc00b, do you have any updates to this below?

looking at that - i would say its the combination of the neg toe and camber. My tech said that the factory adjustments limited. I would imagine the toe would be the one thats difficult/impossible to dial out with such a large degree stock neg toe.

 

[Jason@ Enzo`s Atlanta]

The problem is the toe out..You normally only toe-out a RWD car if its a track car to help turn in...Try to align the car with a touch of toe-in... regards..Jason

 

[masgs02jrt]

Hey folks, I have a 2012 GT MC, also wearing on the inside of the fronts and backs. I just had the fronts replaced (got the BFGoodrich g-force comp 2 A/S), and I'd like to get the car realigned (after driving 50 miles to let the suspension settle in).

Question: what are the specs for camber and toe, for fronts and rears, on the 2012 GT MC? I'm assuming there are acceptable ranges for camber and toe, what are those? I'd like to have my alignment guy get rid of as much camber as possible, and add as much toe in as possible, while staying "in spec".

Is there a place online that might have these alignment specs for all cars (I have a 2007 QP also, and want to do the same)?

 

[Jason@ Enzo`s Atlanta]

You alignment shop should have the data in there machine.. Just tell them to set it up with the least amount of negative camber and least amount of toe out and stay within the spec range...The QP specs will be very close to the GTs..You want a touch of toe-in, but not toe out. Generally, only RWD track cars get toed out...regards..Jason

 

[masgs02jrt]

Thanks Jason; do you think the MC has the same specs as the GT or GTS? Just wondering because my MC has a different suspension than the GT or GTS (no skyhook, etc.).

Also, does your shop do alignment? If so, how much? I'm in Atlanta, btw, if you have another shop to suggest, that would be great!

 

[Jason@ Enzo`s Atlanta]

We actually sub them out and let a local place do it with good results..You have to do a lot of alignments to make an alignment machine worth while..GranTurismo is in the Chamblee/Buford Hwy. area is a good choice..The align a lot of track cars for guys running at Road Atlanta..They know their stuff. Probably closer as well....When you need some other work done give us a call...Jason

 

[masgs02jrt]

Thanks Jason, I've heard a lot about Granturismo for many years, will give them a ring.

 

[tuanle16]

thanks for the info. i need to get mine done too. masgs02jrt let me know how it goes. also, jason, i'll be calling vince soon to set up an appointment with you. need the oil changed etc. my seats have been acting up, so perhaps you can reset it too with the tool. thanks.

 

[Bill929]

I got 17k miles out of my first set (OEM new) of Pirelli PZero front tires. They wore dead even. I had the Maserati dealer install a new set of Michelin Pilot Sports - they aligned my car and low and behold, 5200 miles later the inside of my new Michelins are worn completely out (and the car is twitchy as well). The dealer is picking up the tab for re-aligning the car, but I have to buy the tires (not thrilled about that, but that's the best they would offer). I know firsthand my front tires can wear evenly when properly aligned, so it has to be the use of the wrong alignment specs or sloppy alignment work. I just don't see how you go from 17k even wear to 5200 inside tread completely gone if your car is within spec - so I don't buy that argument. I'm going to watch the tire wear closely this time around.

 

[AaronE]

Bill, do you have the alignment chart from when they did it? It should have the "before" numbers, which would theoretically be the good ones!

 

[Bill929]

Bill, do you have the alignment chart from when they did it? It should have the "before" numbers, which would theoretically be the good ones!

Unfortunately, no. The dealer (that replaced my OEM tires) sublet the alignment out (w/o my consent) and the shop that did the work did not give me before/after numbers. I was furious, to say the least. They fronted the bill for another alignment (at another Maserati dealership), so I now have the "bad" numbers and new ones, which I hope will work out. I will scan and post them as soon as I can. I drove the car home yesterday afternoon (dealer is 2 hours away) and haven't had a chance to look at the numbers, but I understand toe-out was the issue. We did a custom alignment to minimize uneven tire wear, so at this point it is a hit and miss experiment.

 

[Frari]

You are of course able to rotate your tires. Not if they are badly worn on the inside though. It just requires removing from the rim and swapping over a cost of about $30 takes no time and they rebalance. This will improve the wear. My wheel alignment tire guy recommended doing this after 5000 miles. He also provides a free check up every 2500 miles.
Surely your good shops would do the same.
Had my gs re aligned as I had new tires due to bulge from pot hole. He re alighted and the drive is totally different, no tramlining no ducking and weaving it's like a new car planted to the road.
4 wheel alignment is well worth it especially if your alignment guy has some racing experience. Mine is an ex Porsche cup and v8 super car driver. He knows what minute adjustments mean and I am very happy with my set up now.

 

[Alfalund]

Nooooooooooooooo - don't put cheap tires on a Maserati, get the alignment sorted ..

Some workshops and even dealers will tell you that extreme tire wear is normal - well, then dare to differ - it CAN be sorted ..

Note that worn-out suspension components can affect tire wear - and alignment should ALWAYS be done on brand new tires ..