How To Choose The Right Tyre For Your Car
More often than not, car-owners think about the tyres only when they are worn out and is in urgent need of replacement. Once that immediate need arises, they are faced with a baffling range of tyre options to choose from.
The following are some of the tips to make the right choice when it comes to buying car tyres-
Buy the correct tyres– the most crucial thing is to buy tyres that are suitable for your car. Carmakers go out of their way to select the best tyres to fit into their cars during the new model development phase.
The big brand tyre companies offer products that promise an optimum blend of road noise, ride comfort, handling, braking, efficiency, and wear rate. As far as tyre replacement is concerned, the original tyres specified as generally the best bet.
Also Read: Know The Five Most Commonly Used Types of Car Tyres
What are the correct tyres for the car – If you want to know the carmaker’s recommended tyres, you can refer to the owner’s manual, which will tell you about the recommended tyre in terms of its size, speed rating and load rating.
Trust the brands you know – You will be spoilt for choice once you walk into any tyre retailer’s store, as there are myriad choices available, which have different sizes, performances, and price points. The recognized brands usually come at a premium price, while those are not very well-known, are usually much cheaper.
However, for the latter, you cannot be very sure of the quality you get, as the brand has a little history, is new to the market, and does not have a customer support network.
How to identify a second-rate tyre? – Earlier, this was easy, as it only involved looking at the sidewall and see where the cheaper tyre was made. Usually, it was found to have been made in one of the Asian countries, which would ring a bell due to their once substandard manufacturing practices.
Also Read: How to Read Tyres
However, in today’s times, this would be redundant as most of the big brands have factories in Asia, or are involved in joint ventures with Asian companies.
The tyres they produce in these factories are of the same quality and performance as tyres produced in their other factories around the world. It is advisable to avoid brands with little or no history.
The risks of buying cheap- the temptation to save a few bucks is understandable, but it is crucial to bear in mind that tyres perform a number of vital functions on our cars, and are arguably the most important piece of safety equipment a car-owner has.
It is not a good idea to compromise with the brand, which can be potentially risky, especially in terms of our own safety. After all, tyres are concerned with accelerating, steering, and braking safely on the road, in all weather conditions.
What backup do you have? – The major tyre companies are all represented in this country, with their own offices where one can get in touch with the concerned authorities if something goes wrong with the product.
On the other hand, the lesser-known tyre companies hardly have a representation. In all likelihood, they are handled here by importers or small operators who cannot afford the same level of product support as the prominent companies can.
Before you decide to buy the cheap alternative, it is important to do a thorough research on the company making the tyres, the one importing and selling them here, and also be well-informed about the backup you can expect in the long run.