Will stiffer rear shocks resolve tire cupping and rough ride?
 

My '08 Civic EX has experienced rapid tire wear, cupping and flat spots on the rear tires. Just replaced my second set of tires for this problem and the car only has 53k. There was a tsb for '06-'07 for a similar problem which involved the control arm. The '08 supposedly has the new control arms to right the issue. Although myself and many other '08 owners still have the problem. Honda always tells me the same thing..."your car is fine, we suggest new tires".

Someone suggested a stiffer set of rear shocks as a possible answer. They suggested the KYB gr2 for an all around good replacement. Any suggestions on the issue and/or brand and rating for shocks? HFP, Mugen...etc?

Thanks.

Re: Will stiffer rear shocks resolve tire cupping and rough ride?
 

Stiffer shocks would do the complete opposite of what you desire, they would result in a rougher ride and increased tire wear. You should be looking into kyb GR-2 struts, those are a soft oe replacement.

I've had tires wear out that quickly on my 02, in my experience certain tire brands just don't last. I would suggest trying installing an after-market rear camber kit and having a 2 wheel rear alignment, if there is a camber issue that should correct it.

Re: Will stiffer rear shocks resolve tire cupping and rough ride?
 

you have defective rear camber arms.

Re: Will stiffer rear shocks resolve tire cupping and rough ride?
 

My observations and opinions:

I can tell you that the updated arms don't completely eliminate the problem, but they reduce it. We have plenty of the cars that still chop the rear tires even after replacing the arms, it just takes longer to do it now.

The updated arms have the letter C inked on in white. The original arms don't.
An alignment must be done when the arms are changed.

Before these new arms were released, I was taking the original arms off and grinding out the bolt holes to make slots. This would give enough room for adjustment to bring the camber into the new specs.
Prior to the release of the new arms, Honda said they want the rear camber to be as close to 0 degrees as possible, but even the new arms don't get very close to that spec. Their new spec range is -1.5 to 0 degrees, and I see them in the range of -1.5 to -1.0 after the new arms are installed.

Rotating the tires too infrequently (or never) is the biggest cause of rear tire tread chop on any front wheel drive car. The excessive negative rear camber just aggravates it.
Tread design is a close second. Blocky tread on the edges is a setup for chopping later on.
The original Dunlop, Bridgestone, and Goodyear tires were very bad about chopping. I would spend the money on Michelins if it were mine.

Re: Will stiffer rear shocks resolve tire cupping and rough ride?
 

thats bad news. maybe its time to go aftermarket and not deal with the probems of oem.

Re: Will stiffer rear shocks resolve tire cupping and rough ride?
 

I have to start hauling some heavy stuff in the trunk of my 2006 Honda Civic. I need to replace the shocks anyway and want to put Heavy Duty shocks on the rears and stock on the front.
Can anyone recommend a set of good heavy duty rear shocks?

Re: Will stiffer rear shocks resolve tire cupping and rough ride?
 

^^ X2. 70,000 mile Michelins are well worth the extra expense.