Do I Really Need to Rotate My Tires?

May 6, 2019 in Tips

YES, getting tire rotations will help extend the life of your tires and improve the overall performance of your vehicle!

Why Are Tire Rotations So Important?

Tire rotation is the practice of moving the wheels and tires from one position to another, to assist in even tire wear. If you have front wheel drive, the front tires usually wear out quicker due toacceleration, steering and most of the braking forces. Rear wheel drive vehicles wear a little more evenly due to the workload is split between the axles. Not only will the tire rotations save you money in the long run by saving your tires, getting them done frequently will help with gas mileage and overall performance of your car. It may also be necessary to reset the Tire Pressure Monitoring System on some newer vehicles with the rotation.

How Often Should I Get A Tire Rotation?

Rotations are recommended every 5,000 miles or check with the manufacturer recommendations. As always, read your owner’s manual if you are unsure. Of course, if you commute a lot or travel all the time in your vehicle, you will need more rotations. Moving your tires around will help create even wear throughout them. When you turn, break, or take corners super-fast, you use different areas on your tire. If you continue driving like that on the same tire, then you will start to notice a ‘wear’ spot. If you wait until you notice uneven wear or if you feel your car vibrating, it’s probably too late and the tires will need to be replaced. Just as a note: Tire rotations will not correct irregular wear, wheel alignment or worn suspension components.

Warning Signs to Look and Feel For.

If you start to feel these signs and think you need a rotation, it might already be too late in which case you would be buying new tires. In any case, some signs to look & feel for are the following.

Uneven Wear – If you have uneven wear, you would notice the tread on your front tires looking different than your rear (or vice versa), or the tread on the inside of one tire looking a lot different than the outside of that same tire.

Vibration Over 45mph – If you’ve noticed a vibration in your car going over 45mph it could be fixed with a rotation. There are other reasons your car vibrates though so either read up on vibrations or have your mechanic look at it.

Loss of Tire Pressure – If you noticed one tire losing pressure often it could be from uneven wear. You could also have a puncture so this is a tricky warning sign, but you shouldn’t have to fill your tires’ pressure often.

For more information on tires and tire safety, check out NHTSA, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

For helpful advice or to learn more about our services, contact A.U.T.O. Collision at 801.568.0305 or visit the shop at 215 West 9210 South, Sandy, Utah 84070. We are here to serve you Monday – Friday, 8am – 5:30pm.