Tyres can lose air pressure for plenty of reasons, including temperature changes, punctures, and simple overuse. Drivers often ignore the problem, even if their car's tyre pressure warning light has come on. After all, nobody likes the idea of having to pay for a new tyre or a repair job, and even topping up the pressure might seem like an unnecessary hassle. Unfortunately, while not as serious as driving on a flat, continuing to cruise normally on underinflated tyres can do serious damage to your car, your wallet, and even your own safety.
1. You'll Cause Plenty of Damage
Your car needs the cushioning provided by properly inflated tyres to protect the frame from the impact energy caused by bumps in the road – even the smallest imperfections can cause damage without that cushioning. If one or more of your tyres is underinflated, your car won't be protected.
You could bend the rim of a wheel if you hit a pothole or break the suspension shocks if you keep driving without protection. After a while, you'll even risk throwing the wheel alignment off or damaging the frame of the vehicle itself. These problems are all far more expensive and time-consuming to fix than a simple underinflated tyre.
2. Increased Risk of Blowouts
If your tyres are underinflated, consider yourself lucky – it's far better than having one of them blowout during your daily drive. Unfortunately, continuing to drive will just make a blowout more likely. More of the tyre's surface area will touch the road as it loses pressure. This increases friction and causes damage. The resulting blowout can easily lead you to lose control; a rear blowout, for example, might cause the car to bend or spin.
In fact, one study demonstrated that cars with underinflated tyres are three times more likely to be involved in a crash related to tyre problems than one with properly inflated tyres. In the United States alone, they predicted around 660 highway fatalities and 33,000 injuries each year were due to underinflated tyres.
3. Impaired Control
A blowout can result in a sudden loss of control, especially since they will typically occur without warning. However, even regular driving can be dangerous with one or more underinflated tyres, despite the fact that the loss of control is less dramatic.
Drivers will often find that they cannot bring their vehicle to a stop as quickly as usual, so you might slam on your brakes and find yourself still travelling forwards long after you would normally have come to a complete stop. Handling will also be impaired, usually feeling sluggish and unresponsive. In either case, you won't be in full command of your vehicle, and that can come with serious consequences.
For more information, contact an auto service shop in your area.
Share15 April 2016
If you drive a lot for business, you probably put a lot of kilometres on your vehicle. Whether you are driving from client to client in the same city or driving across the country, your vehicle needs to be well prepared for the journey. You don't want to miss out on a great opportunity because your car has broken down on the way to the meeting. Hi, my name is Carla, and I've been stranded on the side of the road, desperately trying to reach a client to reschedule. After that experience, however, I decided that I needed to pay more attention to auto service, and recently I decided to create this blog to help others in similar situations. Thanks for reading! I hope my tips help you!
