Driving on old or damaged tires can be dangerous in worst-case scenarios. The wrong driving and maintenance habits can lead to premature aging and damage of your tires, thus shortening their life and costing you more in the long run. The following maintenance tips can help you prolong tire life while also maintaining the safety of your vehicle. 

1. Pressure Checks

Maintaining proper pressure in your tires extends tire life, improves gas mileage and vehicle handling, and results in a smoother ride. Tires can lose pressure due to normal road driving or from fluctuating weather and temperatures. Check your tire pressure monthly and air up if the pressure is lower than the recommended level as stamped on the sidewall of the tire. 

2. Schedule Rotations

Tires can wear unevenly. Rotating them is one way to avoid uneven wear, and many tire shops include regular rotations and balancing as part of the ongoing service package when you buy new tires. The tire manufacturer will recommend a rotation schedule for their tires, but generally, you should do it at least once a year for average mileage or twice annually if you put on a lot of miles. 

3. Maintain Alignment

Poor alignment can cause your car to pull when stopping or driving at high speeds, but you may not always notice slight alignment issues. Yet, even minor alignment problems can lead to uneven wear and shorter tire life. Tires come out of alignment during normal driving, but hitting a curb can speed up the process. Have your alignment checked and adjusted at least once a year. 

4. Match Tires

Don't mix and match tires of different sizes, tread types, ages, or manufacturers on the same vehicle. This can lead to uneven wear and it can also be hard on the suspension system, particularly for 4-wheel and all-wheel drive vehicles. Match your tires to each other, or at least make sure that those on the same axle match so that you won't have to worry about miss-matched tires speeding up wear or leading to other damages. 

5. Repair Quickly

The good news is that a lot of tire damage is repairable, but you don't want to drive on a damaged tire as that can quickly make the damage too severe to repair. If you have a puncture, get the tire patched before driving on it. In other words, don't just keep airing up tires with a slow leak. Once patched, a tire can have just as long a working life as an undamaged tire. 

Contact a tire maintenance and replacement service if you would like more help with your car.