540-323-7555TIRE MAINTENANCE
Tire maintenance is very important when getting behind the wheel for both your own safety and the needs of your vehicle. Maintaining your tires needs includes things like tire rotations, tire pressure and your tread! As car owners of new or used cars, they will both require basic tire maintenance to keep your vehicle safe and healthy.
Tire rotations are one type of tire maintenance and they should be done about every 5,000 miles driven which is also equivalent to about every time an oil change is needed. Next time you go to get an oil change look into getting your tires rotated as well! A lot of people ask why tire rotations are important and they are important because as we drive, our tires will begin to wear and if they don’t get rotated every couple thousand miles they will eventually begin to wear in the same spot and not last as long as they could.When you rotate your tires, each tire gets an opportunity to work at all four positions on your vehicle. There are many different patterns and ways to rotate your tires, they can be moved left to right, front to back, and even diagonally. The goal when doing a tire rotation is to create an even wear on your tires which will help extend the life of your tires! If you buy a used car you might not be able to know when the last tire rotation was so here at Car Credit Nation, we will rotate your tires for you with no problem! If you purchase your new used car from Car Credit Nation, we will offer you a service protection plan which includes free oil changes and free tire rotations up to a certain amount of time!
Tire pressure is another important type of tire maintenance that needs to be maintained correctly. Our tires need air in order to do what a tire does best, but how much? Amazing question, you don’t want to put too much air in your tire because it will create a more stiff and rough ride for you while driving and having too much air can cause an over inflation and what will happen then is there will be an excessive amount of inner wear on the tire. As far as safety, having too much air in your tires could be more damaging when hitting potholes in the road or when driving on roads that don’t have the best road conditions.
Having a tire pressure that is too low than what is optimal for your vehicle will cause underinflation and excessive shoulder wear to your tire. As a result of that, it will make it a bit more difficult to have control while steering because under inflation interferes with your vehicle stability no matter how good or bad the road conditions you’re driving on are. Also, tires that are underinflated will not maintain or hold its shape and will begin to go flatter than the recommended psi.
Tire tread depth is what provides you with the ability to grip the road when driving and as you drive on a day to day basis that thick rubber tread on your tires will begin to wear over time. Some may ask when is it time to get new tires? The answer to that question is the good old penny test. Take a penny and place it head first into grooves and tread of the tire and if you can always see the top of Lincoln’s head then it is time to purchase some new tires. If Lincoln’s head is always covered then you still have good enough tread remaining on your tires. It is important to check your tires every once in a while to make sure you aren’t driving on bald tires. For example when you are driving on bald tires in the rain and you have to drive through standing water and have no tread to help you grip the road there is a higher risk of hydroplaning. Driving on bald tires can also cause a tire blowout which is not only putting yourself at risk but also others. If you think that it is time for you to get new tires, head over to Car Credit Nation in Winchester, VA and purchase a new set of tires!
