The heat is here!

 Well, the summer heat is here!

Old tires do not react well to the heat of summer, and with the weather getting hotter each year older tires have a higher chance of blow-outs and sudden decompression. Even if there is a lot of tread left on your tires, as they age they start to dry crack; at a certain point, especially as temperatures rise, the tire has a higher and higher chance of blowing out.

Save Money - Buy Tires Now!!

The other factor operating this year is inflation - rubber prices are going up, and that is already driving tire prices higher, and it is going to get worse as the year goes on.

Depending on the size of your tire, the increase in prices may not be too bad, but higher performance tires and larger mud & All Terrains like the one pictured above have already seen an appreciable price jump (on some models as much as 25% in increased cost to us).

So if your tires are getting close to the end of their life it may be best to get your next set of tires now rather than later - hopefully prices will stabilize and return to normal, but in the tire industry (as with many others) once prices rise because of material costs, they rarely go back down. 

Oil prices are hovering right around $75 dollars a barrel now, and it was spikes in oil that drove tire prices up the last time in the mid 2000's.

Aggravating things a bit more are the supply chain troubles that we have been experiencing from the COVID pandemic in 2020; some of those issues are ongoing, not just in tires but in wheels, musical and electronic gear and many other items. 

Part of that, especially in the auto industry, is increased demand in tires as more people are suddenly going on vacations and driving more miles for business. This increase in demand, along with the other factors, will make price increases on tires throughout this year more likely than not.

So if you are getting close to that point, you may want to purchase sooner rather than later - your pocket book will end up thanking you!

Go to your local tire store in Maiden NC or wherever you live and have your tires checked for wear or dry cracking; tires have already gone up this year, but they will continue to do so. Now is the time to get a quote on a set of new tires!

Wheel Locks - Why We Love To Hate Them!

Wheel Locks - What Could Go Wrong?

As it turns out, quite a bit - wheel locks were very handy in the 1990's when wheels were being stolen at a pretty high rate, especially in some specific areas. At that point in time, hot wheels weren't just a toy!

But, the car industry always evolves, and where there were relatively few bolt patterns across the industry back then, today there are many, many more. What this means is that it is much harder to sell used wheels than it used to be, because a set of wheels will only fit specific, select vehicles.

This is the same reason that many wheels must be special ordered as opposed to being kept in stock - and it also means that wheel locks are not as important as they used to be.

What Can Go Wrong?

What can go wrong? As it turns out, quite a lot when it comes to wheel locks. 

First of all, they are easy to lose - either by dropping them in the snow when you're trying to change a tire, or in a ditch on a dark night - or, the last guy that changed your tires might have forgotten to put it back in the car. If you lose it before you get the locking lug nut off, you are stuck - you will need to call a tow-truck or mobile mechanic to break the locking lug nut off.

The other major reason locking lugs quit working is because the key itself becomes degraded. There are several different types  of locking lug systems. The most common is a hollow nut with a 'clover'design on the inside that latches into the same design hollowed out on the lug nut; another type is called a spline design, but these can be replaced pretty easily at most auto-parts stores, whereas the clover locking design cannot be replaced at auto parts stores.

The picture below is of the clover locking design; take a close look at the pattern inside the lucking nut and you can see the ridges have been degraded through use - this lug nut is useless now, and this type of damage is common.

This is a locking lug nut - as you can see, the key above is to degraded to lock into the grooves

A damaged lug nut key

All It Takes To Be Stranded

All it takes to be stranded is to lose the key, or as in the picture above for the key to be damaged (which does not take much on these keys). Unless you have really expensive wheels and tires it is usually not worth the aggravation of keeping the key - it is my experience that it will work perfectly until you really need it, and then you will be stuck.

So take off the locking nuts and replace them with regular lug nuts - or if you don't want to bother, any tire store can help you with that, like Maiden Tire & Wheel who is a dealer of new tires in Maiden NC!

Getting The Most Mileage Out Of Your Tires

Make Your Tires Last!

Many things on your car can cause your tires to wear out more quickly than they should; work out shock absorbers or struts, worn out suspension parts, or just a car which is not properly aligned. 

These types of problems can make tires wear out much quicker than normal, and generally result in very specific type of wear - this is why it is so important to inspect your tires on a regular basis (at least once a week check both edges of the tire; this can help catch any potential problems before the tire is destroyed from uneven wear.

Even if your car is perfect mechanically, though, tires will wear unevenly if they are njot maintained. 

There are two areas that are easy to ignore - tire pressure, and making sure the tires are properly rotated at the recommended intervals.

35x1250R20 Mud Tires in Maiden, NC

Pump 'em Up!

Check on your tires for the proper inflation; many cars recommend a lower tire pressure than the tire manufacturers - you should always used the recommended pressure that is on the tire, not what the car says. Over pressurized or under pressurized tires will make the tire wear more quickly (over inflated tires will wear out in the middle of the tread, under inflated tires will wear out on the inner or outer edge).

That is an advantage of cars with TPMS sensors, but it would not hurt to occasionally check your tire pressure to make sure it is in the recommended range.

Tire and wheel packages in Maiden NC

Rotate Rotate Rotate!

Rotating your tires is one of the easiest routine maintenance duties on your vehicle to forget, but rotating the tires properly is the most important thing you can do to make sure your tires last as long as possible - most tire manufacturers recommend rotating your tires every 6000 miles or so.

You will want to refer to your tire's manufacturer to see how often they recommend rotations. Another important thing to remember about tire rotations is that if you do not have your tires rotated on schedule, it voids any tread wear warranty that may have come with your new tires. 

Keeping your tires rotated and properly inflated can extend your tire life as much as 1/3 further than you would normally go without doing those things, which can add up to a lot of money over the life of your car.

For rotations, and deals on new tire and wheel packages, Maiden Tire & Wheel has been serving folks that need tires in Maiden NC for 10 years!

Custom Tires and wheels in Maiden NC