When you visit a reputable auto repair shop, you may be offered a tire rotation service either with an oil change or other routine maintenance. But you may wonder, do I really have to rotate my tires? What does this service actually do, and can I do without it? Let's take a look at what a tire rotation is and how important it is to your vehicle's health.
A tire rotation service consists of essentially moving around your tires. For example, the front passenger side tire is moved to the back driver's side spot. All of the tires are moved places, which allows each tire to wear down the same. This prevents the front tires from wearing faster than the back, which can typically occur. This saves you money on tires over time, and allows you to change your tires as a set rather than one by one or two by two.
When you rotate your tires, you give them a chance to wear out at the same time as each other and you get extended life out of your tires. You should have your tires rotated approximately every 3,000 to 5,000 miles, or at least every time you get an oil change performed. Tire balancing may also be recommended during a tire rotation, which is another service that can help extend the life of your tires.
Not rotating the tires will cause uneven wear on the tires and fair them to wear out faster on all vehicles. The front tires will wear terribly due to the fact that most of the braking occurs in the front, since they are the steer tires and the drive tires. Rotating your wheels is different from your alignment, and does not affect your alignment.
So, is tire rotations important? The answer is, yes! They are extremely important, especially when it comes to protecting the integrity of your tires and saving you money over time. If you need a tire rotation performed, we invite you into our auto repair shop today!