Selecting Your New Tires

I think it is fairly obvious when I say that selecting the right tires for your vehicle is a very important decision that involves your personal safety as well as the safety of everybody else on the road. Because every vehicle and situation is different, below you’ll find some ideas and suggestions that I can give to those who are not really sure what they should be looking for.

As a quick rule to remember, all four of your tires should be as similar as possible if not the exact same. This is simply because differences in tires can change how easily your car handles. So in those instances when you may only need to purchase one tire, try to replace it with an exact match to the other three. Stay away from a different replacement simply because it is less expensive.

There are many instances in which you may only need to purchase a pair of tires because the remaining pair has a decent amount of tread remaining. Again, it is ideal to buy the exact tire that is already on your vehicle, but other sizes and tread patterns will work as long as you remain within a similar category (all seasons, snow tires, etc.). It is a good idea to investigate why one pair of tires wore much faster than the other pair. Our Anywhere Tire Care employees can determine the problem for you and address it so your new tires will not follow in the same pattern. The goal is to have all four tires wear evenly so they can all be replaced simultaneously.

So for those who haven’t had any of the above issues and are ready for a complete set of new tires, you have so many choices! It is hard to know where to start. The easiest decision would be to reorder your original tire, which is of course if you were happy with them. This is not always the case. Selecting the right size for your vehicle is important. If you want to CHANGE the original size of your tire, call Anywhere Tire Care at 518-810-5244 and have us give you some advice if you would prefer. I say this because the first requirement is to make sure your new tires are designed to hold the weight of your vehicle. This is essential in responding to emergency situations and quick stops, turns, etc. The second thing to remember is the overall diameter of the tire. If this is changed your car will not be able to accurately calculate your driving speed since tire diameter is an important part of the equation. This is not life-threatening, but it could result in a speeding ticket if your gauge is inaccurate!

On a side note, we would like to recommend that most drivers in the Capital District consider having two sets of tires; one for summer and one for winter. We all know how it snows here! There are a few benefits to doing this: one being that you will do much better on those snowy mornings on your commute to work. And second, your tires will have a much longer life because they are being driven seasonally as apposed to all year round. In most cases this can actually save you money because you will be buying tires less frequently.

So when is it time to buy new tires?

I just learned not too long ago that there are state laws regulating tires, somehow I never knew this! Tires are legally worn out when they are down to 2/32” of tread depth. To help specify when tires reach this limit, there are indicators on your tires called “wear bars” across the width of the tire. Of course, it is not necessarily wise to wait until this occurs to purchase new tires, this is an absolute minimum. 2/32” of tread will not protect you from hydroplaning and slushy/snowy roads! So if you can see these wear bars, it is definitely time to give us a call! Hope this helps, thanks for reading J

This article was written by the staff of Anywhere Tire Care, the Capital District’s ONLY “tire shop on wheels.” Anywhere Tire Care specializes in new and used tire installation and balancing wherever it is most convenient for our customers including their home, office or even the local coffee shop! Our number one concern is customer convenience and satisfaction, saving you time and money. Call us at 518-810-5244 or visit us on the web at www.anywheretirecare.com.