have to replace all 4 tires in quattro?

[audiholix]

Guys,

just found a bubble on one of my rear tires last night. Do I have to replace all four tires? they still have about 60% tread. I've heard that in awd cars , all 4 tires must be replaced, which would mean that I might as well buy a new set of rims / tires because I don't want 17's again. I was hoping to save the money for some body mods so hit me back guys. thanks.

[03CrysBlueB6]

i know around here a lot of shops wont sell jsut one tire.. and if your going to be getting tires in the next 6-10 months anyways.. jsut get them all the same time

[Jibberific]

in the a4 owner's manual it says you can replace just the one as long it's the same manufacturer, size, and tread pattern

[walky_talky20]

The real issue is the circumference of the replacement tire. When replacing just one tire, you should make sure the replacement is very close in circumference to all of the others. Audi publishes that the "rolling radius of all 4 tires must remain the same".

The best way to do this is to replace the tire with exact manufacturer/model/size tire. The new tire's tread should also be within a few 32nds of the other tires. I believe Audi recommends being within 4/32" or less. Some places have tire shaving services for this purpose.

Using the same brand/model of tire will ensure that the new tire will wear down at relatively the same rate as the others (keeping the circumferences the same throughout the life of the tires).

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete....jsp?techid=18