What Do You Have Riding on Your Tires?

Tire tread is imperative to automobile traction, which could mean all the difference between getting in a car accident and avoiding disaster. But as a car owner, you also know tires aren’t cheap. Maintaining them will obviously help the tread on them last longer and protect everything you have riding on them.
Tread is there for a reason; it channels water, ice and mud in slick conditions away from the center of the tire so the rubber can meet the road as effectively as possible for optimal traction. Depending on what kind of driving you do under what conditions, it is also important to maintain traction in rocky conditions. Keeping this tread as deep as possible helps your tire doing this as long as possible, saving you money. And depending on what kind of car you drive, it could mean a lot of money.
Rotation
Being sure to rotate your tires every 7,000 miles is crucial to keeping your tread as long as possible. This routine requires moving, or ‘rotating,’ the tire from the front to the back and the ones in the back to the front. Because tires in the front take turns and bear the added weight of the engine- mounted on most cars in the front- they see much more wear. Evening out the wear distribution with regular tire rotation puts an even burden on all four tires.
Driving
Do you take turns like Mario Andretti, pulling into parking lots on two tires? Do you slam on your accelerator from a standstill, laying down rubber burns 4 feet long? Well for the sake of your tires, you may want to stop. That rubber you put down at the stop light is much better used contributing to your tread depth. Also taking turns slower and avoiding lean improves the shoulder- or edge- life for your tire, letting you corner easily when you might really need to.
Just like everything nowadays, tires don’t seem to last long enough as it is. But effective maintenance could add up to 20,000 useful miles to your tires. Keeping a set of snow tires is also great for improving the longevity of the tires you use under normal conditions. And not only does healthy tread improve your stopping power in all conditions, it is also effective in your car performance, acceleration and cornering.