A damaged tyre is something that can happen to any car at any time, regardless of how careful the driver is or how new the tyres are. Therefore, it is vital to check your car tyres regularly as doing so can help you easily lower the repair costs and even reduce the risk of an accident arising out of tyre malfunction.
Below are the most common tyre damages that happen to motorists –
- Punctures
- Cuts
- Bubbles
- Irregular wear of tyre tread
Other than the above, if you suspect anything else that might have gone wrong with the tyre of your vehicle, you should inspect and repair it without any delay. For doing so, you might need to visit a local tyre shop as you might not have the tools and/or knowledge on how to repair it.
How Often Should One Check His Car Tyres?
Experts recommend that one should check their car tyres once every week. While making the inspection, one should keep a close eye on obvious signs of damage such as worn-out patches, irregular tread patterns, and cuts/cracks. One should even run his hand along the tyre to check for any sharp object that might have got stuck in the tread. Of course, checking the air pressure is also necessary, and it should be kept at the optimum level. One can also make use of a coin or a tyre tread depth measurement tool to understand the wear pattern of the tread.
Given below are the common problems one faces with his car tyres along with their reasons-
Run Flat Damage
- Reason
- Continuous driving with low inflation or puncture
- How to Avoid?
- Always maintain correct tyre pressure
- Check tyre pressure on a weekly basis. These checks should be made when tyre is in a cold state
- Make sure you put the valve cap back
- Stop the car immediately on sensing a puncture
- Stop the vehicles safely after the tyre/tube gets punctured
Sidewall Bubble
- Reason
- Prolonged usage in low pressure or puncture condition
- Damage due to improper mounting or demounting of tyre on the rim
- How to Avoid?
- Maintain optimum tyre pressure
- Come to a safe halt immediately after the tyre gets punctured
- Stop the vehicle safely after the tyre/tube gets punctured
Nail Cut
- Reason
- Repeated rubbing of a nail or any sharp object on the sidewall can cause to the low sidewall region
- Due to the damage, the side loses strength and bulges out
- How to Avoid?
- Always drive very carefully on bad roads
- Come to a safe halt as soon as the tyre is punctured
Sidewall Bulge Due to Impact
- Reason
- In case your car tyres’ side wall hits a blunt object light a pavement, or even a pothole, it can cause damage to the ply cords on the sidewall region. At times, there is no sign of this damage
- Driving at high speed with low inflation pressure leads to sidewall bulging out
- How to Avoid?
- While driving, one should be careful and avoid getting too near to blunt surfaces or potholes at high speeds
- One should be slow when driving over potholes and speed humps
Sidewall/ Shoulder through Cut
- Reason
- Driving over objects with sharp edges
- How to Avoid?
- Drive carefully
- Stop usage of a tyre past its shelf life
Sidewall Undulation
- Reason
- Driving of overweight vehicle
- How to Avoid?
- Inflate tires correctly
- Timely ge wheel alignment done
- Tire rotation at manufacturer-recommended intervals
Wavy Tread Wear at Shoulder
- Reason
- Worn out suspension
- Loosened bearings
- Defective rotating parts
- How to Avoid?
- Correct maintenance of suspension
- Replacement of suspension parts
- Get wheel alignment done at the right time
Tread Burst
- Reason
- Impact with sharp objects
- How to Avoid?
- Careful driving
- Improper tyre mounting
- Usage of wrong size/defective/ rusted/ reconditioned rim
