subject: What You Need To Know About Choosing Car Tyres [print this page] What You Need To Know About Choosing Car Tyres
One particular area of vehicle maintenance that many people fail to fully consider is their vehicle's tyres. Getting your choice of tyres right will mean thousands of miles of trouble free motoring (at least in terms of tyre problems), get the selection wrong and you could indirectly be the cause of a dangerous road accident.
The choice of tyre that you make should be made on the type of vehicle you own and the driving conditions you use your car in. To explain this, lets use an SUV (sports utility vehicle) as an example. Although SUVs might look like off-road vehicles, only a very small number of models have genuine off-road capabilities. As much as you may be tempted to do so, you must not fit off-road tyres to an SUV unless you will be using it solely off-road (in which case why didn't you buy a 4x4 in the first place?).
Choosing the correct on-road tyres is not an easy task. If you live in an area that enjoys dry, warm weather, then you should fit tyres that work best in those conditions, though bear in mind that if wet weather does arrive, you must consider a tyre that can cope with standing water. All weather tyres are advised for most drivers due to their ability to work relatively well in most conditions.
Something that many people make the mistake of doing is to base their choice primarily on the cost of the tyres. Paying more for good quality tyres will make a huge difference to, not only the handling characteristics of your vehicle, but also your confidence when driving. Not only will you easily notice the difference with better quality tyres, it may save your life.
So, to summarize, you need to be aware of the road conditions that you normally drive in, and do not skimp on the cost. Another important factor to remember is to fit the right size tyres for your wheels. The numbers and letters on the tyres sidewall reflect the size of the tyre. In order, the letter(s) dictate the type of vehicle that the tyre is designed for, then the following numbers are the width of the tyre in millimeters, the depth of the sidewall then the tyre type (which will be another letter). After that should be the size of the wheel that the tyre should be fitted to, then the tyres load index, then, finally, the speed rating of the tyre. Check the vehicles owners manual for help if you need it.
