While many drivers keep up with regular oil changes, brake work and other automotive maintenance, it can be easy to forget about tires. But it’s important to remember that tires are the shoes of your vehicle; they’re the only parts of your car that actually touch the road when you drive.
Suffering a blowout of worn tires at 60 miles per hour can be disastrous or even deadly. Taking care of your tires is essential to good automotive upkeep and to the safety of everyone who rides in your car or truck.
There are two basic ways to lengthen the life of your tires.
1. Keep tire pressure at the manufacturer’s recommended level. Underinflated tires increase tire wear, waste gas and can cause blowouts. For best results, check the air pressure of your tires every month.
2. Have a professional rotate your tires regularly. This ensures that they wear evenly, perform better and last longer. While the time between rotations varies with each model, most manufacturers recommend that you rotate tires every 5,000 to 10,000 miles.
When to buy new tires
No tires last forever. Like shoes, they wear down and don’t grip like they did when they were new. There are several factors that affect tire wear: age, weather, mileage, alignment problems and improper inflation, to name a few.
It’s important to know when it’s time to replace your tires. Some of the signs of worn tires are tire blisters, sidewall cracks, excessive vibration, the appearance of tread wear indicator bars and, of course, lowered tread depth.
Tread depth can be checked with the old penny test. Here’s how it works: Insert a penny (head first) into a few tread areas of the tire. If you see the top of Abraham Lincoln’s head, you need new tires. If part of his head is always covered, you probably don’t.
When it’s time to buy, consult a tire professional about the correct size, type and style of tire that best fits your vehicle. Count on a professional to inform you about the difference between touring, passenger, performance, high-performance, ultra performance and competition tires.
More tips about tires
The Tire Industry Association, a Maryland-based organization that represents all segments of the tire industry, answers some frequently asked questions on its website.
Why should I follow the size, load index and speed rating on the placard when I select replacement tires?
Every new vehicle is engineered to deliver maximum performance. The tire specifications on the placard are directly tied to the suspension and braking system on the vehicle. If a different size or lower speed rating than the one indicated on the placard is used when the original tires are replaced, the responsiveness and handling of the vehicle may be affected. If the load index on the replacement tire is lower than the one on the placard, the tire may not be able to carry the maximum weight of the vehicle.
Why should I install two new tires on the rear axle of my front-wheel-drive vehicle?
Because a vehicle with brand-new tires on the front axle and worn tires on the rear has a greater tendency to lose control when turning in wet or slippery conditions. While the new tires on the front may hug the turn, the worn tires on the rear may slide out and fishtail. This condition is known as over-steering, and it has been known to cause serious and fatal accidents on front-wheel-drive vehicles with two new tires on the front axle and two worn tires on the rear.
Why should I pay extra to properly repair a flat tire when plugging is so much cheaper?
Unless you have X-ray vision, any damage on the inside of a tire can’t be detected when plugging the tire on the rim. By removing the tire from the rim, inspecting the interior and repairing the damage with a plug/patch combination, the integrity of the tire can be restored.
Why should I bring my car back to the tire dealer to check the lug nuts for proper torque?
Everyone knows the problems associated with loose lug nuts, but over-tightening them can be just as dangerous. A simple torque check shortly after a tire rotation or installation can identify a damaged stud or lug nut.
