TYRE CARE AND MAINTENANCE
It's very important to properly maintain your tyres. Not only will this increase your safety while driving but it will also increase the life of your tyres, saving you money.
Balancing
Properly balanced tyres and wheels spin with all their weight distributed equally. Unbalanced tyres can result in tyres wearing unevenly and needing to be replaced more frequently.
When your tyres are fitted, balancing should be part of the fitting procedure.
Alignment
Proper alignment ensures that all wheels on a vehicle are pointed in the optimum direction to the road and each other.
Tyres on a misaligned vehicle degrade handling and don't wear equally, reducing their tread life.
Rotation
The purpose of regularly rotating tyres is to achieve more uniform wear on each tyre.
If no period is specified in your owner's manual, then the tyres should be rotated every 12 000 km.
Cleaning
Cleaning tyres removes foreign substances from the tyre surface that can degrade the tyres. We recommend soap and water.
Punctures and repairs
If any tyre sustains a puncture, have the tyre inspected internally for possible damage.
Tread-area punctures in all passenger and light-truck tyres can be repaired provided:
- The puncture hole is not more than 0.635mm in diameter
- Not more than one radial cable per casing ply is damaged
- The tyre has not been damaged further by the puncturing object or by running underinflated
Plug-only repairs done on-the-wheel are considered unsafe and therefore, not recommended. Such repairs are not reliable and may cause further damage to the tyre.
Inspect your tyres regularly
Check your tyres at least once a month for uneven wear and foreign objects wedged in the tread.
A tyre that continually needs to be pumped up should be taken off the vehicle and checked thoroughly.