Check tyres regularly

Oct 06, 2003

What do you really know about tyre safety? Cuts, tears, bald patches and bulges will make most motorists, change their tyres. But when it comes to complete tyre safety, we all seem to have a permanent blind spot.

By Juliet Kakeeto

What do you really know about tyre safety? Cuts, tears, bald patches and bulges will make most motorists, change their tyres. But when it comes to complete tyre safety, we all seem to have a permanent blind spot.

For example most motorists think they can safely use a tyre after it has been pierced by a nail but has not lost pressure. Wrong. Henry Kyazze of Motorcare, says when it comes to knowing the correct amount of tread on their tyres, most motorists simply have no idea.

Check your tyre tread wear regularly for important indicators regarding its health. Irregular tread wear can be caused by wheels being out of balance, due to steering component errors or the weakening of the car’s suspension.

Most new tyres today are fitted with a coloured band of rubber - the tread wear indicator bar - at the bottom of the tread.

The indicator bar is moulded along with the tread, in a number of places around the tyre, and in such a way that when the tread is worn out, the coloured bands are visible, indicating the need to replace the tyre.

Tyres also need to be visually checked for other obvious signs of damage such as cuts on the tread or nicks on the sidewalls. The earlier these are detected and corrected, the lesser the chances of a tyre burst.

You need to check your wheel alignment at least once a year and before a long trip. Wheel balancing should be checked after every tyre repair, or every time the tyre is dismounted, or if any vibration or drag in the vehicle is detected.

Rotate the tyres of your vehicle every 8,000-10,000 km, with the tyres from the non-active axle being diagonally switched with the tyres on the drive axle. This ensures even wear of all the tyres, says Kyazze.

Avoid rapid acceleration and rapid deceleration in city conditions.

While stop-and-go traffic is unavoidable in towns, a consistent speed will, in the long run, preserve your tyres’ health.

Avoid patching a puncture or other repairs to the tyres by an ill-equipped roadside mechanic.

While the work may be done more quickly in such cases, the life of the tyre could be dramatically reduced by the use of improper tools for dismounting the tyre from the wheel.

Avoid using retreaded tyres on high-speed expressways and on a long journey. Avoid using tyres of a larger size than the manufacturer recommended size. Though this might improve the car’s external appearance, it could be a drag on its fuel efficiency and may also lead to accelerated tyre wear.

But Kyazze advises that if one wants to try using tubeless tyres for a car, the current experience amongst users has shown that it is advisable to still use them with tubes!

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