Passat rear tyre wear

[waynetdi130]

Hi
I have a 2008 Passat 2.0tdi the cars eating the rear tyres on the inside edge, only done 20,000 miles on them. the outside of the tyres still have about 5 mm but the inner edge is knackered, whats causing this? any help thanks

[skomedal]

Standard VW recommended tyre for this model or ?

[waynetdi130]

Hi
the tyres are 235/45/17 think there the standard tyres for the Passat Highline,

[DMitch16]

A couple of things both common to B6 Passats with the rear suspension being adjustable for toe and camber. If your toe setting is out (positive) the inner edges will wear excessively and if the camber is over 1.41 degrees positive you will suffer rapid inner tyre edge wear. Before doing any wheel alignment you should first check all the bushes for wear as worn bushes may make the camber overly positive. If all your bushes are fine both the inner wishbone bushes and the upper control arm bushes have concentric bolts and washers for camber and toe adjustment. Camber should be set first then toe followed by rechecking of the camber as the two settings do affect each other slightly.

Just doing a 4 wheel alignment would be wasting your time and money if components are worn. Also ensure that your rear drop links are in good condition especially the ball joint end as this can affect the inner edge wear by a smaller fraction by giving too much roll under cornering. Everything should be nice and taught under the weight of the car. I have changed most of the rear components on my vehicle (everything but the roll bar and springs) and have near perfect rear tyre wear now.

[RichardSEL]

Get your camber arm bushes and bolts replaced. Don't just get the bush, the secret is in the bolts. They get rusted and they mess up the camber over time.

Four wheel laser alignment needed after. I've had good results from Hunter-equipped shops

[waynetdi130]

Ok thanks for the advice I'll check the bushes for wear and replace the camber bolts. What sort of money are we talking to get a hunter alignment done? Thanks

[Quatrelle]

I'm guessing your rear wheels are toeing out instead of toeing in or neutral (driven wheels toe out). Check the tread block edges for feathering, camber will just wear them evenly with no feathering. Toe out is not an unknown issue with these cars.

Have a read of this very long thread: Passat Rear Tyres!!

Tyre pressures ok?

If the wear difference between the inside and outside really is that bad and it is camber-related you'll probably be able to see the wheels leaning in!

[DMitch16]

Hunter is usually £100 to £150. Beware of those who do 4 wheel alignment, start the job then say they don't do camber adjustment as they'll still charge you a packet for just the toes which may or may not cure your problem as adjusting toe sometimes knocks the camber out a touch. Always be clear as to what you want and how much it costs before they start adjusting. I did mine myself with string, a long straight edge, axle stands, a tri square, tape measure and a magnetic camber guage!

You can check your camber yourself both visually and using simple equipment - there are plenty of DIY videos for checking camber on the Interweb. The rear wheels should be as close to a zero degree camber as possible (rear camber must be inside the range of +/-1.41 degrees but front camber is generally non adjustable). I could see my camber was wrong just by looking at the two rear wheels from behind as the NSR wheel looked like it was falling into the wheel arch. When measured with the guage it was nearly 5 degrees out.

[RichardSEL]

I've got alignment readouts for an '08MY Sport Saloon (non-Hunter machine) And my own an '06MY SEL Estate.
@OP - What have you?

[DMitch16]

Get your camber arm bushes and bolts replaced. Don't just get the bush, the secret is in the bolts. They get rusted and they mess up the camber over time.

Four wheel laser alignment needed after. I've had good results from Hunter-equipped shops

Good luck if you have to change the bolts as mine were seized inside the bushes and I had to cut them off with a power saw!