Tire Balancing is important to extend the life of your tires and your vehicle. Here at Alpha Tire, we offer quality tire balancing.

What it does: Out-of-balance tires can cause uneven wear, vibration, and potentially unsafe driving performance. Therefore, it is essential to balance tires frequently based on the requirements of your vehicle.

When wheels need to be balanced: Tires are balanced when you replace 2 or 4 tires on your vehicle. Every vehicle is different because there are different conditions on the road and different driving habits. Tires must be checked every 4,000-6,000 miles. Our professional technicians at Alpha Tire can help identify whether your tires should be rotated and balanced based on the wear or mileage.

How to tell if your tires need balancing:

• Vibrations when driving
• Uneven Tread Wear
• Steering that becomes less smooth over the life of the tires
• Pulling to one side

Benefits of balanced tires:

• Smoother ride
• Better miles per gallon
• More even tire wear
• Prolonged life of tires and drive train parts

Part of maintaining a healthy vehicle includes changing used or faulty tires. Alpha Tire can help you pick the right tires and get them installed on your vehicle.

Tire Maintenance is essential to the safety of your car. Tires need the correct dimension for the vehicle make and model. Therefore, it is recommended that tires are bought in sets of four or at least match groups of 2 on each axle.

Why it should be done: Tires wear over time, tread starts to become thin, which can result in the wheel losing traction. Manufacturers recommend tires not be used longer than 10 years. Replacing tires is suggested to be changed every 6 years.

You may need new tires if:

• Your tread is below 4/32 or cannot pass the “penny” test
• Footstep is noticeably minimized or flush with the tread bars
• Irregular tread wear
• Bulges, bumps, or soft spots on the tire
• Damages to the tire that cannot be fixed

Chat with our mechanics about how we set up your new tires:

• Checking the lug nuts for wear
• Installing new valve stems
• Installing the tires
• Proper balancing of the tires
• Checking the disc brake caliper clearance
• Measure the distance in between calipers, wheels, and rims to inspect for potential disturbances
• Tightening lug nuts to proper torque

Flat tires can cause the rim of the tire to rest on the tire tread off of the ground triggering loss of control of the vehicle or damage to the tire. One of the most common causes for a flat tire is piercing of the tire by a sharp object. Depending on the size of the puncture, air can release slowly or much quicker. This may result in the following:

• Failing of or damages to the valve system
• Permitting air to escape from the valve or creating damage by means of a deliberate puncture
• Rubbing of the tire against the roadway, ripping the tire, or separation of tire and rim by accident with additional objects
• Extreme wear of the tire tread causing explosive tire failure or permitting roadway debris to tear through it

There are many ways to catch tire issues before they become either costly or dangerous. Examine each tire carefully and watch for these easy distinguishing factors:

• Excessive or too little air pressure
• Problems with wheel alignment or tire balancing
• Problems with the suspension
• Unequal tire wear might be an indicator that you need your tires rotated

If you notice any of these issues, you may need new tires. Driving with a flat tire, especially at high speeds, may result in a fatal collision. These problems have the possibility to create a blowout, inducing loss of control of the vehicle.

Tires should be rotated every 3,000-6,000 miles or with every oil change.

What this does: Rotating your tires is vital for helping your tires last longer. This suggests changing them from one side of the vehicle to the other, relocating them from the front to the back, or a mix of both. This depends on what was done on your vehicle previously. Some tires must be rotated at certain times, while others will have to be rotated depending on the tire's wear.

Why service is vital: unequal tire wear could lead to unsatisfactory performance, poor fuel economy, shorten the life of the tire, and can easily cause safety issues.

Many factors can cause unequal tire wear:

• Strenuous driving routines, stop and go city traffic, road construction, bumpy surfaces, or potholes
• Under-inflated tires
• Worn shocks
• Unaligned wheels
• Worn elements
• Not rotating your tires

What Alpha Tire can do during a tire rotation:

• Rotate tires in alternating patterns
• Examine overall quality and safety of tires
• Examine tire tread
• Inspect for effective inflation
• Tighten up lug nuts