Tire Installation

Quality Tire Installation: Balancing Safety, Comfort, and Performance

No vehicle will ever get anywhere without a good set of wheels. Quality tires determine the smoothness of the ride and even your ability to arrive at your destination safely. Improper tire installation can have a lot of unpleasant consequences, which you can avoid with regular maintenance by the team at Tire Mart. 

Balancing safety, comfort, and performance in tire installation is what we do best here at Tire Mart. If you’re interested in learning more about proper tire installation, you’ve come to the right place. 

What Goes Into Your Tire Installation 

New tire installation is a multi-stage process, and each stage requires a steady hand and professional experience to get it right. 

1. Choosing the Right Tires

There is no “right” tire for everyone. Wheel and tire installation will vary depending on geography. Live in a snowy area? You might go for winter tire installation to keep from skidding on ice. Driving in a more temperate climate? All-season tire installation could be the better choice. 

But whatever you decide, you’ll need to choose between different tire sizes and tire brands to meet your needs. Our skilled technician can help you make the right decision.

2. Getting Those Old Tires Off

The experts at Tire Mart will use powerful hydraulic jacks to lift the vehicle into the air for tire removal. A mechanic will then loosen and remove the tire’s lug nuts and disconnect them from the wheel hub to get the tire off. 

3. Wheel Inspection

Our mechanic will also take the time to give the wheels a thorough analysis, looking for damage or corrosion. Remember that the entire wheel might need replacement if we find something. 

4. Mounting New Tires 

Next, it's time to bring out the new tires. Our mechanic will conduct a complete tire alignment to ensure that they're mounted properly. 

5. Balancing

It’s not enough to just mount the tires. Our mechanic will also perform tire balancing to make sure their weight is distributed equally across the vehicle frame. Improper balancing can cause a rough ride and faster tire wear, so it’s crucial to get this part right. 

6. Tire Inflation

Vehicle manufacturers provide recommended tire air pressure levels for every vehicle they make. Our mechanic will use this as a guide for inflating the tire pressure to the exact recommended specification. 

7. Keeping Them Tight

Tire safety also depends on the level of lug nut torque used when mounting new tires to the wheel hub. To avoid problems, the tire should be neither too loose nor too tight.

8. Testing and Inspecting the Newly Installed Tires

After installing the tires, a full round of testing and inspection is now on the menu. Our technician will conduct a tire pressure check to ensure that the tires are properly inflated. They’ll also look at the tightness of the lug nuts and even give the vehicle a short test drive to check for handling concerns. 

9. Disposal of Those Old Tires

You can’t just throw old tires out wherever you want. Tire Mart offers tire recycling services to ensure responsible and environmentally friendly tire disposal. It’s good for the planet and makes life a lot easier for you at the same time. 

Knowing When to Replace Tires 

How do you know when you need a tire replacement? This is a vital question for any vehicle owner, and there are some simple guidelines to keep in mind. Any of the following situations mean a replacement is probably warranted:

• Tire tread depth of less than 2/32nds of an inch
• Tires over 10 years old
• Puncture holes bigger than a quarter of an inch 
• Obvious tire damage, especially cuts or cracks along the tread or sidewall 

Keep in mind that tires must fit the vehicle — not just physically, but in terms of its driving characteristics as well. Frequent commuters don’t necessarily need the same tires as someone who only drives every once in a while. Likewise, SUVs require much bigger tires than your average sedan. Getting the right tire for your vehicle is a crucial part of the installation process.

Tire Mart: Delivering Your Every Tire Installation Need

Tire Mart takes great pride in being an experienced tire maintenance and repair service for our friends and neighbors in Lake City, FL. Our expert team is ready to help you select, mount, and test new sets of tires matched to your exact vehicle specifications. 

If you need tire service, just call us today at (386) 752-0054.