Is it OK to just change 1 tire on an AWD car?

[Silent]

Hey guys,

I was taking my 2015 ford fusion titanium AWD for a bumpy ride (dont ask), throught potholes and big jagged stores.

Eventually my front passenger wheel popped and I drove it furthur, thus messing up the rims.

Brought it to a couple car shops today. Some say I have to change both tires, some say I can only change one.

(The rest of the winter tires are about 30% tread so I'm not too keen on changing them)

Thanks for your thoughts

Paul

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[NoVaGT]

Hey guys,

I was taking my 2015 ford fusion titanium AWD for a bumpy ride (dont ask), throught potholes and big jagged stores.

Eventually my front passenger wheel popped and I drove it furthur, thus messing up the rims.

Brought it to a couple car shops today. Some say I have to change both tires, some say I can only change one.

(The rest of the winter tires are about 30% tread so I'm not too keen on changing them)

Thanks for your thoughts

Paul

First, I would stop driving through stores.

Yes, Top Gear did that, a few times. Yes, it was hilarious. But as you know, they can be jagged to drive through.

Second; just change them all. It's time. And the rims.

 

[nustang]

If it were me ... I would compare the tread depth of all 4 tires, to what a new replacement would be. Its likely the existing fronts and rears are a 32nd or 2 off already from each other. If so, and the difference between new and the bad one fall into the same 'differential', then replace the one tire.

Convention says to replace all 4, as the different rotation circumferences will cause problems with the AWD case gears.

I'd do some math and see how much % wise the lowest tread height and a new tire tread height would affect the tires specified circumference. If less than a couple percent, I'd chance it ... but thats not advice. Just my comfort level for a personal decision.

 

[Bikeman315]

Hey guys,

I was taking my 2015 ford fusion titanium AWD for a bumpy ride (dont ask), throught potholes and big jagged stores.

Eventually my front passenger wheel popped and I drove it furthur, thus messing up the rims.

Brought it to a couple car shops today. Some say I have to change both tires, some say I can only change one.

(The rest of the winter tires are about 30% tread so I'm not too keen on changing them)

Thanks for your thoughts

Paul

The simple answer to your question is no. Unless they are literally brand new, tires must be changed in pairs.

 

[Zooks527]

Well, it varies by manufacturer and AWD type. Subarus used to eat the transfer case with tire differentials, to the point that you could only put a spare tire on one of the axles (which led to tire swapping on the side of the road) and then pull the fuse for the AWD system. VWs with the older Torsen system were nearly as fussy. Some of the other makes didn't give much of a hoot.

In your case, you should calculate the overall diameter difference across all 4 wheels and look at the biggest spread. If it's over 2% or so, you need to be careful.

One other option is TireRack's tire shaving service. For an extra $25 or so, they'll shave a new tire down to match the diameter of the wheel on the other side of the axle. Came in handy when my daughter blew a tire on set that still had 1/2 the tread all the way around.

 

[Dadillac]

Just throwing my 2 cents in here. My daughter bought a 2019 Jeep Compass this past April. Car had 16000 miles on it and in like new condition. I just recently did an oil change on it and checked the tire tread depths to determine if a rotation was needed. Three tires were at 6mm depth. The fourth tire was at 11mm depth. So apparently one brand new tire was installed before she bought it. There has been zero driveability issues with the car. So................

Don

 

[JCFoster]

I’d shop around on Facebook market place and see if you can a matching rim/tire.

 

[Zooks527]

Just throwing my 2 cents in here. My daughter bought a 2019 Jeep Compass this past April. Car had 16000 miles on it and in like new condition. ........ Three tires were at 6mm depth. The fourth tire was at 11mm depth. So apparently one brand new tire was installed before she bought it. There has been zero driveability issues with the car. So................

IIRC, the Compass has a 4WD system with a center clutch, not an AWD, and runs in a default FWD mode unless the system determines that the rear axle is slipping. This type of 4WD does not have the sensitivity to tire diameter differences that an AWD system does.

 

[Biggus Dickus]

Now I know what to do when I get my AWD Mustang

 

[kz]

Can't tell you about AWD but with two rear PS4S on my car with less than 2mm of tread height difference and perfect alignment (no difference between L/R rear camber / toe - which took a lot of work), it was noticeably pulling to the side on the throttle.

 

[IrishStallion]

Phuck I did not see that awd button on my dash for almost 3 years...

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