stwus

Just had my 30k service done for my 2019 S5 Sportback at my local Audi dealership with a bit over 20k on my car. My front tires are more worn than the rear and asked them about tire rotation and their answer was since the rear tires are better, therefore there is no need to rotate them. Is that correct information? Thanks.

Nikon1

I was always taught front tires should be the “better” of the tires as they are the ones doing the steering on the car but maybe in the 55 years since I was taught that, the prevailing wisdom has changed?

I still believe steering trumps traction.

— John

mhoran89

issue with putting more tread up front is for an inexperienced driver in poor weather the tires on the rear will slip sooner and the back end of the car will rotate around and cause more issues than a car "pushing" (understeer) through a corner. Most regular folks would panic much harder in a spin situation over a slide if that makes sense. In an all wheel or rear wheel drive car you can counter this with throttle and countersteer, however modern nanny systems will also do weird things to fight you countering.

that said, I rotate tires front to opposite back and rear to front straight ahead. As long as I have non directional tires I do this every time more or less. If I have directional snow tires I just rotate front to rear and call it a day.

synergize

What tires did your car come with from the factory? If they are Conti Sport Contacts you did great on mileage, most members get significantly less miles.

superswiss

It does at first seem counterintuitive, but indeed the recommendation has always been to put the new/better tires on the rear. The rear tires provide the vehicle stability and if they are worn then as said above, the vehicle is much more likely to spin and become unstable.

stwus

I have all season Pirelli P7. They are ok tires, but they have been good. My front tires are in the yellow zone according Audi’s assessment and the rear is still green. I can tell visibly that the edge of my front tires are much more worn than the rear. That’s why I asked them about tire rotation at least 3 times. They gave me the same answer.

stwus

I have the same thoughts. That’s why I asked the dealership and the answer was the same every time.

s5_937

The only thing I would do is rotate them side to side. Also, I would check to see if the tire manufacturer requires them to be rotated for warranty purposes.

ShiftyWolf

Another point to consider is why the fronts are wearing faster. Are you running proper inflation front and rear? Is the wear uneven across the tread? Even though the fronts are yellow and the rears green, how close are the actual tread depths?

I used to rotate my tires religiously, following my father's advice from so long ago and also knowing that the ride would be a bit off until the rotated tires "wear in" to their new positions on the car. These days, as long as both front and both rear are wearing at the same rate and the car is tracking true, I leave them where they are. Depending on total wear, I'll either replace two tires and rotate as needed at that time, or just buy four new together. This works for me, but might not be the choice of others.

HyperS4

I rotate my tires every 5k religiously, front to back. Maintain correct tire pressure by checking every week or so. Never had any wear issues of one end over the other, always even.