Tire Care Basics You Should Know

The paintjob is looking fresh, the headlights are shining bright, and the engine is purring like a tiger. Sounds like you’re ready for a night on the town or a road trip with your buddies. But wait a second! Did you forget to check what basically everyone forgets to check? The tires?

Even though they are the only thing that touches the road – or should be the only thing – on your vehicle, tires are often the last thing on people’s checklist. The common misconception is that they are just circles of durable rubber, so what could go wrong? If you aren’t careful, it could be a lot.

Tried and True Tire Tips

Whether you frequent Texas highways or take the backroads home, you need to properly maintain your tires. Failure to do so could lead to a frustrating or dangerous tire rupture in the middle of an important trip. Keep these hints and practices in mind to help avoid serious problems down the road, metaphorically and literally.

1. Regular inspections: You don’t need a professional to do this for you, although that doesn’t hurt. Just give your tires the occasional onceover to find thin treading or nails stuck in there before it becomes a worse issue.
2. Tire pressure: Has your car been handling strangely lately? It might be due to tire pressure problems. You can’t always rely on the light on your dash to tell you when something is wrong; use a manual tire pressure gauge whenever you are going to go out on a lengthy trip and see if you need to make corrections.
3. Vehicle weight: Each kind of tire can only handle so much weight. If you are heavily loading up your vehicle for a cargo haul, you need to be sure that your tires can take it. If not, you’ll need the right set installed beforehand.
4. Rotation: Most experts agree that rotating your tires every 7,000 miles or so is the right idea. In case you don’t know what this does, it helps balance out wear and tear to your treads, thus extending tire lifespans.
5. Alignment: If the steering wheel ever seems to “pull” against you, it is time to get a wheel alignment check. Otherwise, you could start fighting your car for control.
6. Spares: If you don’t have a spare tire in your car, get one. Keep in mind, however, that “donuts”, as they are commonly called, are temporary solutions to get you to a mechanic, not permanent replacements for damaged tires.

Do you have more questions about general maintenance for your vehicle? Need some work done on your powertrain or suspension? Maybe you’re thinking about adding some high-quality modifications to your beast before a road trip? No matter what you have in mind, the Houston high performance auto service specialists at HP Motorsports can help! Call us at (281) 231-9950 for a free service estimate today.