5 mistakes that reduce Tyre life in Nigeria

When it comes to driving, there are different driving habits adopted by people, some are aggressive while some are more gentle with it, some are cautious while some don't care and just want to drive fast and drift, causing major damage to their tyres. Most people don't understand how important their tyre life is, okay lets look at it this way, you can be the healthiest person in the world, work out 5 times a week, eat healthy and all that, but if you do not work out your legs, they don't grow, if you don't take care of your legs, they wont be able to carry you when it matters, the same thing applies to cars, no matter how much you take car of your car, if the tyre life is bad and overlooked, the car won't function as well as its supposed to.

Tyres are expensive, only car owners know the cost, for example the 225/45 r18 tyre of the C43 AMG can cost up to 250k Naira per piece for a premium brand like Michelin.

While we discussed the signs you need to change your tyres, if you don't avoid these 5 mistakes, you may get these signs more often and spend money replacing your tyres more often

Aggressive Driving Style

There is the popular saying that over speeding kills, hard aggressive style drivers beg to differ because they seem to always perform crazy maneuvers, sudden acceleration, sudden braking, sharp turns, drifting and so on, but the truth is that these things destroy the life span of your tyres so much faster than you think especially when the tyre type of the car is not suitable for your driving style, for example using touring tyres in the place of performance tyres or using tyres that do not compliment your cars performance abilities. Regardless of the tyre type, if you want it to last then you definitely have to go for smoother accelerations and braking unless you are ready to change your tyres as often as you want. Lets not get started on drifting

Skipping Wheel Alignment & Balancing

Wheels alignment and balancing are important aspects of maintenance in a car. Wheel alignment is a procedure that adjusts the angles of the wheels to make sure they are in a straight line with one another and at the same time directly at a 90 degree angle to the ground ensuring equal tyre wear for all 4 tyres and optimum handling. Wheel balancing is a procedure that ensures even weight distribution to all the wheels of the vehicle preventing uneven tyre wear and unusual vibrations. Now, why is this important? I think it shows for it self why this is important, do not be the buy and drive kind of person but rather ensure that there are regular checks and balancing and alignment is done in a healthy interval, your tyres will thank you and serve you better, after any major encounters with potholes, you should check your car, if there arent any major incidents to make you check if your car is well balanced and aligned, then you should check it every 6-12 months. Do not be an irresponsible driver, always take car of your car, its wheels and its tyres

Lack of Tyre Rotation

Front and rear tyres wear at different rates and therefore need to be rotated in regular intervals to prolong the life span and tread life of the tyre. Tyres should be rotated at least once every 10000 KM. Tyre rotation depends on the drivetrain of your car, for example a C63 AMG Awd will not have the same tyre rotation pattern as a C300 rwd. Make sure to adopt this pattern if you have not already and this will save your tyres a lot

Poor Tyre Pressure

Using the correct tyre pressure is very important in keeping your tyre and car healthy as the wrong pressure can affect your tyre health, you car health, your safety and even the fuel economy the car. There is overinflation and underinflation, both are not good as overinflation can cause the tyre to not even wear down or tire out faster, but it can cause it to burst completely needing you to get new tyres, underinflation is not good either because it causes a strain on other tyres, a strain on the cars drivetrain and overall causes the car to use up more fuel, costing you more money therefore, it is important for you to monitor the tyre pressure of you car tyres. This should be done every 2 weeks or before a long distance journey either by using a tyre pressure gauge or taking it to a tyre shop for check up. Having the correct tyre pressure at all time is important and crucial for keeping your car tyres at optimum health. Check the sticker in the side drivers door or meet an expert to know the best tyre pressure for your tyre

Wrong Tyre, Wrong Terrain, Wrong use

Using Touring tyres in terrains that require off road tyres will wear your tyres out so much faster than you think, analyze and access the roads in your area before choosing any tyres for your car, if you drive a car for performance, buy a performance tyre, if you drive in rocky terrains, buy an off road tyre, you drive in the winter, buy winter tyres, that's just it, its simple. If you buy a tyre for what it was built for, you will get the best out of that tyre withut putting a strain on it

Final Thoughts

Regardless of these points mentioned above, if you use a mediocre tyre, it just will not last no matter how much you take care of it and at the same time, if you buy the best quality tyre money can buy like Michelin, if you do not take care of it, it will not last.

Not sure about your tyre conditions? Visit a vulcanizer or tyre shop . Want to get new long lasting tyres from the comfort of your home? Tyrepublic has got you covered