Does your car make strange noises when you brake? Are you hearing metal churning noises when you turn? Aside from the engine, your car’s wheels are subject to a massive amount of wear and tear and will require regular maintenance. From worn-out tires to noisy brake pads and worn rotors, your wheels can have a plethora of problems. Continue reading this guide to learn more about how to maintain your wheels for your vehicle.
Brake Rotors
Brake rotors are attached to every wheel and it’s what brake pads press into to provide friction to slow and stop your car. Understandably this friction causes significant wear.
To maintain your brake rotors, you must first inspect them to the best of your ability. Signs of wear include grooves, scores, and discoloration. Any of the previous could mean that your rotors need resurfacing or replacement.
Resurfacing a brake rotor is done by machining the grooves and scores into a new flat surface for the brake pads to contact.
Brake rotors are replaced when they are too heavily worn to be resurfaced or have suffered sufficient damage. It is essential to match the specifications of the original rotors, which you can find a list of replacement rotors at websites such as https://www.allrotors.com.
Brake Pads
As mentioned before, brake pads are what provide the friction to slow your car. Ensuring proper maintenance of your brake pads is essential for avoiding spontaneous collisions and hazards.
An indicator of worn brake pads can be squealing or grinding noises when applying the brakes or turning. Additionally, they can be inspected manually for damage, but it can be difficult to spot.
Unlike brake rotors, brake pads cannot be resurfaced and must be replaced when they reach the end of life. Your vehicle’s brake pads have a specified thickness of when they need to be replaced which you can find in your car’s manual or by looking it up online.
Tires
Lastly, and the most replaced are your actual rubber tires. Driving along road surfaces will slowly wear and erode your tire’s treads and they must be replaced as it can be a huge risk while driving.
You can identify when your tires need replacement by visually inspecting for the following:
- Tread Depth
- Uneven Wear
- Cracks
- Bulges
- Foreign Objects
Each of the above can be addressed in many ways depending on severity. Tread depth for example can be measured to know if you need to have your wheels replaced.
Foreign objects and punctures can be dealt with on a case-by-case basis and can be plugged without needing to replace the tire. However, it is still critical that you replace the wheel whenever you can.
Lastly, ensure that you get the proper tires for your car and its use case. If your car is primarily used in snowy and stormy weather, getting tires that are favorable in those conditions can improve handling and safety.
Bottom Line
For those with a quick wit after reading this, you will have understood that a lot of car maintenance is dealt with by visual inspection. If a part of your wheels fails a visual inspection, you can then dive into addressing the specific problem before it becomes a bigger problem.
We recommend you have a set day where you spend a few minutes inspecting your vehicle every 2-3 weeks. By staying on top of your car’s needs you can extend the lifespan of your car significantly.
