How Not To Wear Out Car Tyres

Knowing how to maximize the life of your car tyres isn’t only a simple way of saving money in the long run. Looking after your car tyres also keeps you safe and legal; being neither can be very costly in more than a financial sense.

Run the tyres at the right pressure

This is a good starting point. Too little pressure wears the edges of the tread prematurely, lets the tyres flex too much and can cause overheating. Too much pressure increases the wear on the centre of the tread. Remember that, comfort and safety aren’t the only issues – running tyres at the wrong pressure is illegal.

Make sure your wheels are properly aligned

Misaligned wheels are another sure-fire tyre killer. Misalignment can make your tyres wear unevenly, wear the inside or outside edges and cause problems with both braking and steering. Moreover, a significant amount of such wear means you’ll have to throw your tyres away far too soon.

Drive sympathetically

Your car may have traction control and ABS but you can still trash the tyres effectively despite them. How? By driving aggressively. Make sure you accelerate as gently as possible whenever you can and use the brakes carefully, not as though every stop is an emergency stop. Don’t forget that unnecessarily hard cornering shortens the life of your tyres. On a front wheel drive car, the front tyres wear more quickly because they have to transmit power to the road, and take steering and braking forces.

Drive slower

Consistently driving fast will wear out your car tyres sooner.

Choose the right tyres

You could get ‘long life’ tyres for your, which wear more slowly though they tend to be a little noisy. Tyres having a softer rubber compound will be nice and quiet and will wear more quickly. Always follow the tyre fitter’s recommendation of the best compromise for your needs.

Always keep your car under cover

All car tyres degrade over time. If you can keep your car in a garage, out of the sun, you can be sure your tyres will last longer. If you see a fine lattice of cracks has appeared in your tyres’ sidewalls after, say, five years, the tyres are unsafe and must be replaced.

Give your tyres a break

Remember that ‘traffic-calming’ measures shorten the life of your tyres but you can help your tyres out by driving intelligently. Always cross speed bumps slowly. Never straddle speed bumps. Instead, make sure that the only wheels on one side of your car pass over them. Keep an eye out for potholes, avoiding them where you can. When parking, make sure you never mount a kerb. Apart from making life easier for your tyres (and your wheels), these actions will prevent your wheels being knocked out of alignment, leading to wear – and possibly worse.

Using these proven top tips means your car tyres will last longer. This means you’ll save money by not having to replace your tyres before their useful life ends.

Merityre are a leading UK independent supplier of car tyres. Why not visit their website at www.merityre.co.uk and see where you can buy your next set of tyres.