Re: My Sienna slowly Eats Tires??

Bought a set of four Michelin Hydroedges and they lasted about 50K miles with a lot of wear on the outside edge of the tires. Rotated them every 7-8k miles and kept the psi @ 36. Just replaced them with four new Hydroedges and plan on rotating every 5-6K miles and psi around 40. The tires do run a little rough but my old mechanic recommended running them a little higher psi to get better mileage and longer life out of these tires.

 

Just put new shoes on my 2011 Toyota Sienna XLE. The Dealer had Michelin Primacy MXv4's on it P235/60R17. At 27,000 they were at the tread indicators with rotations at every 5K. Ran them much past their safe point. The front's were basically slicks at 34,500. Went with a set of Uniroyal Tiger Paw Touring DT's in same size. Not bad at 106$ ea total bill with disposal and tax at 474.00. Not happy about the wear of tires and brake on the car. The gas millage was 18mpg with the Primacy's... Dealer told us the Sienna eats tires due to it's weight and the camber used...

Heard good things about the Uniroyals even if it is a Mast family product.... 80K tire here's hoping for 40k!!!

 

same here...i am absolutely fastidious about tire rotation, alignment and tire pressure at 40psi. still eats tires like the beasts from district nine. same goes for brakes, as others have said.

40psi?? Really? The book calls for 35psi for most tires on a Sienna LE. What kind of tires are you using? I'd expect you to wear out the middles first, at 40psi!

 

same here...i am absolutely fastidious about tire rotation, alignment and tire pressure at 40psi. still eats tires like the beasts from district nine. same goes for brakes, as others have said.

Do the math: 2 adults + 2 kids = 2-1/2 tons. Equivalent tires on a 2500-3000 lb car will of course go further.
I, on the other hand, NEVER rotate tires (LF,RF, LR & RR are painted on the rims for seasonal change). That way if any tire shows any abnormal wear I'll know about it and can take corrective action. Rotating tires will hide any possible defect in the suspension/alignment. Besides, any additional mileage with rotation is too minimal.

 

^ Good points!

 

I have seen this fact too with a 2011 sienna. After 32K miles, the tread is almost down to the wear bar. The tire I have is Michelin primacy MXV4. It is supposed to last for 60K miles. I think the reason is due to a weight of the minivan ...

 

I have seen this fact too with a 2011 sienna. After 32K miles, the tread is almost down to the wear bar. The tire I have is Michelin primacy MXV4. It is supposed to last for 60K miles. I think the reason is due to a weight of the minivan ...

I agree - stated wear life is for a typical application, which is less heavily loaded.

Do the math: 2 adults + 2 kids = 2-1/2 tons. Equivalent tires on a 2500-3000 lb car will of course go further.

Well, I don't think that there are any 2500-3000 lb cars with 215/65R16 or 225/60R17 tires, but I agree with the general point: the Sienna's tires are relatively highly loaded for their size.

I, on the other hand, NEVER rotate tires (LF,RF, LR & RR are painted on the rims for seasonal change). That way if any tire shows any abnormal wear I'll know about it and can take corrective action. Rotating tires will hide any possible defect in the suspension/alignment. Besides, any additional mileage with rotation is too minimal.

I only rotate tires once a year (at the seasonal change if I'm using separate summer and winter tires); on the other hand, rotating at least once in the life of the tires does significantly extend their life, because the fronts wear out much faster than the rears.

 

I agree - stated wear life is for a typical application, which is less heavily loaded.



Well, I don't think that there are any 2500-3000 lb cars with 215/65R16 or 225/60R17 tires, but I agree with the general point: the Sienna's tires are relatively highly loaded for their size.



I only rotate tires once a year (at the seasonal change if I'm using separate summer and winter tires); on the other hand, rotating at least once in the life of the tires does significantly extend their life, because the fronts wear out much faster than the rears.

Conventional wisdom and logic would agree with you. Although my personal experience has not shown this over time with a final difference of only 1/32". I still maintain the NO rotation policy. For stability alone, I want the best tread to be on the rear under any road condition especially on a FWD vehicle.
BTW, my winters are equally marked so they always go back on the same wheel.

 

The difference between front and rear wear will depend on loading. While we have a few thousand kilometres of driving with a trailer in tow, cargo in the back, and the rear axle at its load limit, we usually have relatively little load in the back - that might be why we see substantially faster front wear. Someone who normally has all the seats full and cargo as well might well find much more evenly matched wear.

 

... For stability alone, I want the best tread to be on the rear under any road condition especially on a FWD vehicle.

This is fine for those with relatively even front-to-rear wear, although it is based on the idea that the tires with more tread grip better and thus having the deeper tread on the back provides better stability. This is valid in rain and snow, but on dry pavement less tread is also less "squirmy", and transient response will be less stable with more tread on the back.

