The Ultimate Guide to Chevy Tire Care and Maintenance

Dec 27, 2024

Modern tires are made from high-quality rubber and other materials, but even they will wear down or become damaged over time. As your Chevy dealer, we’d like you to know a few signs you need to visit us for tire maintenance.

Sidewall Damage

The sidewalls are the tire sections perpendicular to the surface. They’re made from softer, more flexible rubber than the tread. This flexibility helps absorb shocks from driving over uneven surfaces and keeps your vehicle on the road. Unfortunately, the softer rubber is more easily damaged by sharp or hard objects, which makes leaks more likely.

If part of the sidewall is pinched against a hard object, like the curb, it can form a bubble. The air inside a tire heats as you drive, and since the area around a bubble is stretched thinner than it should be, the bubble can easily burst, and your tire will blow out. We can’t repair a bubble, as that section of the tire has broken down, but we can replace it to prevent a serious accident.

Cracked Tires

Rubber is the perfect material for tires, combining strength and flexibility. As time passes, even the highest quality rubber loses flexibility due to heat, cold, mud, water, and sunlight exposure. As a tire loses flexibility, cracks develop and will expand and deepen as the tires heat up when driving and cool when your Chevy is stationary.

If the cracks reach deep enough into the rubber, this can cause a leak. Our technicians will examine your tires, and we can repair minor leaks, but the more extensive the cracks, the greater the chance the tire can’t be repaired. If you have a severely cracked tire, we’ll install a replacement and balance it for you.

Bald Tire

The tread is the raised section of the tire in contact with the surface. It appears as raised sections separated by grooves that help push mud, water, or snow away so it doesn’t build up under the tire. This section usually suffers more wear and tear than other tire sections as it’s directly in contact with the surface, and this causes friction damage as you drive.

As the tread thickness drops, you’ll notice vehicle handling becomes difficult, your braking distance increases, and fuel economy will fall. The minimum safe tread depth is 2/32″, but a bald tire has almost no tread. This makes it very dangerous, as the lack of tread can easily cause a skid. We can replace a bald tire in minutes, and you’ll be able to drive safely again.

If you have a tire problem, contact our service department right away at Blue Ribbon Chevrolet in Sallisaw, OK.

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