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Submitted by: Kerri I. Swan
Tires on a car or truck don t get the respect they deserve. Both your driving safety plus your gasoline fuel mpg mileage will both greatly benefit from routine periodic checking of maintenance of your 4 tires. It won t take you long no more than 10 minutes say once per month on an ongoing and regular basis.
Basically once a month, check the air pressure in all tires including the donut spare in the trunk often under all your debris and under a lid. It takes little bit of extra planning and effort. Yet if you are stuck one late night with a spare tire, that is flat to the world, and especially if you are either in a dangerous area or along a freeway with fast moving commercial truck it s no picnic. The best way to sail a boat in a gale, according to the ancient mariner s manual, is not to be in the storm in the first place.
Underinflation of your tires or one tire alone will cause excessive wear and tear which can affect steering, decrease the loads that the tire can safely carry and will no doubt increase fuel consumption unnecessarily.
The recommended tire pressures for your car , truck or Sports Utility Vehicle are printed in the owner s manual and as well on a highly visible sticker inside the glove box or on the driver s door or alternatively sometimes the door jamb. You can exceed these pressures generally by about 3 psi (pounds per square inch) (equivalent in metric to 20 kPa. Those values hold as long as the total pressure is still under the maximum pressure given on the sidewall of the tire. The extra pressure will improve your car s fuel economy.
Check the pressure with an accurate pocket tire gauge when the tires are cold. Currently highly accurate electronic gauges are sold in the auto service marketplace. They are accurate yet note you may not have the skill or understanding of electronics to figure out how to use the device, or be sure it is accurate. Also electronic measuring tools may be accurate overall yet in a cold Canadian January the battery in the device may not power up the unit fully, or the numbers on the led screen may be barely visible and hard to read. Mechanical stick gauges definitely still have their uses and advantages and are generally 100 % easy to use- at least the better ones. If unsure have the tire pressure checked a number of times with different accurate gauges not cheap dollar store varieties.
One point is to note that air expands when it heats up and contracts when cold. Hence try to take the tire pressure measurements consistently when the tires are stone cold. If you require a drive to a service station to fill up with air, make it a point to measure yet again once back home and the tires are cold. You may need a top up.
Lastly check and inspect tire tread and tire tread patterns as a component of your regular routine maintenance and checks. Check tire tread depth. Look for unusual, non consistent across the tire face wear for patterns.
As the final step inspect each tire and physically draw your hand across each tire s surface checking for nails, pebbles, glass and the like.
If you do encounter debris do not remove it or pull them out. Take the tire to a local tire shop or big box store outlet that does tire inspections and repairs.
About the Author: Kerri I. Swan
Edmonton Used Car DealersWinnipeg Used Honda CivicWilliams Lake Used Car Dealers
Source:
isnare.com
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