For more typical vehicles, keeping the deepest tread on the back is fundamentally incompatible with the idea of rotation and makes it impossible to replace tires in full sets without wasting a substantial part of tire life. (I realize this is not the case for orider)

If you have significantly faster front wear and keep the deeper tread on the back, the fronts will always stay on the front until they wear out. At that point if you replace only two tires, they will go on the back and the older tires will be moved to the front. I suppose this is workable if you use the same make and model of tire every time, although most tire models don't stay in production for the life of a vehicle.

BTW, my winters are equally marked so they always go back on the same wheel.

There's no way I would want my tires removed and re-mounted every year, or have my wheels subjected to a tire machine twice a year, so I use a second set of wheels. The second set also means I can to the seasonal swap myself.

 

I guess we have been lucky. Our 2004 AWD limited has 84,000 miles and we are on our 2nd set of tires. We bought the van used with 36k miles on it and the original run flat tires. Ran those to 46k and changed out for some discount Sumitomo tires. I was just commenting to my wife last week, how well the Sumitomo's are wearing. I see us taking the van to 100k miles on these tires with no issues. I rotate every 5k miles and check tire pressures at each 5k oil change.
Changed the front brakes at about 70k miles, rears still look good. From 36k miles to about 78k miles the van was driven on a very twisty mountain. Twisty enough to cause the stability control to take over in some of the turns. On a side note, I dislike the stability control in our van. It intervenes before it is needed and between the abrupt and aggressive braking and lack of activating the brake lights, I'm surprised it hasn't gotten us rear-ended. Fortunately we don't commute that road anymore.

 

We bought a new Sienna in the spring of 2004. The original tires were replaced in July, 2007 at 59 000 km, with Costco Michelyns. One of them failed early, 2010 after 60 000 km and I replaced the pair. The other two made it to about 90 000 km in 2012 (a little hard to tell because I started using winter tires in January 2011). The Michelin tires have a 130 000 km warranty so I have to agree the Sienna is hard on tires. 60 000 km is 37 000 miles.

I replaced the front brake pads at 117 000 km. They could have gone a good deal further. We live in a small town and do mostly highway driving which is much easier on brakes than city driving.

 

Has anyone taken the vehicle to Costco for mileage warrienty.

 

We switched out to 225/60/16 and run at 44 PSI front and 40 PSI rear. We also tow a 4000 Lb trailer with WDH. So far so good, and the van feels a bit more stable while towing with the extra width on the tires.

 

Yes, I have

Has anyone taken the vehicle to Costco for mileage warrienty.

 

Has anyone taken the vehicle to Costco for mileage warrienty.

yup. our van ate hydroedges for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. i think most i got out of a set was around 20k miles before it got down to near the wear bars on a couple of the tires (fronts, i think).

they could've gone for a bit further, but in the rainy season, i didn't want to chance it so went back to pick up a new set.

didn't expect them to honor the mileage thing since i was changing out early (before they were all down to the wear bars) but costco (at least the one i go to) was nice enough to prorate them at the time instead of having me come back when they were all completely bald.

 

I had the same problem. I had one directional tires: Goodyear Triple Tread Assurance tires and they always worn on the outside before wearing the middle out. But I found out the solution........... add more air! I took it to a tire shop and nobody could figure why they wear the outside first. A friend suggested adding more air and it worked. The ride is a little more bumpy but....... the tire last longer and guess what........ better gas mileage!

 

How much did they prorate you back. If you dont mind telling.

yup. our van ate hydroedges for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. i think most i got out of a set was around 20k miles before it got down to near the wear bars on a couple of the tires (fronts, i think).

they could've gone for a bit further, but in the rainy season, i didn't want to chance it so went back to pick up a new set.

didn't expect them to honor the mileage thing since i was changing out early (before they were all down to the wear bars) but costco (at least the one i go to) was nice enough to prorate them at the time instead of having me come back when they were all completely bald.

 

My 2005 Sienna XLE with 215/65r-16 and just over 86,000 miles is almost due for the 4th set of tires, Dunlop's original, then Michelin's now Sumitomo's, 86,000 divided by 3 =28,666 average. I decided I will try Michelin's 225/70r-16 LTX M/S2 and got a quote from Sears and probably will have them installed within a month. Sam's Club price is a little less but the tire manager told me that it's against Sam's policy to install any tire size that's not on the door plate even though the LTX tires are rated higher all around, higher speed rating, higher load rating, higher tread wear, & higher heat rating. Seems crazy to me that Sam's has this policy. After I get them and put some miles on them I come back to this forum with a report. 12/13/14 I have about 5 months and 5-6000 miles on them and I will be having a balance & rotation done next week and they still look like new. The speedometer now is more accurate with these tires. The van handles and rides better than ever.

 

The Sienna tire wear issue has been discussed in detail. Many owners have experimented with this and come up with the following advice...
1. The van is too heavy for Toyota's 35 psi tire pressure recommendation. Anyone reading this should increase their tire pressure to 40-44 psi in front and 38-42 psi in the rear on FWD models (40-44 psi and the same, front and rear, on AWD models) if you want to get reasonably good tire wear. The van also gets better gas mileage and handles/brakes noticeably better at these tire pressures. The cost is a SLIGHTLY stiffer ride, but not objectionable.
2. The Sienna is front heavy and will wear-out front tires twice as fast as rear tires. YOU NEED TO ROTATE THE TIRES if you want to get reasonably long life out of a set. This needs to be done at a minimum of every 5000 miles and a maximum of 10000 miles.

