Don's Home Products Tires All-Wheel Drive considerations

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The conventional wisdom among drivers of all-wheel-drive (AWD)vehicles has been that when they need to replace a single tire, every tire should be replaced.
A new tire is larger in diameter than a used one, because the tread has worn down on the old one.
The larger tire will have to rotate slower to travel the same distance.
Tires should be within 2/32 (1/16)-3/32" of each other so you wonÕt experience unbalanced wear and so that thereÕs balanced traction at all four corners.
It will also cause undue stress on the differential and other AWD components.

On average, a tire's tread depth wears down by about 1/32 inch every 5,000Š8,000 miles, or in about every 6 months to a year if you drive 10,000 miles per year.
So if your car is more than a year old you should buy oll new tires or use one of the alternatives below.

4 new tires for my 2020 Subaru crosstrek would cost me from $900-$1,000 at the dealer in Sacramento.
I could get them at a tire shop in Davis for $650. Doing that ensures that the AWD system wonÕt experience unbalanced wear and that thereÕs balanced traction at all four corners.

• Shaving a new tire so it is the same diameter as the others.
  It will cost $25-$35, It could take 3 days to get a tire shaved if a shop doesn't do it themselves. you can buy a single new tire from TireRack.com and have the company shave it to the tread depth that matches the depth of your other tires. It will shave any tire you buy from the company, usually for $25 to $35.
  I couldn't find any tire shops in Davis which would shave tires. It cost me $250 to get a new shaved tire at the dealer. See: With Tire Shaving, a Flat on an AWD Car No Longer Means Replacing All Four Tires | COnsumer Reports
• Many shops sell used tires and you can find one that matches your tires.
  It doesn't have to be the same brand but should have the same tread pattern.
  

  It would be better to buy 2 used tires of the same brand, type and size, so they wear at the same rate.
  Keep them together on the same axel and move them together when you rotate.
  It cost $120 to get 2 used tires, balanced and mounted in Davis, CA.