Need advice on tire blister

[ShiftItDriveIt]

So, instead staying in last night because of the awful weather, i got to pick my gf at the airport. On a side street i made curb contact with the right front, producing the wonderful blister pictured below. So, it seems imperative to get a new tire, but i'm wondering, do i need to replace both, and get an alignment? I'm considering just taking the wheel off, and replacing the one tire only. These front tires where recently rotated from the back to the front with around 15k miles.

[theholycow]

Just replace one tire. People who make money on tires have always been trying to convince everybody that you can't replace just one tire, but it truly won't cause an issue.

Maybe, maybe there could be an exception for an AWD car. What do you drive?

You ought to put your car into your profile so that it's easier to answer questions like this?

[ShiftItDriveIt]

it's a 2004 Ford Focus ZX3.

[Saabstory02]

Check your tire wear. As long as your tires don't currently have too much wear (2-3/32s or so) then changing just 1 tire will not hurt a thing; I've even done it twice on my AWD without any issues.

If your tire wear is greater than that, then ask the shop (or tire rack if ordering) to shave the new tire to match your current wear; most can do this and it will keep you from having any pulling issues or anything.

[theholycow]

Don't waste money and tire life shaving it. Put it on whichever corner gets the most wear and don't include it in rotating your tires until it's even with the other 3. Or, stick it on the rear where it won't matter.

[Saabstory02]

Of course it will matter; if the tires are that far off in wear even if it's on the rear of a FWD car it will effect handling...

OP if you chose to just put a new one on it will certainly work; just be prepared for possible handling issues until treadwear gets a little more even. As I said above if your current tires are lightly worn so far then no issues; the more worn your current tires are the greater the possibility of pulling or other handling concerns.

[theholycow]

I doubt it would cause a measurable or noticeable difference in handling on a Focus. It could certainly cause a placebo.

Now, if it was an entirely different model of tire, that's a whole other story. Even then, still you'd never notice it in the rear of a car that understeers consistently where you never approach the limit of rear traction. I assume a Focus understeers like most FWD cars.

If it made a big difference, you could notice within ten minutes of leaving the shop and go back to get the other tire. If not, you've just saved yourself a whole bunch of money.

Maybe I should make friends with someone who has the same size tires as me, drives on badly maintained roads, and wouldn't even try replacing just one tire. I could get a steady supply of free tires and never need to buy tires again.

[DarkPilot]

I'll just toss my buck 'o five.

A few weeks ago, I had to put my full size spare on. It's a partially worn (maybe 11/32 gone) all season tire to replace one of my winter tires whose rim I bashed off a curb. The winters only have 1.5 seasons on them (about 3/32 wear gone).

I put this wheel on my front right wheel and noticed no ill effects for the 2 days I had it on, inclusding the 300 km I drove on the 401

8/32 wear isn't that drastic a differance, so your mileage may vary.

[4onthefloor]

including the 300 km I drove on the 401

If it can handle that then OP should be fine. There are sections between London and T.O. that are enough to rip a brand new tire right off the rim.

[ShiftItDriveIt]

thanks everyone for the advice, it went to sears to change just the one. I was surprised, kept waiting from them to sell me on getting another tire, or alignment, but they didn't. Now i have two different brand tires with different wear... but it's a 6 year old focus! Who cares.

[watkins]

You should have at least tried to match tires. Its differences in tread especially that will cause dangerous situations

[padauk_dust]

Bah, I ran an extremely mismatched tire on one wheel of my legend for a few months; didn't hurt a thing. Barely even affected handling.
Just replace that one tire is my advice. Don't spend any more $$.

A brand new tire's tread depth is what, only 3/8" or 1/2". For everyday driving in a regular car, the difference between a new tire and a used one is negligible, given they are the same numerical size.

[watkins]

The numerical size of tires doesnt really mean much. There is no legal exact specification for tire size. Different tires of the same numeric size can be pretty different in physical size. Look at the revolutions per mile listed on any good tire website. Youll see what Im talking about.

[theholycow]

While they do vary, they are usually close enough. There are probably extreme combinations where it could affect handling on the front of a Focus, but as long as the size is remotely similar it'll be fine on the rear.

I think perhaps the naysayers have never even tried it, at least on a regular car on the street. If we're talking about an extremely tuned car or a race car, that could be a different story.

For anyone else in this situation in the future, you have nothing to lose by trying one. Try it. If it affects your handling, it's not a permanent condition; you can go back and buy the other tire (or you could try adjusting tire pressures).

[ShiftItDriveIt]

Yeah, I'm now thinking of getting the other one now, just for a sense of symmetry. I haven't really notice any difference in the handling, but again, we're talking different brands of cheap all season tires on an old focus.