Heel And Toe Wear: Notes
Heel-and-toe wear is step-like wear of individual tread blocks. Refer to HEEL AND TOE WEAR , due to which an increased rolling noise can develop. The heel-and-toe wear is caused by the uneven distortion of the tread blocks in the contact patch. Heel-and-toe wear appears in more extreme forms on non-tractive wheels than on tractive wheels.
New tires have a stronger tendency to heel-and-toe wear, because the high tread blocks have greater elasticity. As tread depth decreases, the rigidity of the tread blocks increases and the tendency to heel-and-toe wear decreases.
A - Tread blocks of a new tire; viewed in direction of travel -arrow 1-, tread blocks have the same height in front and rear.
B - Heel-and-toe wear; viewed in direction of travel -arrow 1-, tread blocks are higher in front than in rear -arrow 2-.
C - Viewed in direction of travel -arrow 1-, tread blocks exhibit significant wear in forward area of "heel-and-toe wear" -arrow 3-.
Extreme heel-and-toe wear may lead to customer complaints about noise.
Increased Heel-And-Toe Wear Occurs With:
- Toe values too great
- Incorrect air pressure
- Deep, open treads
- Tires which are not mounted on the tractive axle
- Extreme driving style around curves.