Is tire rotation really necessary on Prius?

Same here. I like even wear on my tires. Maybe it's a hold-over from my old Jeeping days. On a Jeep C-J5, the live front axle causes the front tires to cup. Combine that with worn ball joints and you get a front tire shimmy that will shake a Jeep right off the road at resonant speed. That's why you see shimmy dampers on many Jeeps.

Tom

 

You absolutely have to rotate the tires on the Pirus! The car is bias heavy on the front end which will cause, and I have experienced twice by failing to rotate every 5,000 miles, cupping that effects sound and handling.

Buy the tires from a place like Discount Tire or Americas Tire. They offer lifetime free rotation.

 

Hi Tom,

We visited Sedona, AZ a couple of years ago and rented a Wrangler to drive off-road. It was fine going at slow speeds, but felt weird on the highway. Now I know why it felt so unstable...

 

In Canada Kal-Tire provides lifetime free rotations and it's a requirement for the tire warranty.

 

Cost should be a non-issue, this a task that you should be able to perform yourself, as well as oil changes. The cost you are quoting of $20 a visit is a "convenience" fee, and should not be a factor in your thoughts that rotating is not economical.

 

Do tire rotations yourself? With a jack? What a hassle!

 

I did my 15k oil change last weekend and noticed the left front tire worn on the outside, so did my first tire rotation. I actually bought a second small floor jack some time ago, a small 2000 lb one for less than $20 at WallyWorld but never had the gumption to rotate until the weird wear.

I can understand the theory of best tires to the rear on older cars without VSC. With VSC I wouldn't think it would matter if the worse ones are on the rear, which is where mine are now. I'm not too worried....

 

I've also heard the arguement that eventual mismatched wear tire wear and/or driving conditions (for example, you mostly take right turns in your daily driving or excessive rotary intersections) may cause uneven wear and which eventually impacts your alignment anyways and that tire rotations mitigate to some extent this wear on the alignment as well.
I guess as others have said, though, rotate when you feel the need. My 2005 prius maintaince package included oil change and tire rotation as well as a bunch of other things; the deal was pretty good if you own the car for 3 years or more - saves you like $50-$100 a year or something. But I traded in my car after only 2 years - so I was like - "@#$$#% - what if I get the 2010 model in 2yrs!? 'F' that!"; so I didn't get the maintance agreement and will just rotate it whenever I feel is a good time. But I will probably not put more than 10k miles before changing them.

As for buying a pair of new tires and where to install them, it's been hased over many times so I will only add that some people drive in areas with lots of wet weather so maybe they feel the need for better rear traction while others are in dryer areas so they will opt for the front traction to go *vrooom*. But my point to this is to be aware of your environment and be educated about your decisions and the potential results. An emergency, is afterall, something unexpected and we can only be prepared upto a point; and with all the new safety features included in automobiles today, I feel the biggest threat is not what nature throws at us, but what our fellow man hurls at us. And there's no bigger threat to safety than human ingenuity to be unpredictable.
Just look at the Prius in the USA - do you think GM doesn't feel threated by it

 

Cupping would be caused by mis-alignment (or faulty tires, but that's not likely in this case since it happened more than once). Rotation only masks the underlying problem.

 

And you can afford to use better materials (syn oil) and still save money vs. taking it into the shop and paying someone to perform the labor. I also think its actually more convenient because I don't need to schedule an appointment or wait around drinking vending machine coffee at the dealer.

 

I don't think you will get 30K miles on the Goodyear Integrity tires without rotating. The front tires will probably be worn out after 15K miles, unless your habit is to take corners very slowly...

 

an oil change on the prius is super easy. its all right there and easy to get at. tire rotation on the other hand is a hassle.

 

IMO, tire rotation is very easy as well, as long as you have the proper equipment. Use the proper lifting points and don't get under the vehicle when it is only supported by a jack; use jack stands.

Here is a thread with some info on jacking/lifting the Prius:

http://priuschat.com/forums/care-ma.../35358-jacking-lifting-points-your-prius.html

 

I have a Catfriend too: