Hot take: The guy who told me to 'rotate my tires every 3,000 miles' was totally wrong

My neighbor Gary, who's been fixing cars since the 70s, swore I'd get uneven wear if I didn't rotate them that often. So I did it for about 18 months on my 2016 Civic. But then I checked the manual and it said 7,500 miles. I told Gary and he just shrugged. Now I'm wondering how many other old school tips people pass around that are pure myth? Anyone else get bad car advice from a well meaning friend?

2 comments

2 Comments

grant.margaret12d ago

Funny thing about that 3,000 mile rule. It came from back when tires and oils were way worse quality. Modern cars and tires don't need that. Your manual is the real authority, not Gary. But here's the twist nobody talks about. That old advice can actually hurt newer cars. Over-rotating them can mess with the torque specs and wear down the lug nuts faster. So Gary meant well but his info was for a totally different era of car.

the_morgan12d ago

Started checking my own manual after a buddy told me to change my oil every 2,000 miles. Found out modern synthetic oils are good for 7,500 to 10,000 miles, so I saved a ton of money and hassle just by reading the actual instructions.

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