Better Understanding Your Vehicle’s Tires!
Your vehicle’s tires are often the most overlooked maintenance item. However your tires are also one of the most important components of your car. They are the only part of the automobile that makes physical contact with the ground. If your tires are not able to provide optimal performance it can negatively affect every aspect of how your car drives and behaves on the road.
Driving on excessively worn tires can increase braking distance, decrease cornering grip and cause unpredictable acceleration. When rain and wet roads are added to the equation it turns every drive into even more of a gamble for the safety of you and everyone else on the road.
Making sure your vehicle’s tires are in proper working order is paramount to securing the safety of your vehicle and everyone else’s. Here you will learn how to check your tires and when to have them replaced by a reputable tire shop, such as Eurofed Automotive, to make sure your vehicle is safe for the road.
When should I have my tires changed?
There are two main factors that determine when you need to have your tires replaced, Tread depth and tire age. Having an extreme measure of either is subject for a tire change service to be performed.
Tread Depth
Most DOT legal street tires are designed with a tread. They are the grooves and patterns you see on the outer edge and are what part of the tire makes direct contact with the road. The channels in the tread are designed to cut through the water and allow the tire to make the most contact with the road. As your tires tread begin to degrade with use, their ability to effectively evacuate water greatly decreases and increases your chance of hydroplaning. Hydroplaning is a sudden loss of traction and control when driving over a large puddle of water because the water lifts the tire from the surface of the road.
At Eurofed Automotive we recommend having your tires replaced when your tread depth is at 5/52”. You can measure your Tread depth with a tread depth gauge, but it is recommended to have your tires inspected by a certified automotive technician to confirm the condition of your tire.
Tire Age
A tire’s tread is not the only part of a tire that contributes to its ability to stay in contact with the road. Tires are not made of just 100% rubber, they are manufactured with a variety of chemical mixtures to make compounds that create a chemical bond with the road to create even more grip.
These chemical compounds do have an expiration date however. Overtime and with regular use the chemical compound within the tire begins to diminish and cause the tires to become hard, dry and begin cracking. This is more commonly known as tire dry rot.
When a tire becomes subject to dry rot their ability to provide a safe amount of grip to the road is vastly diminished and the possibilities of having an accident on the road increase. Knowing how old your tires are is another important factor to have inspected by a factory trained technician.
Every tire is manufactured with a date code on the side of the tire which indicates the day which that tire was manufactured. If that date is 4 years or older it’s recommended the vehicle is brought to an automotive tire shop for a tire replacement service.
How can I extend the life of my tires?
Wheel Alignment Service
The manufacturer designated alignment settings for your vehicle were designed, among other purposes, to create the most even tire wear possible. Have your vehicle routinely aligned by a certified automotive mechanic is the best way to lengthen the lifespan of your tires.
Click here to learn more about the alignment services.
Tire rotation service
Which side of the car the tire is mounted on and which one is also responsible for accelerating the vehicle can result in various wear rates per tire. When tires are rotated to a different corner it allows for another less worn side of the tire to be worn, and the tires that were being worn down via acceleration are swapped with the less worn wheels.
However the proper tire rotation pattern varies from car to car. Improper tire rotation can result in even more severe and irregular tire wear. To insure even tire wear and to maximize the length of your tire’s lifespan its recommended to have a tire rotation service performed by an experienced automotive mechanic.
Eurofed’s Recommended Tire Brands
Where can I have my tires changed at a tire shop near me?
You can maximize the life of your tires with alignment and tire rotation services or have your tire serviced by a dealer-certified technician at any of our convenient local Eurofed automotive locations across the American southeast.
Contact your local Eurofed to learn more about the cost-effective European automotive services that we provide.
