Dale Guerrieri, as a tire industry veteran for more than 40 years, understands that it is very important people take a look at their tires and do basic safety inspections as well as basic maintenance on a regular basis. Drivers often leave their tire alone until they notice they are low or until they have some problem with them. Often this is an indication the tires have not been safety checked often enough and they have not been maintained properly.

There are a number of basic safety precautions a vehicle owner can take to insure that their tires are safe to be driven on. One of the most important and least done, says J. Dale Guerrieri, is to regularly check the tire pressure. Over time, tires will naturally loose air. This will occur and knowing that should encourage owners to be checking their tires regularly. At least once a month or before a long road trip, check your tires, says J. Dale Guerrieri. You can get a very nice gauge or a cheap gauge and they will both work well. Inexpensive tire gauges can cost well under ten dollars. If you save a trip to the tire store or the mechanic, it will be a 10 dollars well spent. If you are not sure what the proper pressure for your tire should be, the amount will be listed in pounds (lbs.) on the sidewall of the tire.

J. Dale Guerrieri knows that you also want to make sure that you check the tires when it has not been in operation for a while. When tires heat up they increase pressure so you can be incorrect in your inflation. Check in the morning before work and you should be fine. Be sure to also check the spare as you would not to have a need for it and it is unsafe to drive.

You should also regularly check the tread depth. There is a very old test where you can easily check your tire tread depth. It is the Lincoln penny test. If you can see all of President Lincoln’s head, you need to replace the tires. Know that you know you have enough tread left. Is the tread even across the entire tire and even all across all of your tires? It is also a good time to check for any damage to the tire sidewalls.

Dale Guerrieri understands that in an ideal world you will get all four tires replaced at the same time. Unfortunately that is not always possible. You do however need to purchase two at the same time and many tire dealerships will not sell only a single tire unless it is to be used as the spare. It is also very important, says J. Dale Guerrieri, to have your tires rotated on a regular basis. It is recommended that tires be rotated every 5000 – 7000 miles. If your tires have been wearing unevenly then you will want to take it in to have it looked at. There is a good chance you need an alignment and that is not something to be put off. Putting off the alignment can make your car a danger to yourself and to others.