BEFORE YOU GO: Do You Need New Tires?

When you are preparing to drive somewhere, how often do you check your tires before you leave?

If you're like me, virtually never. Frankly I don't think about tires at all unless a mechanic is telling me straight up I need to get tires...

...or worse yet, while I am stranded on the side of the to road, trying to change my tire to while cars are speeding by me in the rain.

Don't Let This Happen to You!

Every year, hundreds of motorists are severely hurt or killed while trying to change a tire on the side of the road. It is important to do whatever you can to prevent being stuck roadside. 

While it is impossible to guarantee you won't have a flat tire while on your road trip, if you are regularly checking for tire wear, you can greatly increase your odds of not being stuck on the side of the road with a flat.

Checking for Tire Damage

The easiest way to check for tire damage is to actually walk around your car and look at the tires once in a while. This may seem to obvious, but many people, (myself included), don't really think about their cars to much until it is too late.

When you look for tire damage, you should take a close look at each tire individually. Look for spots where the rubber has holes or is peeling away from the frame. Also look for anything stuck in the tires, like nails, spikes, metal shards, road debris, etc.

While you are at it, you should check your tires for tread wear.

The Lincoln Method

"What in the world is there Lincoln Method?" 

This is probably what you are thinking right now. You are probably wondering what this has to do with tire wear. 

It has to do with our friend Abraham Lincoln on the penny:

See, the idea is that you're going to use the penny to figure out how much tread you have left. 

(For the record, I got this idea for checking for tread from the folks at Firestone. Thanks, Firestone!)

The idea is that you're going to take the penny and put good ol' Honest Abe head-first into your tire's read in several different parts of the tire and see if you can see Lincoln's head or not. If you can see Lincoln's full head, then you need to get a new tire.

You should put Lincoln's head in each major tread that goes the full length around the tire, as pictured below. This will help you determine not only if your tires is wearing out, but also if it is wearing evenly.

Checking your tire's wear in several different locations will help you figure out if your tire is wearing unevenly.

And that's it! With this cheap simple method you can figure out if you need tires without wasting time sitting at the shop!

Be Safe and Have Fun!

As always, we here at Everything Road Trip are here to help you have a fun and enjoyable trip. Be sure to check those tires and be safe!