This is a contributed post. There are many bad habits that could be wrecking your tyres – and in some cases even putting you in danger. Breaking these bad habits could lead to longer-lasting tyres, cost savings and improved road safety. Below are just some of the biggest bad tyre habits you need to retire.
Driving on underinflated tyres
Many of us rarely check the pressure of our tyres until they look visibly flat. However, it’s important to make sure tyres are properly inflated at all times. Driving on underinflated tyres can reduce grip on the road, lead to higher fuel consumption and can increase your risk of a blowout. You can use a pressure gauge to check the pressure in your tyres. Your vehicle’s recommended tyre pressure should be in your vehicle manual or on a sticker on the inside of your driver’s door. Get into a habit of always checking your tyre pressure before a long drive.
Failing to rotate tyres
Did you know that your front tyres and back tyres don’t wear at the same rate? In front-wheel-drive cars, the front wheels tend to wear out faster. Rotating your back and front tyres every six months is a good habit to get into as it helps to more evenly distribute wear – which can help your tyres to last longer. If you can’t do this yourself, you can ask a mechanic to do it for you.
Letting tyre tread run down too much
A lot of us also don’t regularly check the tread depth of our tyres. Once the tread depth reaches a certain level of wear, your tyres could become illegal to drive on. They could also become unsafe – resulting in a blowout at any minute. Make sure to replace your tyres before this happens. The likes of Melksham Tyre Supplies can replace your tyres for you.
Harsh braking
Braking too late and too severely can wear down your tyres faster (as well as wearing down your brake pads). Unless it’s an emergency, try to get into a habit of breaking earlier. Slow progressive braking could extend the life of your tyres and brake pads, and even save you fuel by not having to stop as often and then race back up to speed.
Taking speed bumps too fast
Speed bumps are designed to be driven slowly over. If you go over them too fast, they can damage your tyres and your suspension. Some cars with more ground clearance and thicker tyres may be able to go faster over them, but it’s still a good idea to go no more than 20 mph in most cases.
Not avoiding potholes
Some areas of the country have more potholes than others, and sadly it’s not always possible to avoid them. But when you can, make sure that you steer around them. Potholes can cause major damage to tyres and cause wheel alignment issues if you hit them too fast. You need to be particularly careful of potholes on unfamiliar country roads (going too fast could give you less time to react to them, so slow down on these roads – particularly when going around corners).
Clipping kerbs
A lot of drivers cause premature damage to their tyres as a result of clipping kerbs. While clipping a kerb tends to be an accident, it’s most often caused by people taking corners too fast. No matter how well you know the road, always slow down for sharp corners and bends to reduce the risk of clipping the kerb.
These are just some of the bad tyre habits you need to avoid when driving. If you want to learn more about car-related things then feel free to check out my car category.
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