Your tires are a key part of keeping you safe when driving. While maintenance can help keep your tires in good shape, eventually you’ll need to look at changing tires. Knowing what to look for in tires can help you pick out the right pair for your needs…
Changing Tires: What To Look For
Weather performance
One thing you want to consider when changing tires is weather performance. Weather such as rain, snow, ice and even extreme temperatures can all negatively impact your tires’ performance. That means that your car won’t be as safe on the road as it should. Therefore, you need to make sure the tires you pick are well-equipped for the weather.
For example, if you get a lot of snow and ice in the winter, you might want to pick winter tires. Or, if you experience a lot of rain, maybe you can go with high-performance ones instead. Of course, there’s also all-season tires, which will give you good performance in practically any kinds of weather.
Gas mileage
Gas mileage is also another important factor to consider when changing tires. Your tires actually play a major role in the kind of gas mileage you get out of your car. For instance, some tires will come with thinner sidewalls and a bit more shallow tread. This lessens their weight and resistance, and in turn, means you get better gas mileage.
Still, maybe you don’t want to go for tires like those. Even if you don’t, you can still improve your MPG on your new ones. The best way to do this is by keeping them properly inflated. Doing so can save you up to 11 cents per gallon, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
Comfort
You want to make sure that when changing tires, your new ones will also allow for you to have a comfortable drive. Not all tires will be as comfortable as others. Smaller tires with larger sidewalls tend to be very good comfort-wise, but they aren’t necessarily super-performance based. Meanwhile, more road-gripping summer tires excel in performance, but lack in overall comfort. Again, it all comes down to what you want to get out of your tires.