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Summer’s going to be here before you know it, and that means time for family road trips!    We know there’s a lot to think about when you’re planning a vacation...money, accommodations, scheduling, keeping the kids occupied in the car...but one thing you definitely should not neglect in those plans is your tires.    Summer road trips are hard on tires. You have to figure you’re in a car that’s likely loaded to the gills, driving for hours and hours to get to your destination in 90-plus-de...

Nobody needs to remind you this has been an especially harsh winter. Winter is not just hard on vehicles and the people who drive them -- it’s hard on roads, too. With fluctuations in temperature and freeze/thaw cycles, pavement materials expand and contract, leaving streets with cracks and potholes. Add in the effect of washouts from heavy rain, caustic de-icing chemicals and damage from vehicles with studs or tire chains, and you can end up with springtime road surfaces which are a real mes...

Don’t let tire problems get in the way this Valentine’s day. How is your tire pressure? Do my tires need to be rotated? Is it time for an alignment? Do I need new tires? While these questions can seem daunting, with the help of tire professionals and various routine self-checks, any driver can maintain proper tire care and not miss that big date this Valentine’s Day. From tire rotations to air pressure, learning what signals might indicate tire replacement or repair is important for every ve...

Through proper care and treatment of tires, serious or fatal accidents caused by blowouts are highly preventable if proper precautions are taken.  Because tire blowouts can develop from many situations, drivers should strive to be aware of tire conditions and schedule professional check-ups accordingly. This is especially true during transitional weather periods.  Take particular care to examine tire conditions as quickly changing temperatures can cause weak tires to fail.   Use these helpful t...

As most drivers can contest firsthand, tires are not invincible. Composed from many separate layers of steel-encased rubber fabrics and durable materials, tires eventually wear down and can cause vehicle owners costly repairs or even replacement. Understanding what measures should be taken to properly maintain tires will both lengthen tire life and support vehicle functionality and longevity. Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS) introduce revolutionary tire protection technology to constantl...

Tire rotation is an easy maintenance item that has long term benefits for any vehicle. When properly maintained, tire rotations can improve fuel economy, extend tire life and provide drivers better handling through improved stability. Frequently servicing vehicles with tire rotations is imperative to sustaining tire tread by ensuring all tires are used evenly without excessive wear to one section or another. Normal tread wear is unavoidable due to uneven vehicle weight dispersal, vehicle perfor...

Most of us know tires are one of the most important safety features of any vehicle and want to keep our tires in the best condition possible. However, what you do not know about tire wear and tire pressure could be damaging them the most. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Association, nearly 200 driving casualties per year occur at the hands of unmaintained tires. Right now it is estimated that 1 in 4 cars on the road are driving with underinflated tires.   While summer is the se...

Your tires are the only part of your vehicle that come into physical contact with the road, making proper tire maintenance a crucial element of driver safety. With the ability to stop, start, and transport us wherever we wish to go, having well maintained tires can mean the difference between a pleasant Sunday drive and a Sunday spent in the shop. There are three crucial components to consider when deciding if it is time to replace your tires: your normal driving conditions, tread wear, and the...

It’s peak pothole season out there and no one is immune to their sneaky destruction. We’ve all hit them at some point, and every time it happens, you see it only a second before it gets you, often too late to miss it. These little road hazards lay in wait, with their dips, bumps, and sharp toothy edges, just waiting to ruin your day. They can cause a sudden jolt all the way up to a blown tire.  And, I hate to report, they aren’t disappearing any time soon. Potholes are every tire’s sworn en...

When it comes to determining the age of a tire, it is easiest to identify when the tire was manufactured by reading its Tire Identification Number (often referred to as the tire’s serial number or DOT number). Unlike vehicle identification numbers (VINs) and the serial numbers used on many other consumer goods (which identify one specific item), Tire Identification Numbers are really batch codes that identify several components.   The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) National Highway Tr...