Subaru of Wakefield

The importance of good tires is often underrated.  They provide traction to move, stop and steer your car and they do this while getting punished by potholes and whatever else the road or Mother Nature may throw at them. 

Replacing tires is a major expense and there are hundreds of choices.  Tires are one of the biggest compromises that have to be made regarding vehicle maintenance.  The most expensive tires for your car can be four or five times the cost of the cheapest ones.

What tire is right for your Subaru?  At some level you get what you pay for but the most expensive tires tend to be ultra high performance tires which unless you autocross or participate in other spirited driving events are not necessary for normal street usage. 

At Subaru of Wakefield we have found that the original equipment tires, typically Bridgestone or Yokohama tires are generally well suited for Subaru's.  We also carry Michelin and Goodyear tires.  There are some less expensive alternatives that give good service but there generally is an unfavorable compromise that is made with these tires such as road noise.  Generally really cheap tires seem to have problems, such as staying balanced, making them unusable before the tread wears out.  In the long run these usually are not the most cost effective way to go. 

At Subaru of Wakefield we stock original equipment tires as well as alternatives and are competitive with our tire prices.  If you find the identical tire elsewhere for less let us know and we will meet the price.  Our tire prices include mounting and balancing

we have the latest, best, Hunter tire balancing, aligning and mounting equipment.  Our Hunter GSP 9700 Road Force wheel balancer and Hunter DSP600 Aligner are invaluable tools in diagnosing any steering or vibration issues your vehicle might have.  Our Hunter TC3250 tire mounting machine lets us mount the lowest profile tires without damaging the rims.

Tires need maintenance too.  The pressures should be checked at least monthly.  All 2008 and newer cars have a LTPWS (low tire pressure warning system) light that comes on when the pressure in any tire drops below approximately 29.4 psi.  These systems are very useful but outside air temperature has a significant effect on tire pressures so if the tires are set at 33 psi on a 75 degree day the light will come on when the outside temperature drops to freezing temperatures.  Our technicians have been adjusting the tire pressures accordingly for the winter months.

The tires should be rotated every 7,500 miles.  The reason for this is to keep the tire wear even.  If the tires weren't rotated the front tires would wear out significantly faster than the rears because all of the steering and most of the braking is done by the front wheels.  Modern all wheel drive systems require that the tires be very close in size and therefore need to be replaced as a set of four.  The reason for this is because smaller (worn) tires spin faster than newer tires and the AWD system reacts as if these tires were slipping due to traction loss.  This puts unnecessary wear on the AWD components that are trying to put traction to the tires that aren't slipping. This tire size difference can also adversely affect how your Vehicle Dynamic Control system works. 

Tires are what attach your vehicle to the earth, it makes sense to treat them well.

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