Preparing Your Tires For Winter

All year round there is only one thing between your vehicle and the ground; your tires

. During the winter, this does not change. However the winter weather is a whole new challenge to your vehicle, and your tires will need to be paid attention to if you are to have a safe and stable drive each day through the snow, sleet and even ice. So we are going to talk about some of the ways that you can prepare your tires for winter, and avoid as many nasty scares as possible.

PERFORMING A BASIC WINTER TIRE CHECK

You do not need to be a professional to perform a basic winter tire check. In fact it is one of the easiest things that you can do for winter car maintenance. First, you want to look at the tire's tread. You should be able to visibly see the groves on the flat part of the tire. You can feel them to see how deep they are, but in many cases this is not necessary; if you can not see a tread, then your tires are bald and will need to be replaced before winter.

A bald tire is a dangerous tire as it has no traction, and will cause your vehicle to slip on ice, snow and a variety of other surfaces. Once you have determined whether or not your tires have tread, you will want to check your tire pressure. To do this, simply use a tire pressure reading gauge. Check all four tires, and write down the psi readings. Then, check your vehicle's owner's manual to see what the proper psi reading for your tires should be, and fill your tires accordingly.

GETTING NEW TIRES OR WINTER TIRES

If your tires were looking bald, or if there was not enough tread for you to be certain (i.e. if your tires are over two years old and have had moderate to heavy use) then you will want to bring your car in to an auto repair shop to get your tires changed. Once there, you will have two options; you can get regular tires (there are many kinds, such as performance) or specialty tires, such as snow tires or all season tires. Specialty tires will, for the most part, have a better traction, and offer you a better and more controllable ride. This is because they have deeper treads, and the treads themselves are designed in patterns that are specifically created for seasonal driving weather.

DO I NEED TO BUY NEW TIRES?

You do not need to buy new tires if your tires have decent tread. However you should know that new tires will help your vehicle to handle better in the winter. It is highly suggested that if your tires are bald, you replace them before winter. "Testing them out" is not a very good idea; bald tires are notoriously bad at handling the snow, and even worse at ice because they can not get even a fraction of the traction or friction that "healthy" tires are able to achieve.

by: Dan Burns

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