Whether you know a lot about trucks or not you can know a few key things to look for, so you know when you need new tires. It may also be a case of knowing when you are getting close to needing new tires. This will give you some time to plan and will keep you from having a blowout while you are driving, which is potentially dangerous.
There are several reasons why truck tires need more attention than the average vehicle. Some of those reasons are:
- More miles quicker
- More weight
- More opportunity for FOD
- More weather wear
- More Miles, quicker
When you think about tires, you might think about the fact that most trucks are used for working and that means more miles put on in a shorter amount of time. This means that truck drivability will be affected especially due to wear and tear. An example of truck drivability issues due to wear and tear could be the sidewalls wearing down and exposing the wire underneath. This can easily cause a blowout or at least leave you on the side of the road. Nobody wants that. Being prepared means knowing what condition your tires are in before every trip.
More Weight
This is not as much of a concern due to the tires being made to handle this kind of weight. However, it does certainly influence how the tires wear out over time and how the vehicle will handle. If the weight is not distributed evenly this can cause uneven wear on the tires. Also, if the tires are not inflated properly, they can make more truck repair necessary. If your truck routinely carries heavy weight, then proper tire care is essential to prevent future truck repair issues.
More Opportunity for FOD
What is FOD? FOD means Foreign Object Damage. This means nails, stones, or other things that your tires might roll over as you are driving. These things will severely damage your trucks tires. You need to make sure that you visually inspect the truck tires on a regular basis to make sure that you do not have, for instance, a nail causing a slow leak. I am not saying that you must crawl under your truck and give it a close inspection every day. Whatever you decide, just take note that tire inspection is something that needs to be done at least every couple of weeks, in my opinion.
More Weather Wear
Driving in different types of weather can cause different types of stress on your tires. This is especially the case when driving in extremely hot weather. The road will get very hot and heat up your tires as you drive and that takes layers of rubber off. This, in turn, causes quicker wearing of the tires tread and can mean quicker tire changes are necessary.
To recap, truck tires need more attention because they tend to get a lot more miles put on them quicker than the average car due to being used for work. They also carry more weight and have more opportunity to catch FOD or foreign object damage. Also, weather, especially hot weather, will wear down your tread quicker.
