out edge tire wear on z71

my98z71 · May 18, 2005

I have a 98 z71 with 45000 miles on it. The tires are wearing on the outside edge. I took it to a wheel alignment place and they said it needs new idler arm and pittman arm. I took it to a tire place and they said it needed new shocks. My barber said it is just probably the tires because they don't put good tires on new trucks. This truck has been babied, never loaded or hauled anything. Can someone tell me what you think might be wrong with it. Tires are rotated every 6000 miles. Thanks

mmmikkke · May 18, 2005

I have a 98 z71 with 45000 miles on it. The tires are wearing on the outside edge. I took it to a wheel alignment place and they said it needs new idler arm and pittman arm. I took it to a tire place and they said it needed new shocks. My barber said it is just probably the tires because they don't put good tires on new trucks. This truck has been babied, never loaded or hauled anything. Can someone tell me what you think might be wrong with it. Tires are rotated every 6000 miles. Thanks

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If it's not pulling to either side, then you most likely have a toe-in problem.

(That's unless somebody has cranked the torsion bars to raise the front end. If the t-bars have been cranked, you might have a camber problem, which would cause the same kind of wear pattern on the tires. This problem can be solved with just a wheel alignment, by somebody competent enough to do the whole job. Some "wheel alignments" are just toe-in adjustments, so you have to make sure when you purchase a wheel alignment that it includes caster, camber, and toe-in adjustments!)

If it turns out to be just a toe-in problem, something must have deteriorated to cause the problem, such as a worn idler and/or worn pittman arm. Any competent wheel alignment technician who claims to have found worn parts should be able to *show* you the evidence. They should be able to demonstrate the worn part's looseness when you look at the steering linkage as the truck sits on the hoist.

I'd guess, from all that you have said, that the alignment shop is correct and everybody else is blowing smoke. Have the alignment shop show you the idler/pittman arm wear, and after the job is completed, have them show you how the new parts don't do what the old parts did (wobble, etc.). That should keep everything on the up and up.

After those items are replaced, you will of course need a wheel alignment, as replacing those parts throws everything off.

While they're doing the alignment, if your t-bars have not been adjusted, you might want to get that included in the deal. Maybe you'd like the front end to sit 1" higher. Some shops will do that as part of the alignment. And it's better to have the alignment done after the front end is raised, because as I mentioned above, raising the front end (by cranking the t-bars) messes with the camber of the front wheels.