well as is states i have recently become aware of some extra noise coming from my tires. i have a 1.5" AS 4x4 level kit on my truck and im ridin on 33x12.50 toyo m/t's. as for wear the 2 front tires look the same and the 2 rear tires look the same.

they always had a bit of a hum at higher speeds but ive noticed its suddenly louder from what seems to be the driver side front tire. i went all around and checked the tire pressure and on all 4 tires im pretty much right at 40 psi on all of them.

and sometimes at higher speeds, 60+ i notice a bit of a jiggle in my steering wheel. quite subtle but its there.

i picked out a couple very small stones, probably about half the size of a baked bean per say out of the small slits in the rubber on the larger portions of the tread. they were only about 8 inches apart. for the tiny point of contact of the stone to road do you guys think thats what could be the culprit for the louder noise im hearing?

i only run these tires in the summer. then i swap them back out with my stock tires and wheels for the winter. last year was the first summer i ran them.

not sure what else it could be. think after 2 seasons of running the heavier toyo's maybe i need an alignment, ball joint? hope someone can throw me a few pointers. thanks guys.

 

My Fierce M/T's do they same thing. Its normal being M/T's and LT tires.

 

I have noticed on different tires that when the front end is even a little out of alignment I get more noise. When was the last time the front end alignment was checked?

 

my last alignment was early last summer when i got the level kit installed, just a couple months before putting the toyo's on for the first time. so, maybe going on about 16 months id say.

oh and might i mention i went on a road trip from where i live here in western ny, south of niagara falls to bar harbor maine in june, and have gone on a few camping trips as well where i hauled ***** down some pretty rough roads for a mile or so at a shot just because i could. and it was hysterical to blow by people headin the same way going 3 miles an hour in their toyota prius. i watched those cars shake like a leaf in a hurricane lol

so anyways, back to the topic, i estimate my last alignment to be about 25k miles ago. this is my first full size truck i have ever owned so im unfamiliar what a 4500lb truck can do to throw itself out of alignment.

 

Then you are definitely due. It can be very easy to knock any vehicle out of alignment. Potholes, curbs, and just general wear of the components. I usually try to do an alignment every year (15 to 20k).

 

yea i think im sue as well. think im gonna get the alignment. ive probably done enough to knock something out a little by now. even though its not pulling any wild directions and limited to the noise and slight steering wheel jiggle.

will it matter if i get the alignment done now with my toyo's on then in a month or so switch over to my stock tires? just because i switch over to my stockers wont mean the alignment will be off just because of running a different tire in the near future will it?

 

Won't matter unless the tires are worn weird, like inside or outside edges.

 

are sure it's not a bad wheel bearing causing that noise. just a thought

 

well fellas i took a much closer look today and it looks as though im getting some cupping on both front wheels. the treads mainly in the middle of the tire are wearing on angles. not real bad yet. but theres a difference. the rears are still perfect. so i pretty much said screw it for the tires this season. i took them off today so they wont get any worse because it will be a week before i am able to get my truck in for an alignment. in that time they can get chewed to kingdom come for all i know.

next spring when they go back on ill be sure to put the fronts on the rear and from that point on i will rotate them every 3k miles and get an alignment every 10k. this is the first time ive ever owned such a big heavy aggressive tire and i wasnt familiar with the more frequent maintenance that comes along with running these types of tires on your truck.

but all in all i think after these tires are used up for the most part im going to definately go up to a 34-34.5 inch tire and certainly get something a little more street like. not 10 ply mud tire. basically get a bigger tire that weighs the same or slightly less than the toyo mt/s.

but for now, ill focus on just the alignment and get that all squared away. thanks to everyone that responded and gave their input. have a great holiday weekend to all.