I have a few cars I would like to rotate the tires on, but I wanted to check and see if something I heard about was true. I heard that radial tires need to stay rolling in the same direction because of something inside the tire that will cause it too wear faster if it changes directions. I don't know the details I just want to know how to rotate my radial tires.

Same direction.....The radial plies may separate inside the tire if they rotate the opposite direction.ADDED:I've done a little internet research. Bridgestone, and Dunlop, say you can rotate them to turn in the opposite direction.So, I guess I was wrong.

Front to rear is the best way to rotate and even though tires of today will not come apart like earlier radials if you changed direction it is still best to allow the tread wear pattern to stay in the same direction... be aware that there are many directional tires on the market and they will indicate so on the side of the tire...

unless they are directional tires you rotate them like any other tire, left front to right rear etc., directional tires are a high performance tire and there will be an arrow on them pointing to the way they should turn.

You can criss-cross radials, but it doesn't serve much purpose. Simply swapping front to back is just as effective, plus if your camber is different left to right, criss crossing will result in strange tire wear.Some tires have directional tread blocks, this would be designated on the sidewall with a funny looking arrow with the word "rotation" next to it. If that is there, make sure it's pointing the right way.

well tires are weired, but no to your answer... only tires marked Directional need to stay on same side of vehicle ( front to back)...... other then that... rotate front to back.... then next time criss cross..... most garages will know by the yellow or whatever color dots are on the rim to which has to be done....

The tire makers say that direction doesn't matter. That's crap, based on experience. Always rotate from front to back on the same side, keeping the tire's direction of rotation the same, or the steel belts in the tire will shift, causing a bubble, vibration, or worse yet, a blow out.

Never put Radial Tires and Bias-belted tires on the same axle, if they are all Radial it doesnt matter.

Front to back, that's it. No crossing to the other side. That crossover thing was for bias-ply tires years ago. In fact, many tires today are directional, meaning they have a directional tread pattern for water dispersal or some other reason, and they must always rotate the same direction, so anything other than front to back would not work anyway. You need to make sure of this, because they have arrows embossed on the sidewall that show which way they need to rotate.

Here you go, from the the folks who know best - the tire manufacturers: http://www.tiresafety.com/maint/maint_content.aspYou'll notice they mention that straight rotations were a product of the early days of radial tires. We've come a long way in 40 years and straight rotations are no longer valid. I've done thousands of tire rotations. Unless the car has directional tread tires, you always end up cross-rotating. The entire tire industry, all the manufacturers recommend it. That is the way to go, irregardless of what others here have posted. I cross rotate my own tires and the wear I get proves this is the right way to go. It keeps uneven wear conditions like heel-and-toe wear from forming. ASE Certified Automotive Service Advisor working in the tire industry