How Often Should I Inspect My Tires?

Let’s talk about your car, truck, or utility vehicle’s tires. Tire care is crucial to the safety of your automobile. Well-kept tires also help you control your automobile more easily. One thing you can do to make sure your tires are in good shape is to inspect them regularly – more on that below – and to check the air pressure every two weeks to once a month. If the air pressure is low, Advantage Auto Service recommends you add air to the low tires only to the recommended PSI. Overinflating the tires can damage them further.

Tire Inspections

It’s also a good idea to inspect your tires at least once a month. In bright light, take a good look at your tire tread to make sure it is wearing down evenly. Signs that it isn’t wearing down evenly include patches or scallops of tread wear or tread wear along the edges. Also, look for damage such as cracks on the sides of your tires or nails, screws, or other objects stuck in the tread rows.

Tire Rotations

One way to make certain that your tires wear down evenly is to have them rotated every six months or 6,000 miles, whichever comes first. Your tires get different types of pressure from the wheels and the brakes. Rotating them ensures that they don’t wear down on specific pressure points. Rather, the pressure points change on the new wheel and this helps to ensure the tire tread wears down evenly.

Wheel Balances

Another thing that will extend the life of your tires is to have the wheels balanced after you rotate the tires. Balanced wheels mean the weight of each wheel and tire is distributed evenly across your vehicle’s axles. Uneven wheel weight will make the tires vibrate as you pick up speed. This will wear down the tread unevenly and damage the tires. If you feel your tires vibrating at higher speeds – you can usually hear the vibration getting louder, too – your wheels are not balanced.

Wheel Alignments

Finally, your vehicle’s wheels should be aligned once a year or every two years at a maximum. It’s also important to align the wheels when you put a new set of tires on your automobile. Wheels that are out of alignment make controlling your vehicle extremely difficult. For example, it will pull to the side when you are trying to drive straight.

Advantage Auto Service in Marietta, GA, can help you keep your tires in tiptop shape. Call us today if you’re overdue for a tire rotation, wheel balance, or wheel alignment.