Tires: Need new tires, or just an alignment?, alignment settings, alignment problem

Question
I recently took my vehicle (05 BMW X3, still under warranty) to the dealership to get my tires looked at. They were wearing very oddly, and make noise while driving down the road...I only have 32,000 miles on the tires and they are Pirelli tires (not sure if that makes a difference, just trying to give you as much info as I can)When the dealership called me back they told me I need new tires. I then asked them what is causing my tires to wear so oddly, that I need new tires? (naturally you would want to fix the problem...right?)and they replied that, "that is just what 32,000 miles do to tires. Now would you like to order new ones".....everyone I have talked to says its an alignment problem and that the dealership is probably trying to take advantage of me because I really don't know anything about vehicles and such...Are tires really rated at only 30,000 miles, is the dealership lying to me? Do I need new tires, or can I just an alignment...?

Answer
Samantha,

Speed rated tires tend to give good grip, but wear gets sacrificed.  But also BMW's are known for their handling and they build in a little bit more camber - and that causes the tires to wear unevenly.

From BMW's perspective, that's to be expected.

So if you are not interested in the handling that comes with a BMW, then you need to use different alignment settings than what BMW specs out.

Certainly you need new tires, and probably you ought to get someone to look at the alignment.  But you need to use something other than BMW's specs and a BMW dealer is not going to do that for you.