You rely heavily on your truck tires to keep your vehicle performing to the best of its ability and to maintain the right level of road grip and stability while you are driving.
Tires are one of the most important semi truck parts you need, and integral to the safety and performance of your vehicle. That’s why it is so critical that you choose the right tires for your truck.
Here’s a comprehensive look at what characteristics you need to look for and how to select the right tires for your semi truck.
How is your tire made?
A good place to start would be to have an understanding of what is actually in a semi truck tire, and how they combine to make each tire deliver a high level of consistency and durability.
A noticeable difference between semi truck tires and other types of tire is that it usually contains a much higher level of natural rubber and steel. In addition, a truck tire will consist of curing systems, fillers, and synthetic polymers. It is this carefully calculated combination that helps deliver the levels of performance and longevity that you expect.
A truck tire also has considerably more layers of body plies than you might envisage. This serves to strengthen the structure. The tire also has multiple belts, helping to stabilize and strengthen the inner and outer tread, as well as the sidewall.
When you are looking at a price list and range of options for your truck tires, you can start to appreciate all of the components and manufacturing ingenuity that has gone into making your tire.
What different types of truck tires can you get?
You will find that there are three main types of truck tire to choose from.
Steer tires, can also be called front tires, and are positioned on the front axle of your truck. They are specifically designed to provide a good level of traction and steering precision.
Drive tires are positioned on the drive axle of your semi truck. A notable characteristic of these tires is that they have deep treads. These are designed to cope with heavy loads and offer heavy traction performance.
Trailer tires are the ones that are mounted on the trailer and have been designed to provide the right level of control and stability.
You will find that these different types of trailer tire are made with certain weight-bearing capacities. That’s why it is important that you check with your tire supplier so that you match the right tires against the weight of your truck and your cargo capacity.
You can also get all-position tires. As the name suggests, you can use these where appropriate. This is usually when you are doing long-haul driving or urban journeys with your semi truck.
Changing your tires regularly can offer several rewards
It is worth noting that tire technology is constantly evolving. This means that when you upgrade and replace your existing truck tires you are almost certainly going to be investing in a new tire that has benefited from technological improvements from the last model.
One example of how this benefits you would be how new tires offer minimal rolling resistance. This equates to notable fuel cost savings, especially when you keep your tire pressures at the right level all the time.
A tire sizing guide
You need to pay close attention to sizing when choosing your truck tires. It helps to understand what the numbers on the side of your tire means. This will allow you to correctly identify the right width, and other critical dimensions.
A typical truck size that you will see on the wall of your tire would be 275/70R22.5, for instance. The first part of that sequence, the 275 number, stands for the width of the tire. It represents either a measurement in millimeters or inches. The next part of the number, 70 in this case, describes the aspect ratio. This is the measurement of the height of the tire from bead to tread. The letter after the number stands for either radial, diagonal, or bias belt. This describes the construction method used when making the tire.
The last part of the number tells you the rim diameter of the tire, or the diameter of the center of the tire.
It’s important to match these numbers and descriptions up with what you already have, so that you get the right fit and tire performance. If you are in any doubt, talk to your supplier, who will be happy to confirm the right tire for your truck.
How to get the best out of your truck tires
As well as making sure you invest in a good quality truck tire that has been built to last, you also want to make sure you get a tire that exactly meets your required size and proportions.
The final part of the equation involves choosing the right tire for the sort of driving that you are going to be doing regularly, such as highway driveway.
Highway driving can cause uneven wear and tear if you are not careful. It is easy to end up with a tire that needs replacing because the outer side has worn more than the rest of the tire. There are several things you can do to counteract the threat of uneven tire wear.
Choosing the right tire size is of paramount importance. It also makes a huge difference to wear and tear when you select a tire that has the correct load capacity for your requirements.
Other key considerations are tread type and the tire’s speed rating. It pays to be mindful that tires are not only rated for weight, but they also have a rating for the maximum speed they can be used at. If you are going to be pounding the highway in your truck, having the right tires underneath you can make all the difference to how your tires perform and last.
Now that you know more about truck tires, you should be in a position to make a more informed purchasing decision when you are buying your next set of tires for your semi truck.