Taking care of your CAR Tyres

Taking care of your tyres is easier than you think. Check out these important points to see if you’re doing the right thing.

BALANCING :Properly balanced tyres are important for driving comfort and long tyre life. Unbalanced tires can cause vibration, resulting in driver fatigue, premature tyre wear and ruined suspension. Tyres should always be balanced when they are mounted on wheels for the first time, or when they are remounted after repair. Tyre vibration may also be caused by poor tyre alignment or other mechanical problems.

CARE : New tyres feel different from the tyres that were replaced. Drive carefully as you become familiar with their performance and handling characteristics. Differences are most noticeable while braking, accelerating, cornering, and driving in the rain. You need new tyres when the tread is worn down to where you can see a solid bar of rubber across the width of the tread. Sometimes inserting a coin to measure the depth of the tread tells you how much your tyre is worn.

DRIVING:Avoid speeding if you want to increase the life of your tyres. Excessive heat is generated while driving at high speeds, increasing the rate of wear, and reducing its durability. Avoid fast turns on curves, fast starts and sudden braking.

INFLATION : Always use the air pressure recommended by the vehicle manufacturer. You can find the proper tyre inflation level in your owner’s manual, posted on the edge of the driver’s door, on a door post or on the inside of the glove box door. Remember to check your air pressure when the tyres are cold. Don’t have time to go to the garage all the time? Keep a good pressure gauge handy. Also, it is very important to remember not to try any stunts and try to repair tyres yourself. It takes a trained professional to determine if your flat tyre is safe to repair. When a tyre loses its air pressure, it must be removed from the wheel for a complete internal inspection. Tyres driven a short distance while flat can be damaged beyond repair. Most punctures smaller than ¼"and confined to the tread area can be repaired by trained personnel using industry approved methods. Tyres with punctures on the sidewall or tyres worn below 1/ 16" can not be repaired.

ROTATION :Regular and proper tyre rotation promotes uniform wear. Tyres should be rotated in a"modified X" pattern, meaning only the tyres being moved to the drive axle are crossed to the opposite side of the vehicle. The remaining two tyres are moved from the drive axle to the free rolling axle, remaining on the same side of the vehicle. This method of rotation helps promote even and uniform tread wear pattern for all four tyres. These should be rotated at least every about 10,000 kms. It is a good idea to rotate four- wheel drive vehicles every 6,000 kms. Check your vehicle manual for information.