How To Make Your New Tires Last As Long As Possible

The tires on your vehicles will wear over time, but if you have just replaced them, you want to get the most mileage from them as possible. You can do some things to ensure that the tires you put on your car last as long as possible, and they are not difficult things to do.

Tire Pressure

One of the most critical things that affect the way tires wear is the tires' air pressure. If the air pressure is too high, the center to the tire tread will often bulge a bit, and that part of the tread will wear before the rest of the tire. The opposite will happen on a tire without enough air pressure, causing the tread's outer edges to wear rapidly. 

The tire pressure is printed on the tire's sidewall, and it is listed in the owner's manual so you can reference it and adjust the pressure in the tires as needed. A tire service can check them for you and add or remove air as needed, and often they don't charge anything to add air to the tires for you. 

Tire Rotation

Tire rotation is an excellent way to ensure the tires on your car are wearing evenly. If you take your vehicle to a shop for oil changes, you can have the technician move each tire to a new location on the car so that each tire wears the same over time. Tire rotations should be done every other oil change to be effective.

The tire dealer where you purchased the tires will often offer free rotation as well, so you can take the car back to them and let them rotate the tires for you. If you go back to the tire service and there is anything wrong with the tires, they can fix the tire for you while the car is in the shop, and if the tires are under warranty, it may not cost you anything to have the work done while you are there. 

Nitrogen Inflations

When you have new tires installed on your car, you may want to ask about having the tires inflated with nitrogen instead of air. Nitrogen is an inert gas that is not affected by temperature or humidity, so the inflation never changes and can not affect the tire's wear. 

There is often a charge for this service because nitrogen is not free like compressed air, and some special equipment is needed to use it. The tire's air is removed, and the nitrogen is pumped in until the tire is inflated to the proper pressure. Still, if the tire does lose pressure in the future, you need to go back to the tire dealer to adjust the pressure because adding air to a nitrogen-filled tire will negate any benefits you were getting.

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