Car Care - About Tires

Everyone knows that tires play an important role in your vehicle’s road-handling performance. But people forget that proper tire maintenance, along with monitoring tire pressure, tread depth, and performing regular tire rotations are all safety issues.

Consider these Car Care Council statistics:

  • Only 14% of drivers properly check their tire pressure
  • Nearly 70% don’t know how to tell if their tires are bald
  • 45% wrongly believe that if taking a trip with a fully loaded vehicle, they are better off with tires that are slightly under inflated

To keep you from landing on the wrong side of these statistics, our technicians are committed to proper tire maintenance.

Remember, tire pressure should be checked at least once a month. Monitoring tread depth will help ensure you’re receiving the proper level of traction and road-hugging performance as well as the ability to funnel water out from under the tire to reduce hydroplaning. Rotating your tires can even out wear rates based on the amount of weight that each tire carries on a vehicle.

What to Watch for

Here are a few pointers to help keep you and your tires rolling along trouble-free.

Rotate your tires regularly. In fact, your vehicle's manufacturer has specific recommendations for tire rotation.
Keep your tires properly inflated. Your tires typically lose 1 psi (pound per square inch) each month. That adds up very quickly. And remember, temperature can have a major impact. A drop of 10°F can also cause a 1 psi loss in pressure. Low tire pressure, in turn, can result in reduced gas mileage and excessive heat build up leading to tire damage. Check for signs of excessive or uneven tire wear. Uneven wear on the inside or outside could be an indication that other problems are lurking, so make sure your tires are professionally inspected.

tires

Here's an old trick you can try yourself. Insert a penny in the tread of the tires; if you can see the top of the Queens head, it's time to have them checked out. Better still, ask our technician to inspect your tires and help you to avoid possible problems down the road.