Maintaining tires, wheels, and brakes
Your tires, wheels, and brakes are an essential part of your car. If your brakes aren't working, you are in danger of accident. If your wheels are damaged, tires won't work well. Your tires can wear fast, and not keep traction long which can be hazardous, if you are not careful with them. So, help maintain tires, wheels and brakes by doing the following things:
|
|
Keep your tire valve caps on.
If you have leaky valves, you will get flat tires, especially if you do not have your tire valve caps on. So, make sure that those little caps stay on. This does two things, it prevents a leaky valve from causing a flat tire, and two it keeps valves from becoming damaged or leaky. The cap will keep dirt, moisture, and other debris from getting too your tire valves, and causing problems with them. This dirt and debris can lead to tire valve problems, so keep those valves on.
Maintain proper inflation.
Tires that are not properly inflated will wear unevenly, and will mean excessive heat and stress which could cause tire failure. A tire gauge is going to be your wallet's best friend because it will tell you if your tire is under-inflated, etc. this can save you tons of money. So use your tire pressure gauge at least once a month. You want to make sure that you check your tires when they are cold, in order to make sure you have an accurate reading. Check your owner manual so you will know what the pressure should be, and then keep it at it as often as you can.
Don't fill tires with wet air pumps.
If you are going to put air in your tires, make sure that you check the inflator valve. Press it with your thumb. If there is any moisture left on your thumb, then there is condensation or moisture in the inflator, which means you need to stop using it and choose a different station to fill up at. If you fill up with an air pump that has moisture in it, you could ruin your tires. The moisture can cause pressure variation and corrode rims.
Check wear regularly.
The tread on your tires can really wear down, so make sure you meet the requirements set by your state, and make sure that if your tire is wearing unevenly that you fix the inflation. A tire that does not have even wear is not properly inflated, or improperly operating brakes or shocks, as well as a number of other problems, so if your tire wear is improper, get your car in and get it checked.
These tips will help you maintain your car tires, and help you spend less on flats, replacements, and other problems that come with improperly inflated, or worn tires.
