Do you know how old your tires are? And why is this important?

Every tire has a “born on” date at the end of the DOT (Department of Transportation) code that’s on the sidewall of every tire sold in the US.

On this tire, the last 4 digits of the DOT code represent the week (42)  and year of manufacture (02).  In this example the tire was made in the 42nd week (October) of 2002. (Pre-2000, it would have been 3 digits).

Most tire manufacturers recommend replacing your tires every 6 years due to age, and will warranty a tire for 4-6 years against defects, workmanship and materials.

We’ve always kept a small inventory, with good local suppliers, that have just about everything you’ll need.

As rubber ages, it becomes like brick, rather than a cushion and tires will definitely lose their grip and “wear out” due to age alone. We see it with RV tires and 1999 Buick’s with 30K on them all the time.

With a grain of salt, check out this undercover report from ABC News

So take a look…..How old are your tires?

1.  Use the “penny test” to check for tread depth. The old test still works – place a penny in a major tread groove of a tire with Lincoln’s head facing down. If the top of Lincoln’s head is visible at any point in any major tread groove your tire should be replaced.

2.  Look at your tires. Look for any cracking, cuts, bubbles and irregular wear.

3.  Check the tire pressure and check the spare. Make sure all the tires are properly inflated. Check the owner’s manual or the placard that’s usually on the inside of the driver-side door to find the right air pressure. Check the pressure when the tires are cold and look for missing valve caps that need to be replaced.

4.  Rotate tires every 5,000 – 7,000 miles. Rotating tires on this regular basis is the best way to get the most out of them.

5.  If you get a flat tire miles from home, make sure the person who is repairing it does it properly. The only way to properly repair a tire is to remove the tire from the wheel. Plug type repairs are temporary at best because there may be internal damage that they won’t see and fix-a-flat is a last resort.

Or watch these useful tips from Michelin:

For more information about Michelin, our favorite tires, go to http://michelinman.com/.

Let us help you choose a tire, or do your own research and let us know what you’d like in a tire…..We’ll order the tires, wherever they are and schedule a time for installation.

We can pick your car up from home or work, then drop it back off.  Or if you’d prefer, we can give you a ride home, to work or the T with our free shuttle.

What kind of accent would it have? What kind of personality would it have? Where would it tell you where to go for service? Is it a happy car? Or not feeling all the love lately?

And if an On-Star agent in Michigan can open the doors and start your car remotely, then wouldn’t it be nice if the Check Engine Light was more than that, and could tell you what’s wrong, so you wouldn’t have to pay the mechanic to tighten your gas cap? Or tell you that you should have shut the car off as soon as the light came on to avoid further damage.

Today’s cars have the technology to go a little beyond the check engine light simply being on or off, and I fully support the campaign to “Ban the Check Engine Light“as it is now.

I think your car would agree, if only it could talk.

Take a look at this neat video from Michelin on Oversteer vs. Understeer and see why it’s so important, that when replacing just 2 tires, to put them on the rear.

Do You Do-It-Yourself? Have you ever changed the oil or bled the brakes on your cars?

At Kenwood Tire and Auto Service, today’s cars don’t get fixed with busted knuckles…..Today’s cars are fixed with information, torque specifications  and having a plan of action.

To me, 21% seems like a lot of people to be doing it for themselves. So if you’re mechanically inclined, perhaps you could give it a go with the help of Mitchell 1′s eAutoRepair. This is the same information that the pro’s use, in laymans terms……And you can get it here.

Read the survey by Consumer Reports: Survey: Consumers trust their shop for car maintenance and repair.

What I found interesting was that the survey also found that most consumers do some research first. Do you research your car repairs and maintenance? Where do you go to do research?

At Kenwood Tire and Auto Service, we like both RepairPal and AutoMD becaue both are free Car Repair Encyclopedias. that in simple terms, explain how components and systems work so you can understand and have an enlightened conversation with the repair shop.

Take a look at this survey by Consumer Reports: Survey: Consumers are running risks by postponing car maintenance or repair.