How to Maintain Your Car Tires

If you want your tires to last as long as they can, it's important to maintain them properly. Proper tire maintenance will ensure your tires wear properly and last as long as they are supposed to. Additionally, you should maintain your tires so that they perform as safely as possible and your car can handle the road well.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Tire pressure gauge
• Air compressor
• Penny

1. Check tire pressure with a tire pressure gauge at least every month or more often when it's cold outside. On average, tires lose around 1 psi (pound per square inch) every month and 1 psi every time the temperature drops 10 degrees F. It's important to maintain proper tire pressure.
2. Fill up underinflated tires to their recommended psi rating. You can typically find the recommended psi for your tires on your car's vehicle information sheet attached to the panel of the driver's side door or on the tires themselves. You can use the public air compressor at any gas station for a nominal fee.
3. Rotate your tires every 5,000 to 8,000 miles. Rotating tires ensures that they wear evenly and prolongs the life of your tires. When you don't rotate your tires, you run the risk of having one tire that wears more significantly than the others and that has to be replaced sooner.
4. Inspect the tread on your tires for wear regularly. If you become familiar with what your tread looks like, it will be that much easier for you to identify when the tread is worn down. When you can see the tread bars that run across the tires, it's time to have your tires replaced.
5. Check the depth of the tread with a penny. Hold the body of Lincoln on the penny and insert his head into the tread groove. If the head is hidden by part of the groove, the tread is within acceptable legal limits.
6. Listen to your car for irregular noises, particularly at speeds in excess of 50 mph. If your car is making noises when in motion, it could be a sign of irregular wear or other problems with your tires. Have a professional check this problem.

Tips & Warnings

• Check tire pressure when the tires haven't been driven on for several hours. Tires warm up when driven on, and warm air can distort the psi measurement.
• When rotating tires, note whether your tires are directional. Directional tires can be rotated only front to back and vice versa. They cannot be rotated side to side.
• A tire can be nearly 50 percent underinflated before you notice it with your eye. By that time, a lot of damage may have already happened to the tire, and you've probably been paying more in fuel inefficiency.