Maintaining your tyres is paramount for ensuring your own road safety and your safety towards others whilst driving. In order to get the most out of your car’s tyres, we’ve come up with our top 4 tips for how to look after your car tyres.
4 Easy Tips For Looking After Your Car Tyres
Checking your tyre pressure regularly
Ensuring that your car tyres are pumped up to the manufacturer recommended pressure is extremely essential, especially to get the most from your tyres. Under-inflation is a common problem and will limit the performance if inflated too low.
This can negatively affect the car’s handling as the rim can force the tyre sideways when cornering. Which, can lead to dislodging. It also leads to increased fuel consumption. If you’re wanting your car tyres to last as long as possible too to get good value for them then do make sure that you are keeping them inflated as per the guidelines in your handbook.
On the other hand, do make sure that you’re not over-inflating your tyres. Over-inflation can also cause major problems too, such as unpredictable handling and accelerated centre tread wear. Again you won’t be able to get the best value for money or longevity with your tyres here.
Check tyre depth
Did you know tyre treads are designed to disperse water, meaning the tyre and the road maintains contact. This is because they use the tread as a grip. As tyres wear they reduce the volume of water they are able to disperse which increases the risk of aquaplaning and increases the loss of control.
In the UK if your tyre tread is worn your tyres can be classed as illegal and you can face fines and points because of this. Make sure that your car tyres are fully adhering to the law. If in doubt check with a local mechanic. Alternatively, you can do the 20p test. If you put a 20p in your tyre’s tread and the outer band of the 20p is obscured then your tyre is legal.
Check tyres for damage
It’s important to carry out frequent visual inspections of your car tyres. You may not always be able to feel the damage to your tyres when driving, however, this doesn’t mean that they’re always going to be safe to drive on. Punctures can be caused by nails and other items on the road. Ageing tyres can also lose resistance to the effects of UV rays from the sun. This causes the rubber to crack and can fail, which could cause a blowout.
Make sure that you’re checking your car tyres regularly and if you’re going on a long drive then it is especially important that you give your tyres a once over before you set off.
Leave it to the professionals
If you’re unsure about your car tyres then you should always leave it to the professionals when it comes to tyres (and your safety). If you’re located in Scotland, Fife we have you covered as Fife Autocare offers an exceptionally wide variety of tyres online and at their multiples centres. You can book your tyres online in Stirling for free and get them fitted from your nearest branch of Fife Autocentre.
Have you got any other tips for prolonging your car tyres and keeping you safe whilst driving? We’d love for you to leave your tips below.
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