Importance of Tire Maintenance | Royal Moore Mazda

Importance of Tire Maintenance | Royal Moore Mazda

Did you know that less than 20 percent of drivers ensure their tires are properly inflated?

Your tires are one part of your vehicle that makes direct contact with the road at all times. They can impact the handling of your vehicle, braking ability, ride, and overall safety. Tires need to have the right air pressure and tread depth, as well as proper balance and alignment, in order to perform well.

Inspecting your tires regularly is a crucial step in protecting your vehicle, your safety, and other motorists’ safety. Ideally, an inspection should be performed once a month, possibly more if you live in a cold climate, on a bad road, or drive long distances frequently.

Let’s find out why tire maintenance is so important and how you can extend the life of your tires.

Why Is Tire Maintenance Important?

There are numerous reasons why tire maintenance is important. Just think about how many miles you put on your tires each year and the different types of terrain they have to travel over.

Tire maintenance can help prevent an unnecessary auto accidents. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that tires at somewhat responsible for around 11,000 collisions every year. Unfortunately, almost 200 people are fatally injured in these accidents.

The NHTSA also estimates that there are roughly 250,000 auto accidents annually that are caused by vehicles with low or inadequate tire pressure. The tire pressure impacts everything about the way your vehicle handles.

Plus, maintaining your tires will extend their life as well as the lifespan of your vehicle. Further, properly inflated tires can improve your gas mileage. With gas prices going up, this is a quick, easy way to save some money.

Tips for Extending the Life of Your Tires

When it comes to tire maintenance, there are several things you can do to extend the life of your tires.

Rotate Your Tires

Your tires will wear differently on the front and back, especially if you have front-wheel or rear-wheel drive. Ideally, you should have your tires rotated every 7,500 miles. A good rule of thumb is to have your tires rotated every oil change since it is roughly the same mileage requirements. This makes it easy to remember!

Invest in Wheel Alignment

Your vehicle should undergo wheel alignment every six months or so. By investing in this service, your tires will wear more evenly since they aren’t pulling to one side more than the other.

Check Your Tire Air Pressure

Ensuring your tires have the proper amount of air pressure can go drastically improve the lifespan of your tires. The wrong amount of pressure can result in more wear to the brake pads and tires themselves, as well as increasing your stopping distance. It can also save you money on fuel costs!

Consider checking the tire pressure at every fill-up throughout the year. It only takes a few seconds to check the air pressure in your tires as well as the tread depth, and this can go a long way in preventing an auto accident and protecting your vehicle.

Inspect Tread Wear

Under most circumstances, you can notice the wearing of your tires if you keep a close eye on them. This is an important step in tire maintenance, as considerable tread wear can result in several issues like hydroplaning.

The most common way to test the depth of your tire tread is with a penny. Insert the penny into the tread with Lincoln’s head down. If you can see his head, it is time to consider the purchase of new tires.

Slow Down

You may not realize it, but your tires are at greater risk of suffering road hazard damage when you are driving at a higher rate of speed. Further, high speeds can encourage rapid tire pressure loss or even a sudden blowout, which could lead to losing control of the vehicle.

Visit Royal Moore Mazda for Your Tire Needs

As you have learned, tire maintenance is incredibly important for the overall safety of you, your passengers, and other motorists on the roads as well as the longevity of the vehicle. When you need reliable tire services in the area, visit Royal Moore Mazda.

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