I keep my tires at 40 front and 38 rear, rotate them every 6500 to 7000 miles, and get the van aligned when I buy a new set of tires. I have not gotten less than 45k miles out of a set and I got 59k miles out of a set of Michelin Primacys.

 

Agree. I will change the tires (06 XLE) again after my long trip this week. This will be the fourth sets (including OEM tires). I had two sets Michelin Radials and will get the defend next time. My first set Radial last for 25k miles, the second set last 40k (I paid more attention to the tire pressure). I will inflate the tire to 38psi when I get the defenders. I am sure it will be more bumper ride!

The Sienna tire wear issue has been discussed in detail. Many owners have experimented with this and come up with the following advice...
1. The van is too heavy for Toyota's 35 psi tire pressure recommendation. Anyone reading this should increase their tire pressure to 40-44 psi in front and 38-42 psi in the rear on FWD models (40-44 psi and the same, front and rear, on AWD models) if you want to get reasonably good tire wear. The van also gets better gas mileage and handles/brakes noticeably better at these tire pressures. The cost is a SLIGHTLY stiffer ride, but not objectionable.
2. The Sienna is front heavy and will wear-out front tires twice as fast as rear tires. YOU NEED TO ROTATE THE TIRES if you want to get reasonably long life out of a set. This needs to be done at a minimum of every 5000 miles and a maximum of 10000 miles.

I keep my tires at 40 front and 38 rear, rotate them every 6500 to 7000 miles, and get the van aligned when I buy a new set of tires. I have not gotten less than 45k miles out of a set and I got 59k miles out of a set of Michelin Primacys.

 

Having done all this research and also irritated with the accelerated wear on our 08 LE FWD, I think I'm going to try something I did on my Subaru and put a set of 215/65-16 General Grabber AT - yep all terrain tires. I can get them at a good price, less than most all season that people are talking about. They are a little heavier but do have a little more tread depth than most all season tires. At this point, the only alternative I'm considering is an all season, the Dunlop Signature II. Having done all terrains (not mud terrain) tires before and for the last 4 years on my Subaru, you really can't tell too much of a difference at highway speeds - definitely no nobby/loud tire sounds.

Interested in hearing anyone's feedback/opinion.

 

Have a 2007 Sienna LE with 125k on it. It ate through the original Dunlops in 35k and the second set of Dunlops were replaced at 35k later. I wasn't happy with the Dunlops so I switched and put a set of Michelin Harmony on with an 80k warranty. These were better tires and with consistent rotations every 5-6k, I was able to put 55k on them before they were at 3/32nds and performed poorly in the first snow of the season. With that treaddepth, I wasn't expecting good snow traction, but it was worse than I was willing to tolerate. So at 125k I have a new set of Uniroyal Tiger Paw touring tires with a 70k warranty. Never bought a set of Uniroyals on any vehicle before, but I wasn't willing to pay for Michelin's again, so it's a bit of an "experiment". So far the Uniroyals are good in wet conditions - but haven't had it out in snow yet. The Uniroyals are quieter than the Michelin Harmony, which is nice. Going to keep the tire pressure a little higher (38psi) as mentioned on previous posts in this thread and see how the treadwear lasts on this set. If the long term traction is good and the treadwear gives me 50k out of them, I'll consider this experiment a success.
UPDATE: FEB 2015 - We've had some good snow accumulation through January, and I am pleased with how they handle in snow. They are comparable to the Michelin Harmony tire when that set was new - and a vast improvement over them when worn down. I have some confidence slogging through the snow again! With nearly 2000 miles of the set I like them - but do notice a hit in fuel economy. Tyically I got 21 mpg on the old tires. Now I am only getting 20 mpg. Seems like that might be one of the trade-offs with these Uniroyals.

 

I've got a 2009 Sienna LE and I'm just rolling past 70,000 miles. My Sienna went through the OEM tires in approximately 32,000 miles which according to the dealer was on the high end as most people replace theirs between 25,000 to 28,000. I don't remember what the stock tires were, but I wasn't going to stick with them. I put a set of Goodyear Fuel Assurance tires on and they have lasted until now. Unfortunately, the outer edges are getting more worn even with consistent rotations every 5K and maintaining 35 psi. So the plan after reading everyone else's posts it to get a new set, do an alignment and run at 40 psi. I think the reality of owning a Sienna is replacing tires every 2-3 years depending on your driving habits. I am going to stick with the Goodyear, just haven't decided between the Assurance or Fuel Assurance.

 

If you change to the 225/70r-16 light truck tires and run them at 40psi you might get better tread life mileage on them, the Sienna is just too heavy for passenger tires.