Take Care of your Tires with these Simple Maintenance Tips

Your tires are crucial to your vehicle operating smoothly so it’s important to take care of them and replace them, when necessary. Ryan Ford has some easy maintenance tips on how to keep your tires in good shape, and what to do when you have a problem. Need to replace a tire? Don’t stress! Let Ryan Ford do the work for you!

While tires can vary depending on the manufacturer, the basic structure is the same. Refer to the picture below to learn the anatomy of your tires.

There are several occasions that may require you to replace a tire, which are as follows:

• There is 3/32” or less of tread remaining (Use the penny test!)
• The tread wear indicator, or wear bar, is showing across any tire
• You feel a sudden vibration while driving
• The tire is punctured, cut or snagged
• You notice air slowly seeping out of a tire
• You experience poor handling or traction on slick or snowy surfaces.

If you find that any of your tires meet the criteria above, you'll need to replace it. Although we know that replacing tires is not the most cheap expense you'll have, keep in mind that replacing one tire isn’t ideal as it could have adverse effects on suspension systems, gear ratios, transmission and tire treads. If you had to resort to replacing only one tire, it’s recommended that you match up the new tire and the tire with the deepest tread and place both at the rear to get the best traction. If you were to replace two tires, do the same practice to give you the best handling.

Hopefully our tips above help give you a better understanding of what to look out for when replacing your tires and the best practices when doing so. If your tires need replacing or if you're unsure, pay a visit to service center at Ryan Ford - we'd be happy to help you with any tire maintenance you may need.