These tire-buying tips can end up SAVING you money!
To ensure your car’s safety and optimal performance, it’s essential to keep an eye on the condition of your tires. Good tires increase fuel economy, deliver better performance, and help you drive in difficult weather conditions more efficiently.
This is why replacing your tires when they begin showing signs of wear and tear is one of the best tire-buying tips we can give you. It’s recommended to either check them yourself or seek professional service when you feel they’ve reached the end of their lifetime.
But due to the fact that tires are not exactly a small investment, there are several factors you should keep in mind before replacing your current tires to ensure you’ve made the right decision.
So Urban Cars Blog has come to your rescue with 6 tire-buying tips to ensure you get the biggest bang for your buck!
Tire-buying tip: Get your car checked out
This first tire-buying tip may seem like it’s not all that important, but trust us, it matters! While it’s a common practice to assess the condition of your current set of tires, people sometimes skip assessing their car’s overall condition when purchasing new tires.
Checking your vehicle out is vital, especially when tires show uneven wear. A detailed assessment can help rule out suspension and alignment issues, which can shorten the life span of your tires.
For example, even an inch of misalignment means that your tires aren’t working seamlessly to propel your vehicle forward, and this scuffle causes more wear and tear.
Tire-buying tip: Do you REALLY need a new tire?
The first step to getting new car tires is establishing your needs. But this tire-buying tip can be more complicated than it sounds. As we mentioned, ascertaining whether or not your tires need replacement can be rather technical.
A simple visual inspection might not reveal their actual condition, and car owners might need professional help to determine the tire’s current state. On the other hand, car tires don’t come cheap.
Depending on the vehicle type, tire size, and driver budget, owners could spend anywhere between $400 and $1500 on new tires. That being said, the average car owner can usually uncover the condition of their tires by examining them.
The most revealing characteristics of a worn-out tire are bulging and bubbles, fading, cracks on the tire’s sidewalls, and shallow or uneven treads. Besides this, drivers can check for unfamiliar vibrations or noises from the tires.
Concerning treads, the tire might have tread wear indicators, little bumps in the tire’s treads. If these indicators are at the same level as the treads, the tire is worn out and needs to be replaced. Car owners with tires that don’t have an indicator can try the classic coin test.
It involves placing a penny into the tread, with Lincoln’s head going in first. If the top of Abraham Lincoln’s head remains visible, the treads have become shallow and unsafe and likely need replacing.
Tire-buying tip: Know the size and type of tire you should get
With so many tire manufacturers and car models, we can’t just lump all tires into one category. But more than this, it’s inaccurate and can be dangerous. Picking the wrong size or type of tires could worsen your driving experience and increase the risk of accidents happening.
That’s why it’s essential to learn early on in the process what tire sizes and types are appropriate for your car. There are two major focus areas for this. First, consider the size you need.
Available tires for your car range from large tires that take up a lot of space in the wheel well to medium and small tires that are more affordable and preferable to some drivers. Second, consider the manufacturer.
Goodyear, Michelin, and Bridgestone are famous tire brands, and they design them to offer different levels of rolling resistance. The driving experience will be different, and so will the tire costs.
We recommend consulting an automotive professional rather than doing this yourself to ensure certainty in the process. Before offering advice, a good tire dealer would aim to determine your car’s model, manufacturer, and year of production.
This tire-buying tip will help them find a range of tires that best suit your car, and then you can decide what to purchase based on your budget or any other preferences. In every case, check that the tires are in top condition before buying them.
Tire-buying tip: Pay attention to tire codes
If you wish to avoid going through an automotive professional, there are a few key components to look for. A close look at the body of a tire reveals a few inscriptions on its sidewall, all of which represent elements of the tire’s specifications.
There’s at least one set of codes to look out for, known as the “tire code.” A straightforward alphanumeric combination, the tire code specifies 7 significant specs of the tire:
-Tire type
-Tread width
-Aspect ratio
-Internal construction
-Expected wheel diameter
-Load rating
-Speed rating
These can be interpreted using tire manuals and index guides, available when you buy the tire purchase or online.
For example, the Toyota Corolla 2005 has the tire code P 175/70R14 84 H. In this case, P indicates a passenger tire type, the tread width is at 175 mm, the aspect ratio is 70, R is the radial internal construction, and the diameter of the wheel is 14 inches.
Besides those, the tire can carry a maximum load of 1102 pounds per tire and move at a maximum of 130 miles an hour, based on the speed rating index of H. The last two are the most significant; exceeding them when driving would risk tire failure.
And other than the tire code, tires manufactured in the United States would also include a Department of Transportation code and a UTQG code, which supply information about the tire make and factory test performance.
Tire-buying tip: Don’t forget to go through the manufacturer’s tips
Before settling on a tire purchase, check the car manufacturer’s information on the car and tire relationship online or through a paper manual. The maker has the ultimate say on what kinds of tires are best for the car, and these trie-buying tips should be strongly considered.
Where there’s an inconsistency between your findings and the information in the car manual, it’s recommended to go with the latter. In any case, the final choice should be proven to perform correctly with the vehicle.
If you don’t have access to the car manual, check for an information placard on your car. The tire placard should be located on the vehicle’s door jamb. In the US, car manufacturers are legally required to place this there.
This placard contains information about the tire features and car loading capacity, including the spare tire code, main tire code, and tire inflation pressure.
Verifying the manufacturer’s information is vital if you own an electric vehicle because tires carry the extra weight of the drivetrain and battery pack, which is heavier than the combustion engine in gas-based cars.
The torque patterns are different due to the fact that EVs feature a more instantaneous torque than non-electric automobiles. Several other factors, like noiselessness, traction, and rolling resistance, should also be considered when prioritizing manufacturer details.
Tire-buying tip: Consider your car’s fuel economy
Another big tire-buying tip you should consider is in regards to fuel economy. The type of tires you buy can significantly impact the fuel economy of your vehicle. Normally, the original tires that come with the car should deliver optimal fuel economy.
So replacing them with another type can go either way when we’re talking about fuel economy of your vehicle.
For some, traction or performance is more important, and fuel economy isn’t really the priority. So, depending on your own preferences, you can decide on your new tires.
Be sure to let us know in the comments if you have any of your own tire-buying tips. And if you found this article helpful, we highly recommend you also read: Inactive Cars Can Suffer From These 10 Issues if Left Unused
