Too late to start 5-tire rotation?

[team-oomizumi]

I'm replacing my spare tire with an identical 5th tire (to be included in future rotations). Should've done it when I replaced the tires 11k and 2 rotations ago... but, whatcha gonna do? There hasn't been too much wear. Unfortunately, I don't have an exact measurement.

Been lookin around trying to get some info on this, but I can't come up with anything definitive. About how much difference can there be between tire/wheel circumference before I run any risk of problems?

thanks!

'10 Tundra Crewmax

 

[MINO]

I'm replacing my spare tire with an identical 5th tire (to be included in future rotations). Should've done it when I replaced the tires 11k and 2 rotations ago... but, whatcha gonna do? There hasn't been too much wear. Unfortunately, I don't have an exact measurement.

Been lookin around trying to get some info on this, but I can't come up with anything definitive. About how much difference can there be between tire/wheel circumference before I run any risk of problems?

thanks!

'10 Tundra Crewmax

I've done about the same thing on my Tundra. Using the guidelines from tire rack:

Replacing Pairs of Tires or Individual Tires

There are several suggestions that have been offered to drivers who are replacing pairs or individual tires on their four-wheel drive and all-wheel drive vehicles. Some vehicle manufacturers recommend that all tires maintain the same rolling radius and circumference, while others suggest that all tire circumferences remain within 1/4- to 1/2-inch of each other. Other vehicle manufacturers recommend that all four tires remain within 2/32-, 3/32- or 4/32-inch of each other, or within 30% of each other in relative remaining tread depth.

Regardless of the vehicle manufacturer's recommendations, the least stressful application is when all four tires are the same tire brand, tread design and equivalent tread depth.

Before buying pairs or individual tires for all-wheel drive and four-wheel drive vehicles, drivers should read their vehicle's owners manual or contact the dealer's service department for confirmation of their specific vehicle's requirements.

For our application (trucks) I try to keep the rear tires similar in diameter as possible in my rotations. And the one with the most tread usually goes on my driver front due to the heavier load on that tire (driver + battery). So, sometimes it's not a standard "5 way rotation" but all 5 tires are rotated.

 

[SWITAWI]

View on Google MapsDo it now, you'll be fine. Got my FJC used with just under 12k miles on it and the spare had never been on the ground. Using 5-tire rotations from then on (I'd say every 6k-10k on average) netted me close to 86k miles on the OE tires. Did they really suck towards the end? You bet they did. But the 5-tire rotation easily got me an extra 20% of tread life from the set
:safari-rig:
I followed the 'Rearward Cross' pattern (G) shown by Tire Rack, even when I had to argue with the local guys to get it done - http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=43