Are tire rotations important?
The tires on your vehicle take a lot of abuse when you think about. They are the rubber on the road, and as you know, the roadways today desire a lot! Your car tires keep your car rolling, providing you a better ride and make it easier to drive. Other than getting new tires every so often as needed, do you have your car tires rotated?
A tire rotation is the process of switching the tires from one wheel to another, typically moving in a crisscross pattern, the back tires to the front and vice versa. The reason it is so necessary for you schedule a tire rotation to do on a regular routine is for several reasons.
Tire Tread Life Extended — Regular tire rotation will keep your car tires from wearing unevenly. Tires that are worn unevenly will reduce the handling of your car, making your car unstable and dangerous for driving. Tire rotation and alignment should be done simultaneously as well as having the tires balanced. A tire rotation without balance can result in the same issues of making your car unstable and dangerous on the road.
- Performance Maximized — Your car tires contribute to the performance of your vehicle. When tire rotation isn’t done, the ride won’t be as comfortable, and your tires will wear out faster.
- Gas Mileage Increased — When your car tires are worn out, your gas mileage decreases because the engine has to work harder to move the car.
- Money Saved — In addition to saving money on gas, you won’t be replacing tires sooner than necessary with routine rotation of your car tires, because anyone that has purchased new tires know that it is like a small investment.
Do you really have to rotate your tires?
Car maintenance is not always convenient, but that doesn’t make it any less important, including rotation of the car tires. A regular routine of having car tires rotated will keep the car driving and performing to its optimal possibility. To make getting this car maintenance done without making special appointments with your mechanic, coincide the tire rotation with oil change.
Which way do you rotate your tires?
Front and rear car tires wear differently because the front tires have more weight than the rear tires. Additionally, the front tires are the tires that turn corners and typically, left front car tires wear faster.
By doing regular rotation of car tires, especially if you have driven thousands of miles, you are equalizing the wear pattern of the car tires. An equal wearing of car tires will make them last longer and help you save gas money too. The standard process of rotating car tires typically follow this process:
Directional Tires – Steel Belted Car Tires
- Has a one-way tread pattern that optimizes the direction the car tires should be rotated and should be rotated from left to right.
- Each of the sidewalls of the car tires will have either arrows or triangles that indicate which way to mount the car tires.
- To rotate directional car tires, swap the front right tire and back right tire, repeating this with the left car tires.
Non-Directional Tires – Nylon Ply Car Tires
- Non-directional car tires tread pattern is designed in a way they can be mounted on any wheel.
- Rotating non-directional car tires is done in a crisscross pattern.
- For rear-wheel drive cars, the front car tires should be moved crisscrossing the front car tires with the rear car tires, left to right and back to front.
By taking your car to your mechanic or tire store, they will usually offer free tire rotation service and you can be certain they will follow the proper rotation of your car tires.
What happens if you don’t rotate your tires?
Without regular rotation of car tires, the tire tread will wear unevenly. This creates a rough ride and a potentially unstable surface. As the tire tread wears, the safety of you and your passengers is in jeopardy because the possibility of heat buildup and hydroplaning as well as loss of traction in ice, rain, and snow. Worn tires are susceptible to blowouts and punctures, which can happen while driving.
While we have explained what a rotation of car tires is and why it should be done on routine basis, you may wonder, can you rotate tires too often? The answer to that concern is not where the tires are concerned, rotation of car tires cannot be done too much. The concern should be focused on not getting your car tires rotated enough and often enough.
Your car is an investment, and the car tires are an investment when you have to replace them. Taking the time to get the oil change and the tires rotated can do a lot to extend the life of your car and car tires. Call 949-583-0811 today for your tire rotation needs in Mission Viejo, CA.