Tire Maintenance and Replacement In Waupaca, WI
Tires are one of the essential parts of your vehicle – while you can’t go anywhere without a working engine, you aren’t going far with tires in poor condition. A sudden blowout could cause some vehicle to roll over or cause you to veer into another car. Knowing how to maintain your vehicle’s tires and replace them significantly reduces the risk of an accident caused by failing tires. Of course, no amount of maintenance stops a tire from blowing out when you run over debris that causes an instant blowout.
Little Wolf Auto provides tire services in Waupaca, WI, and is a Firestone and Bridgestone dealer. We can help ensure that your vehicle’s tires are in good condition and help you keep up with the maintenance on them.
Waupaca WI Tires: Maintenance
Keeping your vehicle’s tires maintained means that you or your auto technician checks the tires frequently for uneven tread wear, nails or screws in the tires, and the amount of tread left on the tire as it wears. When you bring your vehicle into Little Wolf Auto for auto repair in Waupaca, WI, our technicians check your tires for these problems.
You should also check your vehicle’s tires at least once every month. Look for:
- Tread depth. If you can no longer see the top of Lincoln’s head on a penny inserted into the tread upside down, the tires have less than 2/32-inch of tread left. Tire manufacturers recommend changing the tires before it reaches this point, especially for driving in the rain and other slick conditions.
- Tire tread wear. The tires have two types of tire tread wear: Normal tread wear, which is even across the tread, and uneven tread wear, which signifies a suspension or alignment problem. If the tread wear is uneven, an auto technician needs to put the vehicle on the alignment rack to determine if the tires need aligning or you need suspension work. Generally, if you need suspension work, the mechanic needs to align the tires once he fixes the suspension problem.
- Air pressure. Most vehicles now have a tire pressure monitoring system. However, you should not rely solely on the system. A sensor could give you a false reading. The computer could also fail, which means that it might not notify you if a sensor senses a low tire. You can find the maximum pounds per square inch on the sidewall of the tire. Most cars require 34 to 36 p.s.i. while trucks often require 40 p.s.i. or higher. Because the air expands as it gets hot, your vehicle’s tires should have about 2 pounds less than the maximum listed on the tire.
- Balancing and rotating. Keeping your tires balanced and rotated helps to extend the life of the tire. The drive tire(s) on vehicles tend to wear faster, so rotating them helps all four tires to wear evenly.
Replacing the Tires
When you notice that the tires have too little tread, you have had a tire repair – a plug or a patch – more than once per tire, or you notice strands of wire showing, you should replace the tires immediately.
If you notice shaking in the steering wheel, have your Waupaca tire tech at Little Wolf Auto check the tires. They might need balancing, or you might have a separated tire. An unbalanced tire wears faster and could cause issues when driving. A separated tire will blow out sooner or later – usually sooner, so it’s best to get it changed immediately.
Contact Little Wolf Auto
When it’s time to check or replace your tires, stop by Little Wolf Auto. You do not need an appointment to have us check the tires or balance and rotate the tires. However, if you plan on getting new tires, you might call ahead to make sure we have your tire size in stock.
