I have a set of Continental ECSs on the Boxster and the other day when I had them off of the car I could see that across the tread there was a dip. They were at the recommended pressure at the time but looked severely under inflated. They seem to wearing evenly but I have noticed vibrations in the steering wheel that come and go.
After this observation I added 4-5lb to each tire and it seems to ride a little better. The vibration seems to have lessened too.
Maybe these tires need a little more air than the door pressure? Anyone else seen something like this?
Are all four like that or just a single tire?
What is the tire size and door pressure? Might be helpful for comparisons vs. other applications.
I run mine 4 lbs over door pressure, door pressure just seemed way too low with these.
I run them at door pressure for daily use and about 10 over for autox and they are wearing evenly. I'll try upping daily pressure when it gets warm enough to use them again.
Door sticker pressure is a starting point at best. It's only really correct for the OE tires in OE size under the manufacturer expected driving conditions. Most cars and tires are better off with different pressures in my experience.
The ECS on my BMW happen to work well at door sticker pressures, but they're not OE sized. As far as vibration, I've had some weird vibrations at times up front with my ECS (steering shake around 65 - 70). Usually goes away after driving for a bit and only happens sometimes. Pressure doesn't seem to impact it much on my car.
Dean: I only noticed it on one rear tire. I didn't check the others.
Sizes are:
205/50-17 and 255/40-17
I believe the door pressures are 29/36 front and rear respectively. I have them at 34/40 currently.
I like these tires. I don't know if I would have spent my money on them but they came with the car and I'm impressed. Hopefully they last a while longer.
In reply to spandak :
These tires are REALLY soft all the time.
Can you post a photo of a tire? I'm not understanding what the tires look like.
In reply to spacecadet :
Not my photo obviously but the tire on the left is an exaggerated example of what I'm talking about.
In reply to spandak :
If the blocks are even wear, I'd not touch anything right now. Because what you're describing makes no sense to me. It sounds like a tire that was over inflated and then now air down has a dip through the center. But you say that the tire is worn evenly across the tread. So i'm not sure what you're seeing.
Take a photo of the actual tire when you get a chance.
dps214
Reader
12/6/19 2:03 p.m.
None of this adds up, we really need a closeup photo of the tire in question. If the tread is wearing evenly the only way the tread surface would be uneven is if the tire has had some kind of internal belt failure (rare but not uheard of). At 36psi the only way those tires need more air is if you're carrying 1000lbs of ballast in the trunk or your gauge is reading 10psi low.
I would look at the other tires. If it is just one tire then I would suspect a broken steel belt in the tire.
