Your vehicle has a lot of important parts that keep it running and keeps you safe. While those parts and features may vary when you’re comparing cars across Canada, certain parts remain constant. Cupholders are important for holding your venti Starbucks americano frappuccino with extra whip, they just aren’t as important as one part in particular: your tires. They are often super expensive and seem like something that wouldn’t matter as much if you just cheaped out a little, but this simply isn’t the case. Learn more about the importance of tires and why it’s a good idea to maintain them below…
Why Tires Are Important for Braking
Take a look at your hand (if you don’t have one “handy” look at your friend’s hand—hopefully they’ve washed it recently). What you’re looking at is the approximate surface area where each one of your tires touches the ground. Based on that fact alone, getting tires with good grip to maximize your braking potential is crucial. Cheap ones have treads that can wear down quicker too, meaning you’ll likely end up spending more on tires anyway to replace them more often as opposed to if you just ate the cost upfront. Quality tires can last about 3-4 years, depending on how often you drive, and are a worthwhile investment.
How To Pick Your Tire Type
Choosing your tires for the right conditions you’ll encounter is important. There’s no point in getting summer tires if the road conditions you encounter are mostly slushy, icy, or snowy. You might as well be asking your car for an accident with a side order of damaged vehicle, hold the explosion. If weather is still variable over the summer, consider getting all-weather tires, potentially even the ones marked with a snowflake symbol. Those mean the tire is also rated for winter driving and has been rigorously tested to ensure it can handle tough winter conditions.
Maintaining Proper Tire Pressure
Let’s say you have purchased a good set of tires, they’ve been doing well for you, but the tire pressure warning light just came on in your car. Alright, well there’s no need to panic. You can do this, it’s just like blowing up a balloon right? Yes and no. Tires are rated individually to the pressure they should be set at based on your vehicle. Overinflate them and you’ll reduce how much contact your tires have with the road. They become much more likely to have issues braking in wet conditions. Underinflate tires and you’ll have other problems like poorer fuel economy (since more of the rubber is in contact with the road) and you’ll wear out your treads quicker. Try and keep them at the proper pressure and check your tires before you go on longer journeys to ensure you get the most out of them.
Keeping Your Tires In Good Condition & Maximizing Handling
If you’ve had your tires for a while they are bound to get worn down. However, it’s important to know what is too much wear and when you need to replace them. Watch for tire cracking, bulges, cuts, and any objects that have gotten stuck in the rubber. All of these can reduce the life of the tire, especially if there are objects sticking out of them like an overly curious gopher. Balance is also important since unbalanced tires can poorly affect your car’s handling. Make sure to get them balanced properly once you change them out between seasons. Also, check your tires when changing them for a new season to ensure they’re rotating the right way. All tires have a tread pattern that is most effective when it’s rotating the correct way. Like balance, incorrect rotation on any one of your tires can affect handling and how quiet the drive is.
Tires should not be overlooked as they are a crucial component of your vehicle to maintain. Buying new ones should also not be taken lightly either. While it’s easy to dismiss purchasing quality tires as too expensive, you’re really making an investment on the safety and maintenance of your car that will pay off.