Tips to Buying Tires

by | Aug 14, 2012 | Automotive

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We rely on tires all the time, yet we don’t know a lot about them. This is understandable; the forces behind locomotion are complex. However we do need to understand enough to buy them correctly. Buying tires is expensive. It might seem like they’re simple donuts of rubber with air inside, but there’s more to it than that. Beyond the complexity of why tires work there’s also the issue of what tire is best. Someone who lives in Northfield, MN has different concerns for tires than a family from Miami, FL.

The tread on tires, the size of the rims they’re meant to fit, and their width all have different effects on the performance of a vehicle. Racing slicks for example would not be good for all terrain or even all weather driving, but when it comes to dynamic performance on a controlled surface they’re hard to top. On the other hand hybrid cars are equipped with low grip tires to reduce rolling resistance and improve their gas mileage. Trucks, and some SUVs, are equipped with hardier tires that have more rubber than rim, allowing them to flex on altering terrain.

If you picture a racing car you can see the tires in your head, they’re almost all metal with a thin band of rubber around. The texture looks flat, they are also very wide. Hybrid cars tend to have small tires for their size, usually fairly narrow, and often without a complex tread on them. SUVs and pickup trucks have less rim and much fatter looking tires. This all pays off in ways for the driver, and can affect what you’re looking for.

If you have to drive in the snow, foul weather, and on rough roads you might want to look into all weather or all terrain tires. They’ll allow your car to handle the situation much better. If you live up north in a place like Northfield, MN high performance racing style tires will only be of any use a few months out of the year and require you to change your tires back and forth. For people further south in Miami, FL where snow is a wholly unheard of experience, the concern isn’t for all weather to deal with the snow, it’s a balance between performance on hot tarmac and ability to deal with rain. If you wonder why tires can be so expensive it’s because they’re built to perform for very different roles and that requires a good deal of finesse. Even a family sedan with just all purpose or all weather tires on it has tires specially designed to optimize longevity and adaptability. It might not be instinctive but the simple donuts of air are actually rather complex pieces of technology.

Tires Northfield Regardless of what type of car you have if the tires are wearing out you need to replace them. Your car depends on having good tires to stay on the road and in your control. The good news is that if you live in Northfield, MN you have an option in Car Time Auto Center. They can equip any sort of car with the tires they need.